The UFC returns this week after pressing pause on the action for 18 days—a break that felt like just the right amount of time following six events in six weeks and leading into another stretch with eight events in eight weeks, including the first of several “Two Shows, One Day” Saturday’s on the horizon.
It’s been refreshing, but it’s time to get back down to business in the Octagon, and I have to admit that I’m genuinely stoked about Friday’s event from Abu Dhabi.
UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs Nelson weigh-ins results
Yes, I said Friday.
Being that I’m on the West Coast, it’s actually Friday morning for me, as the preliminary card gets underway just before 9:00 a.m. on Fight Pass.
While many of your reading this in North America are scratching your heads wondering, “What were they thinking starting an event at 9 a.m. PST/Noon EST on a Friday?” the truth is that this event isn’t geared towards our viewing experience whatsoever, and that’s actually a good thing for the UFC.
Friday’s start time translates to 8 p.m. in Abu Dhabi, where the event is being held and Friday is actually part of the weekend there, so for the paying customers attending the event, this is no different than a Saturday night fight card in Anytown, U.S.A.
As our international readers can tell you, the experience North American fight fans who opt to watch the event live will have on Friday is no different than what they’ve been experiencing for years with the UFC, getting up (or staying up) to unreasonable hours in the morning to watch live events.
I tried to do it last year while I was on vacation in Ireland and failed miserably. It’s not as easy as it sounds in theory, especially not after a full day of traveling and being a tourist.
And this—to me—is where Fight Pass earns its keep.
My guess is there will be a fair number of people tuning into the event on the sly from work on Friday, catching some of the action on their smartphones or tablets while in transit. You couldn’t do that prior to the advent of the UFC’s new digital platform, at least not without paying more than the $10 monthly subscription fee, and that limited you to these fights and these fights only.
As I said last month, the platform feels like it was rushed, but I like what I’ve seen so far and have high hopes for the future.
I also have high hopes for this card, even if not many other people do.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is fighting royalty to me, and while he’s nowhere near the same fighter he was during his Pride days, there have been several instances in the past where he’s been counted out, only to deliver a “turn back the hands of time” type performance.
After Frank Mir busted him standing at UFC 92, we got his epic battle with Randy Couture. Following the thumping he took against Cain Velasquez, he sent the crowd in Rio into a frenzied state by knocking out Brendan Schaub.
Coming off a 10-month absence and a loss to Fabricio Werdum, this could very well be a swan song for “Minotauro,” but he could also come out Friday night and out-box or out-grapple Roy Nelson, and I for one am curious to see which one happens.
“Big Country” is in an interesting spot as well, having dropped consecutive contests after climbing back to the fringe of contention on the strength of three straight first-round knockout wins. He’s historically beaten opponents in the middle tier and below, but who can say for sure where Nogueira fits in the heavyweight division right now.
Either way, these are two veterans with well-rounded skill sets and I wouldn’t be shocked if they turn in a surprisingly good showing in the main event.
Each of the three remaining main card fights intrigues me for different reasons as well.
Tatsuya Kawajiri is undefeated since moving to featherweight, including an impressive submission win over Sean Soriano in his UFC debut, but now he gets a stern test in the form of Clay Guida.
Love him or hate him, there is no denying that Guida is a tough out and that’s exactly the type of fighter we need to see “The Crusher” up against at this point in order to find out whether this is a good run against mediocre competition or he’s a serious threat in the 145-pound ranks.
I’m really interested in seeing Ryan LaFlare step back into the Octagon as well. He’s another quietly confident Long Island native who is content to rack up wins under the radar, just like current middleweight champion Chris Weidman did early in his UFC career.
That being said, he’s looking to make it four straight in the UFC (and 11 straight overall) on Friday against John Howard, and while the welterweight division is always loaded with talent, there comes a point where you can’t overlook the guy with four consecutive wins anymore.
There is zero flash to LaFlare’s game—he’s a former lacrosse player who took his blue collar approach to that sport with him when he transitioned to MMA—but the pairing with “Doomsday” is solid and offers another chance for the unbeaten 30-year-old to continue his climb up the divisional ladder.
Rounding out the main card is a lightweight pairing between former TUF finalist Ramsey Nijem and Beneil Dariush.
Nijem has been inconsistent since his days on The Ultimate Fighter, putting together a 4-2 record since losing to Tony Ferguson in the Season 13. He halted a two-fight losing streak with a solid effort against Justin Edwards last time out, but this fight—at least for me—is all about his opponent.
Dariush looked good in his debut win over Charlie Brenneman, but it’s hard to really get a handle on where a prospect stands when a fight ends in less than two minutes as that one did. So this is an encore opportunity—a chance to show that dropping Brenneman and finishing him was the tip of the iceberg, and not the high water mark for the 24-year-old Kings MMA representative.
Toss in a preliminary card fighters I want to get a closer look at (Jared Rosholt, Jim Alers) and that’s not a bad little event.
Besides, there isn’t much better than watching fights over bacon, eggs, and a cup of coffee, rocking your pajamas and riding the couch with your dog by your side.
