MMA News – July 7, 2011

• Brian Stann will see a big step up in competition when he fights the returning Chael Sonnen at UFC 136.  A lot of people think that Stann and Sonnen are similar people, given their outspoken pro-America stances.  However, I think it’s more accurate to say that Brian Stann loves America and Chael Sonnen is a xenophobe.
• So much for that Charles Oliveira vs. Joe Lauzon fight – Oliveira will fill in for Paul Taylor and fight Donald Cerrone at UFC Live 5.  I love this fight and think Cerrone will be far more challenged than he was against Vagner Rocha.  These are two guys on the verge of breaking through in the UFC lightweight division and I’m excited for this one.
• In other UFC news, Dan Miller will replace Alexandre Ferreira at UFC 134 and will fight Rousimar Palhares.  There’s only one question you need to ask about this one: can Dan Miller defend the heel hook?  If so, I anticipate a victory for Miller.  If not, I expect his ankle to be broken.
• Cris “Cyborg” has apparently agreed to a new contract with Strikeforce.  To me, this is a good sign that Strikeforce won’t be disbanding their women’s division.  I’m still holding out hope that the UFC acquires all male talent contracts from Strikeforce, while Strikeforce will be marketed as the UFC for women.  They’ve recently signed and resigned some big fighters, so I guess it could happen, but I won’t hold my breath.

About these ads