Without further adieu, let’s take a look at the entire card and break down what we can expect this afternoon when these fighters hit the octagon.
Main Card (Fuel TV)
• Chan Sung Jung (12-3) vs. Dustin Poirier (12-1)
• Amir Sadollah (5-3) vs. Jorge Lopez (11-2)
• Donald Cerrone (17-4) vs. Jeremy Stephens (20-7)
• Yves Jabouin (17-7) vs. Jeff Hougland (10-4)
• Igor Pokrajac (24-8) vs. Fabio Maldonado (18-4)
• Jason MacDonald (25-15) vs. Tom Lawlor (7-4)
Preliminary Bouts (Facebook)
• Brad Tavares (7-1)vs. Dongi Yang (10-2)
• Codie McKenzie (12-2) vs. Marcus LeVesseur (21-5)
• TJ Grant (17-5) vs. Carlo Prater (30-10)
• Rafael Dos Anjos (15-6) vs. Kamal Shalorus (7-2)
• Jeff Curran (33-14) vs. Johnny Eduardo (25-9)
• Alex Soto (6-1) vs. Francisco Rivera (7-2)
UFC on FUEL 3 – Main Card Preview and Predictions
Chan Sung Jung (12-3) vs. Dustin Poirier (12-1)
One fighter looking to prove once again that his substance matches his hype facing another who’s looking to prove he belongs at the top as a legit title contender.
“The Korean Zombie” has been all the rage after his twister submission over Leonard Garcia and his knockout of Mark Hominick but he did lose 2 out of 3 before that so he’s not a guaranteed title contender just yet. A win over Poirier will change that perception drastically.
Meanwhile, the young “Diamond” has impressed ever since coming into the UFC, winning four straight while beating a few fellow young prospects along with former would-be #1 contender Josh Grispi in his debut. With all that behind him and a lack of depth at the top of the division dominated by Jose Aldo, it’s time to see if the Louisianan is ready to make a run at the top.
Stylistically, this fight has the makings of an exciting fight with both men being more than willing to go for broke but the young lion Poirier edges out his opponent in every area that counts. This one will be competitive early but expect Dustin to pull away the longer this fight goes. In fact, he may even finish he zombie en route to the victory,
Prediction: Dustin Poirier over Chang Sung Jung by TKO, RD3.
Amir Sadollah (5-3) vs. Jorge Lopez (11-2)
It’s hard to believe that former TUF winner Amir Sadollah has been in the league for four years now. He’s always been a game fighter and has improved throughout his tenure but he’s never cracked that top level of guys in the crowded welterweight division.
I give him credit for not just hanging in there, but also being competitive in one of the most dangerous weight classes in the UFC. He’s vastly improved both his striking and his wrestling, but was also exposed in both areas by Dong Hyun Kim (UFC 144) and Duane Ludwig (UFC on Versus 5).
A member of WAND fight team, Jorge Lopez is a young prospect who’s coming back after losing his UFC debut to Justin Edwards last November. He holds notable wins over Waachiim Spiritwolf and Chidi Njokuani prior to making it into the UFC but has to prove himself against top competition.
Unless Lopez proves otherwise, the prevailing thought is that Amir Sadollah is far too experienced at this point to lose to a UFC sophomore.
Prediction: Amir Sadollah over Jorge Lopez by unanimous decision.
Donald Cerrone (17-4) vs. Jeremy Stephens (20-7)
This will be an exciting fight between two forward-fighting fighters in Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Jeremy Stephens.
Donald will be looking to climb right back up on the horse after getting knocked off by Nate Diaz and his “Stockton slap boxing” this past December but he was doing pretty good before that. Menawhile, “Lil Heathen” is also looking to climb back into contention after running into Anthony Pettis in his last fight.
Look for both to engage early and often in this one with Stephens coming forward trying to hurt his opponent quickly and put him on his heels while Cerrone will look to be slightly more patient and use his countering ability to stymie Stephens’ attack.
Whoever is more effective in imposing their style will win this fight.
Prediction: Donald Cerrone over Jeremy Stephens by split decision.
Yves Jabouin (17-7) vs. Jeff Hougland (10-4)
This is a battle of two guys looking to make their way up the bantamweight ranks.
Yves Jabouin has back-to-back wins over Walel Watson and Ian Loveland but they were both close fights. Meanwhile, Jeff Houghland most recently won against Donny Walker in his UFC debut.
Truth be told, I don’t really know too much of these guys since they haven’t shown too much in their UFC time so far. Coin flip pick here.
Prediction: Jeff Hougland over Yves Jabouin by unanimous decision.
Igor Pokrajac (24-8) vs. Fabio Maldonado (18-4)
This will be a battle of two aggressive strikers still looking to find their way in the UFC.
A former boxer, Fabio Maldonado has displayed some crisp hands but has fallen prey to both injury and wrestling during his time in the UFC. Meanwhile, Igor Pokrajac hasn’t exactly lit the world on fire but has won his last two by KO/TKO.
It’s anyone’s ballgame in this one with the person able to get off early and often likely coming away with the win in the end.
Prediction: Fabio Maldonado over Igor Pokrajac by TKO, RD2.
