Reported By Patrick W. Boucher on May 14, 2009 - 6:38:56 PM
In the mixed martial arts world, we all tend to look ahead of fights to play match maker and see who would best match up with who. Now, just a little over a week from now, we will see Rashad Evans make his first title defense against Lyoto Machida.
There tends to be a divide between fans as to who is the true #1 contender - some saying Jackson and others saying Machida.
Machida is undoubtedly deserving of a shot after consuming an overall MMA record of 14-0, which includes a 6-0 record in the UFC. Machida has been heavily criticized for his lack of finish fights and his overall elusive style, taking minimal damage in a fight.
Rashad, and master-mind, Greg Jackson are likely to be together a number of game plans for this fight. Evans wants to push the pace to his advantage, but not to get overconfident. Evans has evolved as one of the top overall fighters in the UFC. While on the Ultimate Fighter, he was strictly a wrestler, a powerful wrestler. Since that time, he has shown a tremendous amount of improvement in his striking game. The key for Evans is to take his time and not allowing Machida to get under his skin.
The general consensus within the MMA world is that Evans will come out retaining his title. That would mean Evans vs. Jackson - the heavily anticipated match up that fans thought they would see over Machida/Evans. Jackson and Evans squared off face to face after Jackson defeated training partner Keith Jardine. The stare-down was similar to one that would take place in the WWE, but far more intense.
A PPV headlined by Rashad Evans vs. Quinton Jackson has fight of the year written all over it, along with Knock out of the year. Both fighters like to set the pace, with Evans holding the advantage in wrestling,
Jackson is an MMA veteran who knows how to slam a fighter in to the mat with no regard. Since Jackson arrived in the UFC, he has switched camps to the Wolfs Lair, and has worked extensively on his striking game. He poses great technical boxing, something he did not have when he fought The Axe Murder in Pride Fighting Championship.
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