Saturday, August 6, 2011, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will go live from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for UFC 133 - Ortiz vs. Evans featuring a light heavyweight tilt between former champions, "The Huntington Beach Badboy" Tito Ortiz (16-8-1), and "Suga" Rashad Evans (15-1-1). Below you will find our picks for the evening's main-card, one that has been riddled with injuries in the months and weeks leading up to the event, but nevertheless, promises some thrilling match-ups.
Rory MacDonald (11-1, 2-1 UFC) vs. Mike Pyle (21-7-1, 4-2 UFC)
Rory MacDonald is perhaps the most exciting young talent to come out of Canada since Georges St. Pierre; possessing a quiet confidence, the Kelowna, British Columbia native who now trains out of Tristar in Montreal, Canada, has stopped ten opponents in eleven career wins. The veteran Pyle, out of Xtreme Couture, has a twelve-year experience advantage over the young gun, and finds himself on a three-fight winning streak with quality decision wins over John Hathaway and Ricardo Almeida. Despite Pyle's strong success of late I'm picking Rory MacDonald here, who will utilize his speed and advantage standing to take a unanimous decision on the judge's cards.
Jorge Rivera (19-8, 7-6 UFC) vs. Constantinos Philippou (7-2, 1 NC, 0-1 UFC)
There are no secrets when it comes to Jorge Rivera, the man simply likes to brawl. At 39 years of age, Rivera has more or less been a main-stay in the UFC since 2005, and was a winner in three straight contests before losing by TKO to England's Michael Bisping at UFC 127 in February of this year. Admittingly, I've seen much less of Philippou, who lost a hard-fought decision in his UFC debut to local favorite Nick Catone at UFC 128. A winner of seven consecutive bouts before then (1 NC), all in the Ring of Combat cage, I'm going with the younger, fresher man out of Serra-Longo Fight Team. Philippou takes a late TKO stoppage in round 3.
Dennis Hallman (50-13-2, 1 NC, 3-4 UFC) vs. Brian Ebersole (47-14-1, 1 NC, 1-0 UFC)
When first glancing at the records above, you might feel inclined to clear your eyes as these fighters have a remarkable 127 fights between them. Brian Ebersole made his octagon debut in his 62nd career bout this past February when he upset wily veteran, Chris Lytle via unanimous decision. The 30-year old out of Bradley, Illinois, has stopped 33 career opponents inside the distance and has never been knocked out in his professional career. 35-year old Dennis Hallman on the other hand made his UFC debut nearly eleven years ago defeating Matt Hughes by way of arm-bar submission at UFC 29 - Defense of the Belts. Having never been submitted himself Hallman has finished 39 opponents by that very method, and our guess is that he catches Ebersole (who has been tapped nine times) before this fight reaches the judge's cards.
Vitor Belfort (19-9, 8-5 UFC) vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama (13-3, 2 NC, 1-2 UFC)
Looking at this fight, the first thing that comes to mind is it could very well come down to a war of attrition. Akiyama at 1-2 inside the octagon, could just as easily be 0-3 with a controversial split decision over Alan Belcher. The world-class Judoka is a smooth and fluent athlete, but carries a frame that looks more suited to the welterweight ranks. Both men have power in their hands, and will look to test the waters standing early. Their submission games will likely neutralize that aspect of the fight, so take-downs may prove critical as both men have been difficult to stop in their respective careers. As the bigger, faster man with an edge in experience against top-tier competition, I expect Belfort to use more refined striking en-route to a unanimous decision or perhaps, late TKO stoppage. Akiyama's back is against the wall however, and should he find a way to frustrate Belfort's potent attack early on, he could make this a very competitive fight down the stretch when fatigue sets in.
Rashad Evans (15-1-1, 10-1-1 UFC) vs. Tito Ortiz (16-8-1, 15-8-1 UFC)
Don't expect this to be fight of the year, but what we can anticipate is for it to be every bit as competitive and hard-nosed an effort as you would expect out of these two combatants. In Tito's prime this would have been a bout for the ages, but years of competition and injury have naturally slowed the fierce competitor, forcing him to rely on other parts of his game that do not instill the same fear in opposition that his wrestling and ground and pound once did. Tito will have a size, and likely strength advantage heading into the contest as well as the confidence that comes with a recent victory inside the octagon. Evans should experience some ring-rust as he enters the cage for the first time in well over a year, but the man that Rashad was in 2007 is merely a shell of the fighter that exists today. World-class training and numerous "big time" fights has made the former champion a well-rounded, force to be reckoned with, and while he may have difficulty controlling a fresh Ortiz in the first, Evans will prove to be too quick, more diverse, and have more in the tank in the final two stanzas as he takes a unanimous decision on all judge's cards.
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