Showdown Joe's vacation is coming to a quick end, but there's plenty he's looking forward to upon his return.
Thanks to the great staff at Sportsnet, I was able to view the two satellite interviews that Tito Ortiz did with Frank Trigg and Vitor Belfort.
I'm not surprised Trigg is upset at the network for not being selected as my replacement while I'm on vacation. Trust me, when I see Frank in Dallas, I will not hear the end of it. It's safe to say that during my next vacation, I better submit his name to the decision makers at Sportsnet or I may be in for a world of hurt should we ever shoot a "Fight School" segment with "Twinkle Toes."
As for Belfort, I'm definitely looking forward to his main event performance next weekend. He was the first fighter from way back in the day that inspired me to learn how to punch as a southpaw.
Having always been an orthodox puncher, I recall how a few of us in the late '90s would show up to class and practice sparring as southpaws. The running joke was that we seemed to launch the left straight down the pipe well enough (a la Belfort vs. Tank Abbott, Scott Ferrozzo and Tra Telligman) but our lead jabs were so terrible that we simply went back to learning techniques from an orthodox stance.
As my vacation comes to an end, there is so much that I am looking forward to when I get back.
One of these things is the debut of Season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter, featuring coaches Quinton "B.A. Baracus" Jackson vs. Rashad "I wanna smash Rampage" Evans. Also on the show is Kimbo Slice, and by the look of this video he should have just walked in with a huge bull's-eye on his back. Having interviewed Kimbo in the past, he is definitely a great guy and not what he's been made out to be. He was all class, but something tells me that every heavyweight on TUF 10 wanted Kimbo as their first opponent.
Before the debut of TUF 10, the UFC will broadcast Ultimate Fight Night 19 featuring a bevy of awesome bouts. The main card will include Nate Diaz vs. Melvin Guillard, Roger Huerta vs. Gray Maynard, Carlos Condit vs. Jake Ellenberger and Tim Credeur vs. Nate Quarry.
Quickly breaking down these fights, Diaz needs to get this fight down on the ground IMMEDIATELY. If he stands and trades with Guillard, I do not like his chances. If there was ever a fight that takes me back to the days of Royce Gracie where it's a style vs. style matchup, this is that type of fight. Diaz the grappler vs. Guillard the striker: if Diaz plays with fire, he will likely get burned.
The Huerta vs. Maynard matchup is a tough one to call. Both guys are well rounded with Maynard likely being bigger, stronger and the better wrestler. Huerta will need to neutralize Maynard's wrestling or he may run the risk of losing his final bout in the UFC. This is the last fight on his contract and he will likely not re-sign as he contemplates acting full-time.
In Condit vs. Ellenberger, I'll go with Carlos's experience to deal with Ellenberger's early onslaught and pull out a submission victory while Credeur vs. Quarry is going to be an incredible war.
Since his back surgery, Quarry has looked great and I believe he will be too much for Tim. Mind you, Tim's a smart submission fighter and Nate better keep those limbs in check, but I don't believe Credeur will get the chance to submit Quarry, but anything can happen.
It's MMA -- anyone, on any given night, can pull off the upset.
