UFC 128 Newark, NJ March 19 Rua vs Jones

[poopoo333]

[Luke]

Re: UFC 128

It opened at -205 which was way too high imo . I wouldnt take Rua anywhere near the current line

[poopoo333]

Re: UFC 128

I think rashad wins

[Luke]

Re: UFC 128

I think rashad wins

I dont know if he'll win but I think it could be really close .

[MMA_scientist]

Re: UFC 128

I think Rashad will get it done too. He won't stand with Shogun much, and Shogun has be taken down and controlled. Rashad has shown really goto submission defense.

Please let it be Shogun by knee bar.

[poopoo333]

Re: UFC 128

I am not convinced that Shogun won't gas. Shogun has been taken down and controlled before, even by an old gassed Mark Coleman @ UFC 93. Lots of people say "Shogun is back!" after the Machida/Liddell fights, but I don't think he was ever completely "gone". He went from Pride to the UFC, ring to the cage, etc etc. Just because he didn't gas in a stand up fight with Machida doesn't mean he won't gas against an athletic wrestler in Rashad. Rashad can wear Shogun up against the cage, and on the mat. Oh, and for the record I hope Shogun wins.

[MMA_scientist]

Re: UFC 128

^^ The Forrest fight is what makes me think he will lose.

[Svino]

Re: UFC 128

Who knows what shape Rua's knee will be in.

[Mr. IWS]

Re: UFC 128

Before this latest injury to Rua, I would have bet him for sure. Now, I am leaning towards Rashad. Knowing what we know about how Rua came back after his knee injury a couple years ago, I cant trust him.

[Dr_Ngo]

Re: UFC 128

This fighter's too much of a gamble based on how healthy Shogun turns up.

Rashad
- Knows he's a wrestler now and won't try to stand and bang like he did vs. Machida
- Shogun's never had the greatest TDD

On the other hand, Rashad's weakness has been shown to be the 3rd round. Gets clipped/gassed badly vs. Rampage and Thiago Silva. 5 Rounds is plenty of time for him to get caught.

[edman5555]

Re: UFC 128

Yeah Rashad does get caught a lot, but Shogun's wrestling stinks. He might be out of shape for this too.

[edman5555]

Re: UFC 128

Depending on how long his knee surgery takes.

[Luke]

UFC 128 Newark, NJ March 19 Rua vs Evans

A UFC 128 title fight between light-heavyweight champ Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (19-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) and Rashad Evans (15-1-1 MMA, 10-1-1 UFC) now will take the main-event slot of a UFC 129 show expected to take place in New Jersey.

Additionally, a lightweight bout between local fighter Kurt Pellegrino (15-5 MMA, 7-4 UFC) and Gleison Tibau (21-7 MMA, 7-5 UFC) is in the works for the show.

Although not officially announced by the organization, UFC 129 is expected to take place March 19 at the Prudential Center in Newark and air on pay-per-view.

Initially, UFC 128 was expected to take place March 12 in Adu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. But as MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) cautioned, officials hadn't been able to secure a venue and hinted that the show could move. On Tuesday, sportsnet.ca first reported the rescheduling of "Shogun" vs. Evans to the UFC 129 slot, and today, Pellegrino announced via Twitter his fight with Tibau. Sources close to the event today confirmed both bookings.

Additionally, as MMAjunkie.com first reported, officials initially planned to host a March 12 event overseas (the potential Abu Dhabi show) and a March 19 event in the U.S. But the shows now could be combined into a single event, so the currently titled UFC 129 event could become UFC 128.

Rua, a longtime star with the now-defunct PRIDE Fighting Championships, is 3-1 since his promotional-debut loss to Forrest Griffin. The lone defeat came to Lyoto Machida in their first meeting, and many in the industry panned the unanimous decision and felt Rua won the fight. Seven months later in the rematch, he needed less than a round to score a knockout and win the belt from his fellow Brazilian. He's now recovering from a knee injury.

Evans earned another shot at the title with a May win over rival Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in the main event of UFC 114. Although he said he'd be open to an interim-title fight if Rua were to experience a lengthy layoff, he later said he'd prefer to wait for the champion. Evans, who also has defeated Thiago Silva since losing his belt, now will have a yearlong layoff while waiting for his shot to reclaim the title.

Pellegrino, meanwhile, recently saw a four-fight win streak snapped with a unanimous-decision loss to George Sotiropoulos back in July. Prior to the loss, Pellegrino, who's been sidelined by his recovery from knee surgery, posted submission wins over Rob Emerson and Fabricio Camoes and decision victories over Thiago Tavares and Josh Neer.

Tibau entered the title picture with a recent 4-1 run in the UFC that saw wins over the likes of Jeremy Stephens, Caol Uno and Neer. But in his most recent bout at UFC Fight Night 22, the American Top Team product suffered a decision loss to division standout Jim Miller.

In addition to those bouts, a fight between Tito Ortiz (15-8-1 MMA, 14-8-1 UFC) and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC) also is expected to move from UFC 128 to UFC 129

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.

[Thewiseman]

Re: UFC 128

2u on Evans, but I hope Rua wins. Rashad will control him with his wrestling. Unlike Rampage and Silva, if Rua clips him he will finish, unless he's gassed. Im banking on Evans being able to control him though, and Rua may gas.

[Dr_Ngo]

Re: UFC 128

Fuck I think evans has a LOT of value at +150. Not sure I can pull the trigger since Shogun's my favorite fighter