UFC 198 Preview

This weekend the UFC returns to Curitba, Brazil for UFC 198. Being as the event is being held in Brazil, the former get card obviously has a very Brazilian flavour to it, with the UFC rolling out the biggest Brazilian names it could find to draw in the crowds. In the main event, the undisputed heavyweight champion, Fabricio Werdum, will face the young buck, Stipe Miocic, for the heavyweight title in an intriguing match up. Werdum is coming in to this fight with a legit claim as being the greatest heavyweight fighter ever, following title runs in Strikeforce and now the UFC, dispatching Fedor Emelianenko and Cain Velasquez in decisive fashion along the way.

The Brazilian heavyweight has world class Jiu Jitsu but has made notable improvements in his striking the past few years and is now able to end the fight on the feet or on the canvas. Werdum enters the fight on a six fight win streak, with his last loss coming at the hands of Alistair Overeem in back in 2011. Stipe Miocic hasn’t had quite the career that Werdum has, but at the young age (in heavyweight terms) of 33, there’s plenty of time for him to make his presence felt at heavyweight. Predominantly a striker, Miocic has shown a calculated style of striking in his previous fights that allows him to pick opponents apart with volume before landing the finishing blow. Miocic has some big name wins on his resume, including a TKO win over Mark Hunt, something that shouldn’t be scoffed at. Both fighters will be coming in to the fight with serious momentum however the favourite will be Werdum, and rightly so. His superior ground game and improved striking will give him the edge in the fight and whilst Miocic can give Werdum problems on the feet, if Werdum can get him to the canvas, it should prove decisive.

The co-main event is a middleweight fight between title contenders, Jacare Souza and ‘The Young Dinosaur’ Vitor Belfort. Both of these fighters posses one punch knockout power and excellent grappling skills, however since coming off the TRT, Belfort hasn’t looked to be the same fighter as he has been in previous years and has looked like he has lost considerable size and speed in his previous fights. Souza is coming in to this fight after a close decision loss to Yoel Romero, which was later overturned to a no contest following a positive drug test by Romero. Prior to that, Souza was dispatching fools for fun at 185lbs and will be hoping to regain some of that momentum against a fading Belfort and it’s easy to see him doing that here.

Finally Chris ‘Cyborg’ Justino will make her UFC debut in a catchweight fight at 140lbs against a bloated strawweight in Leslie Smith. Expect nothing less than a Justino victory here, possibly by murder as Smith will be outsized and hugely out skilled in this fight and it’s a struggle to see any way in which she will be able to win this fight.

Former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua continues his slow march to retirement with a dangerous fight against upcoming light heavyweight Corey Anderson. Rua’s career has been on a downward slide since losing his title to Jon Jones and whilst he has picked up some wins since then, his losses has been devastating and seen him take some huge head trauma. Rua will look to build on his lacklustre win over Little Nog in his last fight but he faces a tough opponent in Anderson, who’s 5-1 in his UFC career and is a well rounded fighter. If Rua can come in to this fight looking anywhere near the Rua of 2007 then it’ll be a short nights work for the Brazilian but the chances of that happening are slim to none, so expect a close fight with Rua possibly taking the decision.

Fights to watch on the undercard; Matt Brown vs. Demian Maia obviously, John Lineker vs. Rob Font and Sergio Moraes vs. Luan Chagas

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