Jason MacDonald (25-15) vs. Tom Lawlor (7-4)
Did you see Tom Lawlor come out to weigh-ins dressed like Genki Sudo for this one? If nothing else, he’ll always be entertaining to have in the UFC because of his antics but he’s also 1-3 in his last 4 fights and badly in need of a win.
The same goes for his Canadian opponent who was summarily dispatched by Toquinho conqueror Alan Belcher at UFC Fight Night 25 in his last fight.
Tom Lawlor is a wrestler who’s got that desire for the takedown engrained in him so look for a takedown at some point in this fight. Sadly for him, the ground is where McDonald feels most comfortable. “The Filthy Mauler” has been caught before and the same could happen here in this one.
Prediction: Jason MacDonald over Tom Lawlor by submission, RD3.
UFC on FUEL 3 – Preliminary Card Preview and Predictions (Facebook)
Brad Tavares (7-1) vs. Dongi Yang (10-2)
Former TUF’er Brad Tavares will be coming back for the first time in almost a year after injuries got in his way. He’ll be taking on exciting power puncher Dongi “Ox” Yang in his comeback fight.
Expect this one to be a rude awakening for the Hawaiian. “Ox” has just enough grappling skill to keep this fight on the feet for the most part and he wins handedly there. If he hurts his opponent early, and he’ll try, look for Dongi to jump all over him and try to get it over with quickly.
Prediction: Dongi Yang over Brad Tavares by TKO, RD1.
Codie McKenzie (12-2) vs. Marcus LeVesseur (21-5)
Would-be UWF “Tournament of Warriors” contestant Marcus LeVesseur bowed out of the South Texas tournament after the UFC came calling. He’ll now be looking to make the most of his opportunity against former TUF star and guillotine choke specialist Cody McKenzie.
LeVesseur was a former NCAA division III wrestling star that went unbeaten as a collegian with an incredible record of 155-0. He’s also proven to have some heavy hands though he does have some improving to do in this area.
The key here will be whether Marcus can avoid Cody’s game, which is all predicated on his lone signature move. Expect the debuting “prospect” to take heed of that and control the action on the feet rather than get lulled into that submission early then go for the finish in the later rounds.
Prediction: Marcus LeVesseur over Cody McKenzie by TKO, RD3.
TJ Grant (17-5) vs. Carlo Prater (30-10)
T.J. Grant took on some tough competition in Dong Hyun Kim and Johny Hendricks before dropping down to welterweight. He looked good in his 155 lbs. debut against Shane Roller and will aim to do so again in this bout against the Brazilian, Carlo Prater.
As for Carlo, he won four straight before running into Erick Silva on short notice. He won that one too but only on the judges’ cards as Silva was running through him before illegal blows forced the referee to call a stoppage to the bout.
This is a tough matchup for Carlo given T.J.’s familiarity with submission-minded opponents and his overall skill set as a tough wrestler. Maybe “Neo” can catch a submission in a scramble but Grant will definitely be the favorite in this one.
Prediction: TJ Grant over Carlo Prater by unanimous decision.
Rafael Dos Anjos (15-6) vs. Kamal Shalorus (7-2)
It’s saddening to say that Kamal Shalorus’ UFC performance has not exceeded his hype going in. True he’s had some tough fights, especially against top perennial contender Jim Miller, but he’s just never been able to put it all together to make a run at the top of the sport. With two straight losses, he now finds himself fighting for survival.
Facing Rafael dos Anjos will be a tough task for the Iranian. Rafael is known for his submission prowess yet can also post a danger on his feet, as he did in the George Sotiropoulos fight. His Achilles heel is big strong fighters though (ala Gleison Tibau in his last fight) which bodes well in “The Prince of Persia’s” favor.
As with most of his fights, the same can be said here in that Kamal Shalorus has all the tools to win (read: wrestling) if he wants to utilize that skill and grind out his opponent. The thing about it is that he’s largely ignored those attributes in favor of winging away punches.
Kamal has a puncher’s chance but Rafael should cruise to victory in this one.
Prediction: Rafael dos Anjos over Kamal Shalorus by unanimous decision.
Jeff Curran (33-14) vs. Johnny Eduardo (25-9)
Once a pioneer in the sport’s lighter weight classes, Jeff Curran hasn’t been nearly as good as he has been in the past lately. He’s taken five straight losses in his last five fights, most recently to Scott Jorgensen at UFC 137. And he desperately needs a win. Meanwhile, Johnny Eduardo also lost his last one to Raphael Assuncao after winning 11 straight prior to making it into the UFC. He’s no rookie either, fighting professionally since 1996 – even longer than Curran.
This matchup between the two vets will be like a chess match to see who can find the opening first. It’s anybody’s ball game but I like Curran to get back to his winning ways in this one.
Prediction: Curran over Johnny Eduardo by submission, RD2.
Alex Soto (6-1-1) vs. Francisco Rivera (7-2)
Rivera is a hard hitter at bantamweight that’s earned two straight knockout wins in the first round. Meanwhile, Soto found himself on the wrong end of another vicious knockout after taking a fight on short notice against up-and-coming contender Michael McDonald. Not really too much info other than that to go on with these guys but punching power vs. suspect chins normally result in highlight reel moments.
Prediction: Francisco Rivera over Alex Soto by KO/TKO, RD1.