Two Titles: Official UFC 181 Hendricks vs Lawler & Pettis vs Melendez Thread [Dec. 6]

[The Infamous]

Pettis is going to wake up on fight day, take a piss and in doing so tear a fukking groin. McGregor steps in and faces Melendez in a non-title fight

No injury talk breh, we're less than a week till fight night, looks like Pettis is in the clear

 

[joeychizzle]

No injury talk breh, we're less than a week till fight night, looks like Pettis is in the clear

less than a week!! we ain't clear until he steps under the lights breh

maan if he trips on those 4 or 5 steps leading up to the octagon and breaks his leg ima be like

bruce buffer hasn't even spoken and

Spoiler

 

[The Infamous]

 

[krackdagawd]

mma brehs is there any USA wrestling on this card?

 

[The Infamous]

mma brehs is there any USA wrestling on this card?

Johny Hendricks is a 2-time NCAA D1 Champion and 4-time NCAA D1 All-American.

 

[blackestofpanthers]

Rooting for lawler and melendez

 

[The Infamous]

Pros picks for Pettis vs Melendez:

Nam Phan: Melendez will win. He’s going to grind him out for sure.

Ray Elbe: Pettis will be better from the outside, but I think Melendez tries to keep this at a high speed, with constant pressure mixed with takedown attempts. Melendez will be champion, and I think with a win, Josh Thomson is back in the hunt. Fights one and two [between them] deserve a trilogy with the UFC’s marketing behind it. Those last two fights were legendary.

Chris Clements: Picking Melendez to win this one. Pettis is the more technical and athletic fighter but needs time and space to set up his combos and fancy strikes. Melendez has the perfect in-your-face aggressive style to shut down a lot of the offense of Pettis and grind out the win.

Jeff Hougland: Tough fight to call. I’m going to go with Melendez by decision.

J.J. Ambrose: Watching Melendez over the years has been nothing short of inspiring. He’s a grinder, never quits and is tough as hell. As a fighter, you root for him to win. I know Pettis is on another level -- I’m not taking anything away from him -- but as a fan of Melendez, let’s go “El Nino.”

Joe Duarte: I think Melendez might pull this one off.

Ricardo Liborio: As much I really like Melendez’s style, Pettis’ striking may be too much for him.

Gabe Ruediger: I’m thinking Pettis wins.

Keith Berry: Pettis wins by TKO.

Jason Dent: I’m going with the upset here and picking Melendez. The guy seems like a tank that moves forward and never messes around. The only way Pettis wins this one is if he can keep his distance and pick Melendez apart in the first few rounds.

Benji Radach: I’ve got to pull for Melendez. He wins by ruggedness.

Walt Harris: This is going to be an epic fight, man. I think Pettis will probably pull it out in the second round. He’s skilled everywhere; he’s athletic, and I think his speed is going to make the difference in this fight. I think Pettis will win the striking battle. Melendez comes forward, and I think that plays into Pettis’ hands. I think Pettis will capitalize on that and put him away in the second round.

Charles Rosa: My heart says Melendez because he fights with his heart, but as far as technique and talent is concerned, I say Pettis. It’s really hard for me to pick one over the other, but coming off an injury and with Pettis being out so long, I’m going with Melendez. Gilbert is really hungry; he wants that belt. I’ll take Melendez for the win, but I think Pettis is a little bit more skilled.

Roger Narvaez: I’m going with Pettis. Melendez is a killer and I don’t see either guy finishing this fight, but I think Pettis will be technically too much.

Wilson Reis: I’ve got Pettis wining via knockout in the third round with a flow of striking and ground-and-pound.

James Vick: Pettis wins by unanimous decision.

Beneil Dariush: I think Pettis is the favorite -- and rightfully so. He has more weapons, but Melendez is a serious threat. I think it’s all going to come down to how comfortable Pettis will be after his long layoff. I’m favoring Pettis.

Tom DeBlass: Melendez wins by decision. He out-grinds him, but Pettis is a beast.

Colton Smith: This is a very intriguing fight. Pettis has been plagued with injuries and Melendez is apt to make any fight competitive. With that said, Gilbert has had an issue of fighting down or up to his opponents’ levels. In this fight, the neutralizer will be Melendez’s ability to finally close the distance, put Pettis on the fence and score the occasional takedown. I see the former Strikeforce champion squeaking out a split decision and becoming the new UFC lightweight champion of the world.

John Gunderson: I’m going with Pettis. I think Melendez is a beast and a great fighter, but Pettis is a different type of athlete than the other 155ers. His transitions and ability to switch his standup is a beauty to watch. His fight with Donald Cerrone was a testament to that. Nobody in the division can stand with this guy.

Fredson Paixao: I think Pettis wins because he has more dimensions to his game.

***

THE FINAL TALLY
Pros Picking Melendez: 11
Pros Picking Pettis: 10

http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/Pros-Pick-Pettis-vs-Melendez-78225

 

[Ari Gold Bawse]

fukk hendricks but at the same time Lawler as a champ is to me, hes really turned his career around from being average in showtime after being released from the ufc

GSP save us

cant wait for Pettis vs Melendez, i really cant pick a winner

good strong card i see the WOAT TUF winners are on the prelims

 

[Propaganda]

i don't know who to pick between hendricks and lawler. if johnny goes ham with the wrestling i can see him keeping the title but really...

i'm surprised so many people have melendez winning. i think pettis can beat him everywhere. my guess is he tags him with some good shots and ends up subbing gilbert in the 2nd, maybe 3rd.

