This Saturday night, the UFC makes it’s return to Sacramento for UFC 177. T.J. Dillashaw is defending his Bantamweight title against former champion, Renan Barao. Dillashaw shocked the world when he finished Barao at UFC 173, and is trying to prove it wasn’t a fluke. This card may seem kind of watered down to the average fan, the only other top ten fighter on the card is Bethe Correia, and she is number 10; but to an educated fan, these fights will be very fun to watch. Former Legacy Champions, Carlos Diego Ferriera and Damon “The Leech” Jackson, are both on the main card, and we know Legacy produces some of the best talent in the world, just ask Dana White. Whether you are excited for these fights or not, I know money excites you. So have a look at my picks, get out your checkbooks, and win yourself a stack of money big enough to pretend its a cellphone, Johnny Manziel style.
Yancy Medeiros (9-2) vs Damon “The Leech” Jackson (9-0) 155lbs:
Yancy Medeiros hasn’t had the best of luck since arriving in the UFC. Prior to his UFC debut he was undefeated, but in his debut fight versus Rustam Khabilov, he injured his thumb and was forced to throw in the towel. His second fight was a first round highlight reel KO of Yves Edwards, which was later turned to a no contest after Yancy’s post-fight drug test came back positive for bong water. In his last fight, at UFC 172, he was submitted by Jim Miller. Damon Jackson on the other hand, has been on a serious hot streak. He has finished every one of his opponents, and is coming off a first round submission victory over former UFC fighter Leonard Garcia; that win earned him the Legacy Featherweight belt. Jackson’s last three fights have all ended by way of submission, but Yancy will take him the distance for the first time in his career. Doesn’t mean it will be pretty for Yancy, I have Jackson winning his debut by a unanimous decision.
Ramsey Nijem (9-4) vs Carlos Diego Ferreira (10-0) 155lbs:
Nijem is a TUF alumni and has won his last two fights, he last defeated Beneil Dariush back in April and is looking to get another win for his record. Unfortunately for Ramsey, Diego is good, like really good. The former Legacy champ has 6 wins by submission, and last submitted Colton Smith back in June in his UFC debut; this fight will have the same outcome for Ferreira. He dominates the first round of this fight and wins by submission in the second.
#10 Bethe Correia (8-0) vs Shayna “The Queen of Spades’ Baszler (15-8) Women’s 135lbs:
In Correia’s last fight she beat 1/4 of the Four Horsewomen, Jessamyn Duke, and then called out the rest of them when she stood in the center of the cage; with her fingers, she counted down from 4 to 0. Now she gets her wish as she takes on Shayna Baszler, who is also part of the Horsewomen. Former TUF contestant Baszler is coming off of an injury, and in her last non TUF fight, lost to Alexis Davis in Invicta FC. Since then, she has been training side by side with champion Ronda Rousey, and is ready to avenge her teammate’s loss. Correia will be too much for Baszler to handle though, she has good stand up and is very strong. Correia wins this fight by unanimous decision.
Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson (16-3) vs Danny “Last Call” Castillo (17-6) 155lbs:
Ferguson is 2-0 since losing to Michael Johnson back in 2012, and is coming off a first round KO victory over Katsunori Kikuno at UFC 173. Castillo is also coming off a KO victory over Charlie Brenneman at UFC 172, and has been working closely with champion T.J. Dillashaw and coach Duane Ludwig. I expect to see the same footwork and movement that we saw from Dillashaw when he defeated Barao, this will make it hard to land a punch on Castillo or take him down. The game plan will work and Castillo will win this fight by split decision.
Champ T.J. Dillashaw (11-2) vs #1 Renan Barao (34-2) 135lb Title Fight:
Before T.J. TKO’d Barao in the fifth round of their first fight at UFC 173, Barao had not lost a fight since April of 2005. In their first match, T.J. used lots of head movement and footwork to dominate Barao on the feet, and kept the pressure on him until the fight was stopped; it was arguably one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Barao is looking to bounce back from his first loss in almost 10 years, and get his belt back. Barao will have a new game plan and try to finish the fight early on. He will be throwing bombs from the beginning bell, and the fight will end by TKO in the third round; Barao will regain his title.
So there you have it, go out and win some money, and do an ice bucket challenge with a bucket of money and a nursing student paying her way through school.
Follow me on Twitter @MarkilloTX
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