Tonight live from the TD Garden in Boston, UFC Fight Night 59 will be sure to electrify the packed crowd and the millions watching around the world.
Here are just a few of the matches that will be sure to stand out.
I see the card breaking down to the top three matches.
Match one is Uriah Hall vs Ron Stallings This is now the third opponent set to face Hall as the first two how to bow out because of injury. Little is known about Stallings and if Hall is properly conditioned he should be able to adjust and dominate.
Most of the casual MMA fans know Hall because he was the runner-up on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen in 2013.
He had one of the most impressive knockouts in show history. Since then he has been shaky. He lost two in a row against Kelvin Gastelum and John Howard.
But he has since bounced back with wins against Chris LeBen and Thiago Santos. I believe that he will make it three wins in a row tonight with a win over Stallings. The fight that a majority of the fans are the most excited about is the matchup of Benson Henderson versus Donald Cerrone.
This is the third fight between the two with Henderson owning two wins over Cerrone from their days back in the WEC. Cerrone has been red hot as he has won his last six straight fights since moving down to the Lightweight division. He fought as recently as two weeks ago with an impressive decision win over the previously unbeaten Mile Jury at UFC 182.
Henderson is a former Lightweight champion and is hungry to get back in the title hunt. He cannot afford to lose this fight as he is coming from a devastating knockout loss at the hands of Rafael dos Anjos back in August. I look for Henderson to get back into his winning ways and stop the hot streak of Cerrone.
I don’t see a finish in this one, yet a decision win on points for Henderson. The hype behind Connor McGregor is huge and for good reason as he has looked incredible since turning pro. He does have two losses in his career so he isn’t unbeatable, and UFC veteran Dennis Siver looks to hand him in third in the main even tonight.
UFC President Dana White has promised McGregor a title shot at current UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo in Ireland if he gets past Siver. The hype and promotion behind that potential fight would be gigantic if it occurs. Siver is a veteran of 18 UFC fights, and 22-9-1 overall in his MMA career.
If there is anyone with enough experience and savvy to pull off the gigantic upset it would be Siver. However, this reporter does not see that happening, I would look for a first round knockout from McGregor.
One thing is for sure, this will be a great night of fights and if McGregor does win, it will set up one of the biggest matches in the history of the UFC Featherweight division.
Until next time fight fans
No Blood, No Foul!