LESS THAN 24 HOURS away from the return of the UFC to FUEL TV. This entire week MMACAGECHATTER has brought you an in depth look at each fight and fighter on the main card and picked a winner. Today we continue with the Welterweight brawl between Paulo Thiago and Siyar Bahadurzada.
Remember if you think you can pick the winners better than me head over to our Facebook page and post your winners for the entire main card or do the same on my Twitter @cagechattererik. If you beat me you will be put into a drawing for a glove signed by Strikeforce's Antwain Britt or an XL Form Athletics T-shirt.
The Fight: Paulo Thiago vs Siyar Bahadurzada
This fight marks the octagon debut of Siyar Bahadurzada. He was slated to face Erick Silva at UFC 142 but withdrew due to injury. Thiago is coming off a decision victory over David Mitchell at UFC 134. This classic striker vs grappler and should be very interesting to see who can force the other out of their comfort zone.
video from eldargross (youtube user)
Siyar Bahadurzada( 20-4 overall 0-0 in UFC) is a heavily talked about striker fighting out of Golden Glory, Kingdom of Mayham and Reign Training Center camps. Half of his wins have come by way of knockout and he also holds a very impressive submission game. He has a crazy aggressive style of fighting where he rarely takes a step backwards. He is a veteran of Sengoku, Shooto and United Glory Promotions and held the Shooto Light Heavyweight Championship. He was a 2008 Sengoku Middleweight Grand Prix Semi-Finalist and 2010-2011 United Glory World Series Welterweight Champion.
video from espnhd.com, ufc.com and hellojapan05 (youtube user)
Paulo Thiago (14-3 overall 4-3 in the UFC) came in to the UFC with a bang knocking out top contender and TUF runner up Josh Koscheck with an uppercut and earning Knockout of the Night. He trains at Cruzerio Esporte Clube in Brazil. He is a black belt in BJJ and a black dan in Judo. No matter where the fight goes Paulo is excellent, he holds one Knockout of the Night award, one Fight of the Night award and one Submission of the Night award by utilizing the rarely seen D'arce Choke when he beat Mike Swick at UFC 109. He started out his pro career with eleven straight victories, since then has gone 3-3 dropping fights to Jon Fitch, Martin Kampmann and Diego Sanchez. Thiago looks to start a new winning streak coming off the victory over Mitchell.
Prediction: This fight on paper looks like it should be over in seconds with Paulo destroying Sayir in route to an easy win. I think this may be one of those "catch" fights you hear about where Paulo could easily overlook the UFC rookie. Do I think this will happen? Simply put, NO. I think Paulo sees the skills and KO power that Sayir brings to the fight. There are just too many factors playing against Sayir, for example the cage (all of his fights have been in a ring with ropes), Paulo's amazing Judo and BJJ game and the fact Sayir's first fight is against a top 10 fighter in the division. I do think Sayir will come in guns blazing and look to blast Paulo's head off quickly, this is where he will meet his demise. I expect to see Paulo put on a Judo clinic every time Sayir is close and fighting Paulo on the ground is like standing in quicksand, every move you make is one that leads further to your demise. I am taking Paulo Thiago via submission in the second or third round. Hopefully he pulls something out his bag of submission like the D'arce.
My picks so far:
Pickett over Page
Maguire over Johnson
Thiago over Bahadurzada
Stann over Sakara
Remember to post your picks to our Facebook or my Twitter @cagechattererik for a chance to win a signed glove by Strikeforce's Antwain Britt or a Form Athletics XL t-shirt!! My pick for the main event will be up tomorrow!
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