UFC 88 Breakthrough PPV picks...

The next UFC PPV is UFC 88 Breakthrough this Saturday night. That means I better get to picking my fights... so here are my picks:

The main event is Chuck Liddell vs. Rashad Evans. I think this will be a really good fight. Rashad held his own with Tito Ortiz earlier this year (in my opinion, he should have won), and showed he can hang with the "top" 205ers. Rashad's still on the up-swing of his career, and he could give it a huge boost with a win over Chuck. But Chuck is a former light heavyweight champion, and not a push over. He's was very dominant as a champ, and is looking to get his title back. A win over Rashad would put him pretty close to a title shot in the very near future. With that all said, I think Chuck will probably come out with the win, but I think it will be by decision.

The other huge fight on the card is Rich Franklin retuning to the 205 weight class and fighting Matt Hamill. Matt Hamill is a bear to wrestle with. He lost an extremely close fight to Michael Bisping (and in my opinion probably should have won) last year, but has taken that loss and used it to improve his skills. His striking has improved by leaps and bounds as of late, and that makes him more dangerous. Rich Franklin back in the 205s adds a lot to that division, and I'm excited to see him fight at that weight. He has a ton of experience over Matt in MMA, and is a very smart and technical fighter. This fight has the chance to steal the show. I think it will go the distance, and probably a split decision in favor of Rich.

I'm interested to see the Martin Kapman vs. Nate Marquardt fight. I think Martin is underrated as a fighter. There's not been a fight I've seen him in that I didn't like. He uses quite a few of different techniques in his fights, particularly on the ground. His win over Drew McFedries is one of my favorites. Martin's been sidelined with some injuries the past 6+ months, so I'm sure he's pumped to be back in the octagon. Nate Marquardt has really turned the corner in his career in the past year. His loss to Anderson Silva was an eye opener for him. I think he should have won against Thales Leites back in June. The ref took unnecessary points from him during that fight. I enjoy watching both of these guys fight, and often route for them, but I think I'm going with Nate to win. I think he'll be able to out punch Martin, and on the ground, I think he'll be stronger. I think it will be a TKO victory.

Karo Parisyan vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida. I'm not a big fan of Karo, so I'm going with Yoshiyuki to win by TKO probably somewhere in the 3rd.

Dan Herderson vs. Rousimar Palhares (Kyle might have to give us the phonetic pronunciation in the comments section). Dan Henderson lost both of his Pride titles last year. He could really use a win. Rousimar just made his debut in the UFC recently with a quick win over Ivan Salivary. He looked very dangerous on the ground (BJJ black belt), and will be a hand full for Dan. But I think Dan can win if he keeps it standing and throws some heavy hands at Rousimar, and defends the takedown. If he does end up on the ground, I think he'll be able to do some damage as long as he stays on top. Dan to win, TKO.

Thiago Tavares Vs. Kurt Pellegrino. Thiago has shown he gets tired in the later rounds, and Kurt is pretty close to the top of the lightweights. I think they're both coming off losses, so I win would be very important. I think Kurt will pull out the win, probably with a submission.

Tim Boetsch Vs. Michael Patt. I think Michael Patt is making his UFC debut that night. That's a lot to handle, and then he also has to fight Tim Boetsch. I'm going with Tim to win with probably a TKO.

Dong Hyun Kim Vs. Matt Brown. Everyone on the last season of TUF steered clear of Matt Brown, but he was beaten. I think he has a ton of heart, but I don't think he'll be able to beat Dong Hyun Kim.

Jason Lambert Vs. Jason MacDonald. I like both of these guys. They've both had great fights in the UFC. Lambert's had a string of bad luck in his fights with getting caught, and MacDonald has also lost a couple tough fights as well. I think this will be a good fight. I'll be looking for MacDonald to try and catch Lambert on the chin, so I'm sure he'll try to keep it standing. As strong as Lambert is, and as heavy as his hands are standing, I think he'll do best to try and get this fight to the ground, and pound out a victory. When It's all over, I think MacDonald will have the "W", either by KO or armbar.

Roan Carneiro Vs. Ryo Chonan I think these guys are both coming off of losses, and need to get a win. I'm going with Roan.

Well that does it. Those are my picks. One of the exciting things about MMA is anything can happen. So everything I just said here, the opposite could happen just as easily. Even the guy who looks like he's beating the snot out of his opponent can get caught and it's all over. Or the reverse... One guy may be taking the beating of his career, but be able to catch his opponent with one punch or quick submission, and pull out the win. Good stuff!