Jason MacDonald

Jason 'The Athlete' MacDonald is a Canadian mixed martial artist. He lives in Red Deer, Alta., with his wife Kelly and four children, boys Tristin and Keel, and girls Jett and True. He blogs regularly for sportsnet.ca.

I'm in Vancouver and I'm excited about Saturday's fights. I think this fight card has flown under the radar. There are some great match-ups on it.

It's been a while since I've been here. I've always liked Vancouver, it's a great city, on the water, and pretty beautiful.

I saw the doctor Wednesday afternoon, and he gave me the green light to start swimming and moving my ankle. At this time next week I can start putting a little weight on the broken foot although I will still be on crutches. That's been the No. 1 no-no up until now.

Two weeks from now I can start walking with the cast on and no crutches. So I'm pretty optimistic I can make a full recovery and be back training by August.

There hasn't been a lot of headlines here. Mainly it's been talking about Pat Barry's admiration for Cro Cop and Evan Dunham and Tyson Griffin not being friends, just training partners.

Anyway, here are my UFC 115 picks:

Chuck Liddell vs. Rich Franklin

I've seen pictures of Chuck and been reading that he's in phenomenal shape, but I question what more Chuck wants to get out of fighting. He's already a superstar and already a millionaire. His back is against the wall here; he needs to win the fight or his career is done. Dana White has said that this week.

Rich is in a similar situation. It's not exactly as desperate, but he's lost two out of his last three and is struggling to remain as one of the top guys. So I think it's a do-or-die fight for both. Chuck definitely has more on the line, but I think at this point Rich is more motivated and still has goals to achieve in his career and he's still struggling to reach the status as Chuck. So I'm going to go with Rich.

Pat Barry vs. Mirko Cro Cop

I think Pat is the better fighter. He's younger, closer to the prime of his career, and I've said it before that I think Cro Cop has lost that desire and has had a rough go of things since coming to the UFC. I'm starting to wonder though if Barry hasn't let Cro Cop get into his head a little bit, without Cro Cop even saying a word. I'm a bit hesitant to pick Barry, but I'm going with him.

Paulo Thiago vs. Martin Kampmann

This is a tough fight to pick. Thiago has impressed me each time he fights but I consider Martin to be a pretty good friend of mine. I'm torn between two choices. I'm going to pick my friend. I'm going to go with Martin.

Ben Rothwell vs. Gilbert Yvel

We heard so much about Yvel before he came into the UFC and then he got beat up by Junior Dos Santos. However, Dos Santos was knocking everyone out. I'm choosing Yvel. Rothwell is predominantly a striker and I think that plays right into the hands of Yvel. Yvel should win by knockout.

Carlos Condit vs. Rory MacDonald

I don't know much about Rory MacDonald, just what I've read that he's young and tearing through these older, tougher veterans. But he's really stepping up in competition against Condit, a former WEC champion. I think this is a big one for him, but maybe too big. I'll have to take Condit. I hope Rory proves me wrong, I'm definitely here to support the Canadians. My heart is for the Canadian but my gut is that it will be too much for him at this point.

Tyson Griffin vs. Evan Dunham

This is a fight that has potential for fight of the night. There's a ton of interest for me, I was down at Randy's and I've seen them train together lots of times. I've always said if you have an opportunity that means fighting a training partner, you should do it, because the sport is about getting paid and moving forward in your career. If there are times it has to happen, it has to happen. And it makes it interesting too. I think it's going to be a great fight. Anybody would be a fool to count Griffin out. I think they're both incredibly tough and it will be great fight to watch, but Tyson's my choice here.

Mac Danzig vs. Matt Wiman

Wiman's always entertaining, if nothing else, win or lose. I think of his fight against Sam Stout last year. I'm looking forward to this one. I think Danzig will be too good on the ground for Wiman. I'm going with Danzig.

David Loiseau vs. Mario Miranda

I know absolutely nothing about Miranda, but he comes from Matt Hume's school and has a great record. And based on David's last performance in the UFC against Ed Herman -- and his only fight since he beat Chester Post, who's 4-14 -- I don't like Loiseau's chances. So once again, my heart's with the Canadian guy, but I'm going to go with the newcomer.

Ricardo Funch vs. Claude Patrick

Again I know nothing about Funch. But Patrick's record (11-1) speaks for itself. I'm going with the Canadian. My heart's with him and I believe has the skills and record to back it. (Not that MacDonald and Loiseau didn't!)

If anyone's reading this blog and will be in Vancouver and you see me, come by and say hello. I've already had couple people come up to me and say they hadn't read the blog and were wondering who I was picking in the main event!