Shocking but Diaz didn't show up for open workouts. It would not surprise me at all if he is viewing this as some kind of "cash out" fight. Regardless of his mindset, I don't see Nick's size or style meshing well with even this aged version of Silva. Woodley-Gastelum and Alves-Mein have me interested. Gastelum has looked unstoppable since graduating from TUF. Meanwhile, the Alves that returned last April versus Seth Baczynski looked as good as ever. Mein will be a fun test and give us a good idea if Alves has a title run left in him. It's tough for Joe Lauzon to be in a boring fight and he is the perfect opponent to gauge if Al Iaquinta can contend in the top 10 of the LW division. On the prelims, it doesn't get much better than Sara McMann versus Meisha Tate in UFC's chick category. [TABLE="class: toccolours"] <tbody>[TR] [TH="bgcolor: #CCCCFF, colspan: 8, align: center"]Main Card (PPV)[/TH] [/TR] [TR] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"]Weight class[/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"][/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"][/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"][/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"]Method[/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"]Round[/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"]Time[/TH] [TH="bgcolor: #E6E8FA, colspan: 1, align: center"]Notes[/TH] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Middleweight[/TD] [TD]Anderson Silva[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Nick Diaz[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Welterweight[/TD] [TD]Tyron Woodley[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Kelvin Gastelum[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Lightweight[/TD] [TD]Joe Lauzon[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Al Iaquinta[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Middleweight[/TD] [TD]Thales Leites[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Tim Boetsch[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Welterweight[/TD] [TD]Jordan Mein[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Thiago Alves[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TH="bgcolor: #CCCCFF, colspan: 8, align: center"]Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1)[/TH] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Women's Bantamweight[/TD] [TD]Miesha Tate[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Sara McMann[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Middleweight[/TD] [TD]Ed Herman[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Derek Brunson[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Flyweight[/TD] [TD]Ian McCall[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]John Lineker[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Middleweight[/TD] [TD]Rafael Natal[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Tom Watson[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TH="bgcolor: #CCCCFF, colspan: 8, align: center"]Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)[/TH] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Featherweight[/TD] [TD]Diego Brandão[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Jimy Hettes[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Middleweight[/TD] [TD]Richardson Moreira[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Ildemar Alcântara[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Middleweight[/TD] [TD]Thiago Santos[/TD] [TD="align: center"]vs.[/TD] [TD]Andy Enz[/TD] [TD][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [TD="align: center"][/TD] [/TR] </tbody>[/TABLE]
I've been on the Kelvin train since day 1. He's one of the best fighters to come out of TUF, and I think I was the only person here to pick him over Dana's love interest, Uriah Hall. Woodley is a tough matchup for him, but I expect fat little Kelvin to win. I tend to agree on Diaz Vs Silva. It's hard to imagine Diaz doing well against any version of Silva. Having said that, Silva looked so shit against Wideboy, it wouldn't surprise me at all really if Diaz won.
Silva is old ,and done ,but Diaz is a one dimensional welterweight, so Silva should take this. The X factors are whether Silva's chin is completely done (Weidman was hurting him anytime he pleased), and whether Silva can comfortably kick again, because if he can, then he should kick the shit out of no kick checking Diaz's legs. This will probably end up looking like Silva vs Leben, except longer. I say Silva KO's him with some crazy knee in round 3.
More like NO Communication... http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nick-diaz-m-ufc-183-festivities-dana-white-221759844--mma.html It's No Secret UFC ALWAYS has a Major Fight the Day Before the Super Bowl...REED Digs Nick Diaz's Counter-Culture, Dope Smoking Ways @ Times, but in THIS Case, Dude's Being an Immature BRAT... UFC's Having to Pay for Camera Crews that Ended Up Filming NATHAN (Not Nick's Brother, but Literally NOTHING, Damnit!) for UFC Embedded, Who Knows if Diaz was Available for Any "Countdown" Shows the Organization May Put Out AND UFC Paid for Diaz's Original Flight AND the Following Flight, that his Manager PROMISED Nick Would Be On... But, Of Course, he WASN'T... Unless Diaz has (Deathbed) Sick (Immediate) Family, this is Bullshit...Sure, he'll Show Up, he'll Mean Mug, Talk Shit, Probably Flip Silva Off @ the Weigh-In, AND Diaz will Fight to the Best of his Ability 1nce Both Men are in the Cage, but Still.... This is BULLSHIT... REED:hammert:
As for the Fight Itself, REED has NOfuckingCLUE Who to Pick... REED HOPES Silva Wins, but Everytime He Ponders this Matchup, Roy vs. Glen Johnson Springs to Mind...After 2 SHOCKING Stoppage Losses to Weidman, Who Knows WHERE Anderson's Head is, Mentally???... He'll SAY the Right Things, but After Being UNfuckingTOUCHABLE for Sooooooooooo Looooooooooong (ala, Roy Jones) Your Confidence is Almost IRREVOCABLY Broken, Upon Losing...& When Humpty Dumpty Finally Falls (Or Gets KNOCKED) Off that Wall, All the Kings Horses and Men Don't Mean Shit... Say what You Want about Nick Diaz, but Dude CAN Fight...Especially if his Opponent is All but Guaranteed to STAND w/Him the Bulk of the Time, as Anderson Silva will Look to Do... PRIME Silva Wipes his Ass w/Diaz, Obviously...Even the Silva that CLOWNED in the 1st Fight w/Weidman Would...But Who Knows about TODAY's Version of Silva???... REED:hammert:
It will all come down to whether Silva is comfortable kicking. If he is he will viciously pick Nick apart.
