It’s finally here!
UFC 148: Silva vs. Sonnen is set to happen this Saturday night (July 7th) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Expectations are sky-high for this one given all the bad blood between the two main event fighters – UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and challenger Chael Sonnen.
Bitter rivals Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen hope to settle the score with the Middleweight Title on the line
In a world where many fighters talk smack and play up their emotions for the sake of drawing attention to fight time, neither one of these two guys have had to do any of that at all. The tension between the two has been palpable enough in and of itself to draw attention to this fight.
Simply put, there is no love lost between these two.
The world has seen Chael Sonnen use his time in front of the microphone to launch pro-wrestling inspired jabs, hooks, and crosses at Anderson Silva ever since their first fight at UFC 117 in August 2010. Backing up his talk, he out-landed Silva by over 200 punches, took him down at will, and passed his guard six times in their first fight… only to lose by triangle choke submission in the waning moments of their 25 minute war.
Since that night, the world has debated whether Sonnen simply slipped up and gave that fight away, or if Silva, largely presumed to be the #1 pound-for-pound fighter currently in all of MMA, had an off-night compared to his usual brilliance despite winning the bout.
No matter what the prevailing opinions have been since UFC 117, this Saturday night hopes to answer any and all questions surrounding the bitter Silva vs.. Sonnen rivalry. And the whole world will be watching.
Retirement-ready Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz steps into the cage one last time against Forrest Griffin
Aside from the main event, recently-announced UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz will be making that long walk to fight in the UFC’s octagon one last time when he takes on perennial fan favorite Forrest Griffin in a rubber match of their trilogy that started way back at UFC 59 in April 2006. “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” edged out a split decision against the original Ultimate Fighter in their first bout only to give it back when the two fought for the second time at UFC 106 back in November 2009. Now with two split decisions behind them, the two will look to finish out their trilogy in this bout.
Ready to move into a retirement and a speculated broadcast role covering MMA with ESPN or another major outlet, Ortiz will close out the last chapter of his career forever being known as one of the trailblazing pioneers of the entire sport. Making his debut at UFC back in ’97, Tito did his fair share of carrying the UFC in their early years as one of the popular fighters of the era and as dominant UFC light heavyweight champion.
He would go on to feud with UFC frontman and former manager Dana White throughout his career but amazingly enough, he’s fought practically his entire career (minue one bout very early on) within the confines of the UFC octagon. He’ll retire with 27 UFC bouts on his record and a well-deserved spot in the organization’s hall of fame.
So long Tito. Thanks for the memories.
UFC 148 undercard to feature several other veterans; top prospects
Aside from the two headlining bouts, the rest of UFC 148 promises some other pivotal bouts featuring some current and future contenders, along with a few fights that are just flat-out exciting.
There’s former Strikeforce top dog Cung Le fighting for the second time in UFC since losing to Wanderlei Silva at UFC 139. He’ll be taking on Canadian striker Patrick Côté in his first bout back in the UFC since October 2010.
Then there’s BJJ world champion Demian Maia who’ll be debuting in the lighter welterweight division after doing his part to contend at middleweight – going so far as to face Anderson Silva for the title and losing by decision. He’ll be taking on Korean “Stun Gun” Dong-Hyun Kim – a fighter who’s only career loss on an otherwise spotless record has been to current interim welterweight champ Carlos Condit.
The last two PPV bouts feature some exciting guys in the lighter weight classes including Chad Mendes – second only to José Aldo at featherweight. He’ll be taking on guillotine specialist Cody McKenzie while up-and-coming Lloyd Irvin protégé Mike Easton takes on longtime veteran Ivan Menjivar.
See below for the full card and predictions!
UFC 148 Predictions
UFC 148 – Main card (PPV)
185 lbs.: Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen (TITLE) –Silva by TKO, RD3
205 lbs.: Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz –Ortiz by split decision
185 lbs.: Cung Le vs. Patrick Côté –Le by TKO, RD2
170 lbs.: Dong Hyun Kim vs. Demian Maia –Maia by submission, RD2
145 lbs.: Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie –Mendes by TKO, RD2
135 lbs.: Ivan Menjivar vs. Mike Easton –Easton by unanimous decision
UFC 148 – Preliminary card (FX)
155 lbs.: Gleison Tibau vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov – Nurmagomedov by unanimous decision.
155 lbs.: Melvin Guillard vs. Fabrício Camões – Guillard by knockout, RD1
185 lbs.: Constantinos Philippou vs. Riki Fukuda – Fukuda by unanimous decision
155 lbs.: John Alessio vs. Shane Roller – Alession by unanimous decision
UFC 148 – Preliminary card (Facebook)
155 lbs.: Rafaello Oliveira vs. Yoislandy Izquierdo – Izquierdo by TKO, RD2