Floyd Mayweather vs Robert Guerrero – This weekend brings us Cinco de Mayo and as it has become tradition in the sport of boxing a big fight is scheduled this one being between Floyd Mayweather and Robert Guerrero. It is no coincidence that this will be the third time in the last three years that Mayweather has fought during this holiday weekend particularly when you take into account that Mayweather defeated Oscar De La Hoya around the same time in 2007, the fight that launched Floyd from boxing star to the face of the sport. Although he is only fought four times in the last four years it is expected that Mayweather will be much more active being as he recently signed a groundbreaking contract with Showtime and that at age 36, time is not on his side. When last in the ring a year ago Mayweather defeated Miguel Coto decisively yet showed that he had lost a bit of speed allowing for him to be hit more often than the norm given his excellent defense. Guerrero himself won by unanimous decision in his last ring appearance against Andre Berto in a grueling bout, which saw Mayweather sitting at ringside scouting what would be his next opponent. Guerrero had been calling for a big fight against the likes of Mayweather for a couple years now and while many doubted he would be granted such an opportunity it is now upon us however there are just as many if not more that thinks he is just another name waiting to be added to Floyd’s resume. On Saturday we shall find out if father time has indeed caught up with Mayweather and if so how it may adversely affect him or if Guerrero has bitten off more than he can chew [...]

The Good Jon Jones – At UFC 159 light heavyweight Jon Jones did what what was expected of him by dominating challenger Chael Sonnen, stopping him in the first round with strikes. Jones deviated from his usual strategy of feeling out his opponent early on and attacked Sonnen from the get-go taking him down numerous times in the fight where he used elbows to bust up his challenger. The champ finished the fight with a series of unanswered elbows and punches prompting the referee stoppage with less than 30 seconds left in the opening round. The only damage Jones took was a freak accident at the end of the bout that severely broke the big toe on his left foot. That aside Jones turned in a flawless victory and tied the record for most title defenses in the 205 pound division at six with former champ Tito Ortiz.   Danny Garcia vs Zab Judah – While the aforementioned Jones versus Sonnen contest unfolded as most anticipated, Danny Garcia’s Junior welterweight title defense against Zab Judah was anything but. Garcia looked good for the first eight rounds mixing up punches to the head and body of the former multi-division champion hurting him on more than one occasion and sending him to the canvas in the eighth round. Just when it looked like Judah would pack it in as he has done so many times in the past he surprised those watching and in attendance by not only surviving but thriving in the championship rounds. Judah stunned Garcia in the 10th round and turned on the aggression from that point on forcing Garcia to fight going backwards in a role reversal. While the champ appeared to be fading down the stretch he bit down and slugged it out with Zab in the [...]

  Jon Jones vs Chael Sonnen – At last after all the talking and build up this Saturday Jon Jones will defend his UFC light heavyweight championship against Chael Sonnen in the UFC 159 main event. Those who are unaware of the circumstances of how this fight came to be may be wondering how Sonnen, who is coming off a loss to UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva and has not competed in the 205 pound division in more than six years received such a prestigious opportunity. The seeds of this fight were planted in September 2012 when Jones was sent to face Dan Henderson at UFC 151 until Hendo had to withdraw at the last minute due to injury. With little time to find a replacement Sonnen offered to take his former teammates spot in a chance to fight for the title. Unfortunately for the UFC and fans Jones and his coach Greg Jackson declined the opportunity which would ultimately lead to the entire UFC 151 event being canceled. Chael afterwords went on an anti-Jones campaign accusing the champ of ducking him. Jones would successfully defend his title later that month submitting Vitor Belfort in the fourth round and not long after it would be announced that Sonnen would be next in line for the title shot. To help build up the fight Jones and Sonnen would first oppose one another as coaches on the 17th season of The Ultimate Fighter.   While Chael emerged victorious on the show seeing to his charges reach the final, it is Jones who is the overwhelming favorite heading into Saturday’s bout and it’s easy to see why. Jones is still essentially undefeated as his sole loss came via disqualification against Matt Hamill who he was in full control of before being disqualified for [...]

