Sep 16 UFC Fight Night 25 Preview: Battle of the Bayoo

The fights that matter, according to yours truly:

UFC fans with access to SPIKE TV will be saving their PPV money for next week’s UFC 135 which will feature rising sensation Jon “Bones” Jones against rising movie star (?) Quinton “Rampage” Jackson...and it looks like the UFC was saving their talented fighters for UFC 135 as well. The card for UFC Fight Night 25 reminds me of the saying, “you get what you pay for”...well, here are the fights that are worth your time, but not your money:

Main Event – Jake Shields (26-5-1) vs Jake Ellenberger (24-5-0)

What did Shields do after his last loss before GSP? He went on a 6 year and 15 fight win streak.  While Shields may be 1-1 so far in the UFC, he’s winless in my books in terms of his performance.  I didn’t think I could be more disappointed by Shields after his fight against Kampmann, until I saw his fight against St-Pierre. Does Shields bounce back with a more complete UFC game, accentuated by the kind of improved striking ability he will need to showcase to make it back to the top, or is his time as a dominating fighter over?

With 15 of his wins coming by way of TKO, one man who knows how to use his striking ability is Jake Ellenberger. The big question, when facing an opponent with the kind of supreme ground skills as Jake Shields, is will he be too tentative in fear of being taken down and ultimately submitted by the BJJ master?

Prediction:  I have little confidence in Shields anymore, but I still think that at one point he will find the form that made him the most sought after fighter outside of the UFC.  Jake Shields by submission

Alan Belcher (16-6) vs Jason MacDonald (25-14-0)

Both of these fighters are coming off injuries that saw them miss significant time, however MacDonald is the more fresh of the two having coming back at UFC 129 with a quick win over Ryan Jensen.  Belcher is far more talent than MacDonald however, and really should be riding a 5 fight win streak, had it not been for bad judging who awarded Akiyama a split decision win at UFC 100. Belcher had originally wanted a higher calibre opponent in Bisping, but will have to settle for beating the Canadian back out of the UFC.

Also of note on the card:

• We will finally get to see Jonathan Brookins fight in the UFC as he takes on a very tough Erik Koch
• Evan Dunham was a rising star, but 2 straight losses has him fighting for his career in the UFC
• Seth Baczynski is coming off a win against Tristar’s phemon Alex Garcia, which tells you how close Garcia was to getting into the UFC.

Tags: Alan Belcher \ Battle of the Bayoo \ Fight Night 25 \ Jake Ellenberger \ Jake Shields \ Jason MacDonald \ MMA \ UFC