Diaz doesn't react well to speed, and he plods too much when he pursues someone. His striking MIGHT bother Silva based on volume, but I think Silva is going to do a number on him. The question is whether Diaz can handle Anderson's power because he'll definitely have issues with the speed. Can Diaz wear Anderson down? I doubt it. Can Diaz hurt Anderson? I think he can BY ACCUMULATION, but his stamina is the key to giving Anderson problems. I think Anderson will utilize a lot of movement and pick Diaz apart on the outside. I could see Anderson getting tired from Diaz' accumulation, but I think Anderson stops him. The question for me is whether Anderson adopts a cautious approach. If he does, he stops Nick late. If he goes for it right away, he stops Nick after a round or two (probably second round). I don't see Nick winning this unless Anderson is completely done. Diaz's rarely a one-and-done puncher, but Anderson is old and vulnerable-looking. I see a few rough patches for Anderson, but he does his best when someone is right in front of him, and Diaz will be. The biggest question for me is whether it gets stopped on cuts or a straight ref stoppage to save Diaz from a beating on the canvas. Diaz's face cuts pretty easy. I think Anderson puts on a bigtime performance and stops Nick, but it really depends on how much Anderson has left. If he's recovered, then Nick is fucked.
Nick and Anderson are my two all time favorite fighters in MMA. It will be hard seeing someone lose. I'm picking Nick Diaz by mid to late round TKO, but who knows what will happen.
http://fightbeat.com/forums/showthr...m-Jones-vs-Team-Sonnen/page3&highlight=kelvin Here's the thread where you picked him. I wasn't sure who I picked and it looks like I picked neither. I had forgotten that Kelvin was the coaches' last pick.
really? Im picking Silva to destroy him in 2 rounds tops. Lets also not forget Diaz has been off longer than silva has.
Nick should still be in his physical prime. I agree that a prime Anderson would destroy him and make it look easy. I just think Nick's volume and cardio will be too much for him at this point. We haven't seen either guy in so long, it's hard to know what either guy will be like on fight night. It's sad that Nick won't get any credit if he can find a way to win. Nobody gave him credit for dominating Frank Shamrock or BJ Penn. Everyone just said those guys would have beaten Nick in his prime.
Anderson is on a different level. Diaz is so much smaller and diaz is an offensive machine. I honestly have a hard time seeing this go the distance. 2 rounds tops. It will either be KO or stopped on cuts.
Anderson Silva has the best collection of highlight reel knockouts in UFC history. Nick Diaz is tough, though. He hasn't been knocked out since 2002. A TKO from a cut seems more likely. I expect Diaz to take a lot of shots either way. Does Anderson have the speed, accuracy, and power he used to have now that he's almost 40? I don't want to see him lose, but I don't want to see Diaz lose either.
I'm scared homie. :) I want Nick Diaz to win, but I have no confidence in my prediction. The only other time I was this worried for him was the GSP fight. The only time I bet on a fight was for Diaz against BJ. I drove to Vegas to see them in person, so I figured I'd bet $20 on Diaz. I got my money back plus $18. So far I have a 100% success rate when I bet on fights.
i hear ya. I just cant imagine and anderson victory. And i feel bad too, because i think a diaz loss would crush him. BTW, nick is 31 and he looks 45.
Nick has been a professional fighter since his 18th birthday. His win over Robbie Lawler was 11 years ago. He's had a lot more experience than most guys his age. I wouldn't be surprised to see him retire for real in his early 30s. I love Anderson Silva, but I thought he should have retired after the 2nd fight with Chael. I didn't want to see him go on and on past his prime like RJJ or some of the other all time greats. He might win this weekend, but I don't see him beating guys like Weidman or Jacare at this point in his career.
IMO, i think Weidman just had his number. Until i see him get beat like that again, i think Silva should still fight on and will be successful. Just abandon any idea of fighting for belt, because he isnt beating any champs. That is of course, he drops to 170
nah, he's fast and athletic, but he's pretty bad technically. Can't setup anything, and only rely on his straight right hand
I'm so nervous I can't sit down right now. I'm about to go through a traumatic experience in life. Seeing one of my two favorite fighters lose.