  The Good TUF 17 – As mentioned in my predictions for The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale, this season has been one of the best and fittingly the finale delivered a fun night of fights and a big upset. The show kicked off with a fight between TUF 17 participants Bubba McDaniel and Gilbert Smith which was actually better-than-expected and ended with McDaniel submitting Smith in the third round with a triangle/arm bar combination. The following fight was a heavyweight bout between Gabriel Gonzaga and Travis Browne which was almost over as soon as it started. As Gonzaga had Browne against the cage and was working for a takedown, the Hawaiian fighter landed a series of elbow strikes to the side and back of the Brazilians head that put him down and out just over a minute into the first round.   That was followed by the second ever women’s MMA fight in the history of the UFC as Miesha Tate and Cat Zingano competed for a coaching spot on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter along with the number one contendership to champion Ronda Rousey. In the best fight of the night both ladies went all out from the opening bell throwing strikes and trading positions on the ground. Tates edge in experience showed early as she took the first round and was ahead for most of the second. Zingano would turn the tables with a minute left in the second round when she got on top and unloaded with punches on the former Strikeforce champ. Going into the third the fight was up for grabs and while Miesha looked good early the undefeated Zingano would once again turn the tables and pound Tate from the top position. Tate attempted to stand only to be met with a [...]

  Nonito Donaire vs Guillermo Rigondeaux – The super bantamweights take center stage this Saturday as the top two fighters in the division Nonito Donaire and Guillermo Rigondeaux cross paths in a title unification bout. Donaire has been mentioned amongst the best pound for pound fighters in the sport since his second round destruction of Fernando Montiel but fans have cooled on him of late due to his opposition. While Nonito has not beaten a string of nobody’s the fact that he did not face Abner Mares despite his insistence of his desire to do so is one of, if not the main reason he has begun to see a backlash. On the other hand you have Rigondeaux who has only a third of the professional experience of Donaire but whose amateur pedigree is second to none. Rigondeaux won the Olympic gold medal in both 2000 in 2004 but didn’t turn pro until 2009 after defecting from Cuba. The amateur standout has gone unbeaten in 11 fights thus far along with acquiring the WBA 122 pound championship. This contest will certainly be a contrast in styles where the explosive Donaire will look to exploit the efficient and technically sound Cuban. A win here should silence some of Donaires naysayers even if only temporarily whereas a victory for Rigondeaux will be the ultimate validation for a man who left his family behind in hopes of providing a better future for them and himself.   916Chris’ – It’s interesting to see how many people are picking Rigondeaux although I’m not sure if that’s because they actually believe he can win or due to the growing dislike for Donaire. While I can be added to the list of those who were frustrated with Nonitos efforts or lack thereof to put together a showdown [...]

The Good Mike Alvarado vs Brandon Rios – Regardless of the medium it is rare where a sequel is better than its predecessor but fortunately for fight fans that was the case for Saturday’s rematch between Brandon Rios and Mike Alvarado. The first battle, which took place in October of last year was regarded by many as the best fight of 2012 thus expectations were lofty for this encounter. Early on in the fight Alvarado lookedto box as most expected he would but Rios just kept marching forward, landing shots and it looked like “Bam Bam” was on his way to duplicating the results of the first contest, particularly after rocking and almost knocking “Mile High” down with a jab in the second round. Rios came out aggressively in the third looking to chop down Alvarado but the challenger began landing some powerful overhand rights. The fight took a dramatic turn when Alvarado buckled Rios with a big right hook to the jaw with just over 30 seconds left in the third round as he flurried upon the champ in an attempt to finish him off which was unsuccessful as the round came to a close. The next few rounds saw both men trading shots and perhaps rounds depending on how one scored it but either way the fight was close and the action nonstop.   Every time it appeared that Rios was gaining momentum and was perhaps getting the better of Alvarado, Mik would respond most notably in the eighth round where he once again hurt Brandon. As the bout got into the later rounds Alvarado appeared to be pulling ahead by out boxing Rios from a distance while also continuing to land hard shots although each round was close and highly competitive. Entering the championship rounds the belief [...]