 

[The G.O.D II]

My predictions/picks

Clay Collard vs Alex White- Clay UD
Sergio Pettis vs Matt Hobar- Can fight for baby pettis. Hopefully he doesn't struggle like he did in his first few fights. Pettis UD. I don't think he will live up to his hype of being a Pettis tho.

Raquel Pennington vs Ashlee Evans Smith- Smith is probably behind Mcmann in wrestling and has good striking. If she had more time, I think she would destroy Pennigton, whos output and volume is low. I still got Smith by UD due to her aggressiveness

Corey Anderson vs Justin Jones- Jones is a 185lb fighting up on short notice. We know how that goes. Anderson TKO RD1

Josh Samman vs Eddie Gordon- Gordon by UD

Uriah Faber vs Franciso Rivera- No but Rivera has power but has no ground game whatsoever. Another showcase fight for Faber. Faber Sub RD 1

Abel Trujillo vs Tony Ferguson- Trujillo is a great athlete and has nice power, but thats it. Ferguson has the range, volume, and footwork to piss off Trujillo, who does not respond well to getting hit. Ferguson looked awful against Castillo, but Ferguson's striking and underrated grappling would overwhelm Trujillo past the first. Ferguson UD. Great opener also

Todd Duffee vs Anthony Hamilton- Duffman is back lol. Duffee has brick hands. Anthony is big and has decent wrestling. Duffee has the speed and one punch KO power to end this quickly. I hope that happens, otherwise it will be a typical HW gassed out shyt fest between low ranked guys. Questions may arise due to that weird nerve syndrome he had, but I still got Duffee TKO RD1

Brendan Schaub vs Travis Browne- Interesting fight. Browne got exposed by Werdum(and overroid before he gassed) in terms of fighting smartly and pressuring him. And hes also training at Glendale((ronda's gym) where every fighter coming out of there besides Ronda has flopped. Schaub gets a lot of shyt but on paper hes a much better fighter then Browne in terms of his consistent striking, power, and improving TD/sub grappling. But Browne has good TD defense(esp against double legs as Barnett found out unfortunately) and has decent power that can hurt Schaub and his suspect chin. If he doesn't gas, Browne could win this with range strikes and clinch work. Browne TKO RD 2

Gilbert Melendez vs Anthony Pettis- Melendez is the quintessential all round fighter. Good(but not dynamic) everywhere with no glaring weaknesses fight wise. His weakness, which was on display against Hendo/Sanchez, is he takes the foot off the gas, stops his pressure/agressive attack, and allows his opponent right in the mix. He did it against Bendo where he was winning but decided to cruise off points and lost. And he did it against Sanchez where he stopped fighting smartly and almost got KO'd. He can't do that against Pettis. Pettis has better, more diverse striking, his footwork is solid, his TDD has improved, and his active on the ground. Melendez has a mainline, straight line boxing style. I think Pettis will create angles going laterally/backwards to avoid Melendez's pressure. Melendez is tough as nails and will make this a competitive fight, but at this stage of his career I don't think he has the physical tools to win against a much more talented Pettis. Unless the injury has effected Pettis more ways then we know, I see him taking this by UD

Johnny Hendricks vs Robbie Lawler- The problem I have with Lawler is I really think winning the title comes secondary to fighting for the sake of fighting. The first fight he could have won easily, esp since Hendricks had a torn bicep, thus neutralizing his wrestling and forcing a standup where he was at a disavantage both offensively and defensively. But Lawler was too happy to just stand in front of Hendricks and bang. If Hendricks arm is fully healed, expect him to use his wrestling and striking with both hands to play a much bigger factor. Lawler needs to mix up his game instead of just getting backed up and looking to counter. He needs to throw more kicks/knees. Maybe even attempt a TD or two. IDK. It will be close again but I think Hendricks just wants it more. Hendricks UD

 

[So UnThotful]

Browne going for that Death via KO

 

[jackswstd]

UFC Welterweight Championship
Johny Hendricks (c) vs. Robbie Lawler- I think Robbie gets the belt. I'm not sure Hendricks is fully healed and I expect Lawler to finish it this time but it won't be easy.

UFC Lightweight Championship
Anthony Pettis (c) vs. Gilbert Melendez- 16 month layoff has to factor in somehow but I don't think it'll be minor. Pettis is a more diverse striker and his ground game is underrated because he rarely has to use it. Gil is tough as nails and will give Pettis a war but I give the edge to Showtime in a Split Decision. I just can't see Pettis getting a stoppage.

Heavyweight: Travis Browne vs. Brendan Schaub- I think Schaub will try to get this to the ground and not stand and trade with Browne but the question is can he do it. I don't think he will, Browne by KO in 2.

Heavyweight: Todd Duffee vs. Anthony Hamilton- Hamilton is a big dude and I'm interested to see how Duffee looks after his issues and he looked a lot smaller at the weigh-ins. If the old Duffee shows up his speed and power will get him the W.

Lightweight: Tony Ferguson vs. Abel Trujillo- Ferguson

 

[joeychizzle]

Schaub had that look where as browne was straight

 

[Ari Gold Bawse]

seems like Hendricks will be using his wrestling this time round @krackdagawd

Schaub had that look where as browne was straight

cant believe Schaub is still getting main card fights

i guess fukking Rousey has helped his career

 

[The Infamous]

Weigh ins were intense, can't wait for tonight: