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This Sunday marks the final fight card of a packed month of July for the UFC. Already the biggest month in years for the MMA promotion, Sunday’s fight card is stacked to the rafters, ready to give July 2015 the send off it deserves. In the main card, two legends square off for the first time as Joe Lauzon takes on Takanori Gomi.Stand up specialists Edson Barboza and Paul Felder go at it in a potential fight of the night winner. A shot at the Women’s bantamweight championship is up for grabs as Miesha Tate faces Jessica Eye. And T.J. Dillashaw will defend his Bantamweight championship against Brazilian legend Renan Barao in the most anticipated rematch in UFC history. We take a look at the matches on the main card and offer our picks:
#1 Joe Lauzon [24-10] vs. Takanori Gomi [35-10-1]
The American icon against the Japanese legend. The main card kicks off with two perennial fan favorites going at it in the Lightweight division. While Gomi still packs a mean punch, his takedown and wrestling defense is not what it used to be. On the other hand, Lauzon has been in many a war during his storied UFC career.
If this fight had gone down a couple of years ago, we would have been talking about it as a co-main event in a PPV. That isn’t to suggest that both these fighters are past their best, but had this happened a little while ago, we’d all be a lot more excited for it. Still, this is a fight worth watching. Ultimately, Lauzon’s superior submission skills, mixed in with Gomi’s depreciating defense, gives the American the advantage in this one
Perdition - Lauzon via Submission, Round 2
#2 Edson Barboza [15-3] vs. Paul Felder [10-0]
This was originally supposed to be Anthony Pettis vs. Miles Jury. However, Pettis was replaced by Barboza after pulling out with an elbow injury. Eventually, Jury would pull out with injury as well to be replaced by Felder. While Pettis vs. Jury would have been fun, this fight is going to be insane. Neither of these fighters have a strong ground game. A Jiu Jitsu purple belt in Barboza is squaring off against a blue belt in Felder. Where their strengths lie is in the stand-up department. Barboza is a Taekwondo and Muay Thai black belt while Felder is a black belt in Karate and a second-degree black belt in Taekwondo.
Barboza’s leg kicks are devastating and his speed is unmatched at times. Add to this his one punch knockout power and you have one of the most dangerous fighters in MMA. Felder on the other hand has some of the best hand and feet combination work out there and is utterly unintimidated by whoever stands before him. Felder is the more creative fighter and can make in-game adjustments with relative ease.
While Felder may not be the most powerful striker, he is more technically correct. One only has to look at the kickboxing fight between Bob Sapp and Ernesto Hoost to understand what advantage superior technique plays to superior power.
Prediction – Felder via TKO, Round 3
#3 Miesha Tate [16-5] vs. Jessica Eye [11-2-1]
The winner of this fight has been promised a shot at the winner of the bantamweight championship bout between Ronda Rousey and Bethe Correia. Tate has already faced Rousey twice, losing on both occasions. For Eye, this is the biggest fight of her career. She has never competed for a title in a major promotion before.
Tate has evolved her game under the guidance of Coach Robert Follis and is improving with every fight. She has superior wrestling and will be looking to take Eye down and control the position.
Eye on the other hand, is very well rounded and has exceptional take-down defense, something Tate will have to overcome. Eye also has exceptional hand speed and is lauded for her use of variety on the feet. She often mixes a series of quick jabs with body shots and uppercuts before her opponent has a chance to react. However, this may not be enough to stop the reformed Tate
Prediction – Tate via Unanimous Decision.
#4 T.J. Dillashaw [11-2] vs. Renen Barao [33-2-1]
The rematch that everyone has been waiting for. After losing his first ever professional fight, Renen Barao went on a tear for the next 33 fights beating all challengers. On the way he helped himself to the UFC Bantamweight championship and defended the belt 7 times. T.J. Dillashaw was supposed to be number 8. Dillashaw however, had other ideas.
In a stunning display of Muay Thai, Dillashaw outclassed one of the pound for pound best to become the Bantamweight champion. Dillashaw seemed to know Barao better than Barao knew himself and unloaded an arsenal of responses to all of Barao’s moves. The big question is can Dillashaw pull it off again?
Since their fight, Dillashaw has defended his championship in dominant fashion against Joe Soto winning a performance of the night bonus for his display. Barao, for his part, has beaten Mitch Gagnon winning the performance bonus as well. The problem with Barao’s win over Gagnon is that he didn’t seem to have anything new to offer. It was his traditional game, which while devastating against most, was woefully ineffective against Dillashaw. So, can Barao make the necessary adjustments needed to elevate his game? If he doesn’t, Dillashaw will run all over him just like he did in the first fight. Dillashaw also brings with him the takedown threat having superior wrestling ability.
Prediction – Dillashaw via TKO, Round 4.
