UFC on Fox 2

By Robert Nash

A highly anticipated fight that was supposed to have taken place back in August of 2011 will finally take place on Saturday the 28th of January in the united centre in Chicago Illinois as Chicago’s very own ‘suga’ Rashad Evans will take on undefeated rising star Phil Davis in a title eliminator match up with the winner expected to fight the champion, Jon Jones.


Also on the card, a middleweight fight for the ages as Chael Sonnen on route to getting his much awaited rematch with Anderson Silva has one last test in front of him, as he faces off against British ace Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping. This will be the second show to be aired on Fox and what better way to kick start the UFC’s official Fox deal then with these two epic number one contender battles.

Evans vs. Davis

This is a bout between two fighters that are stylistically very similar. Both fighters got into the sport because of their strong wrestling background and over the years have improved the striking game making them complete fighters.  Evans is widely considered to be one of the best fighters in the world and the number 2 fighter in the light heavyweight division. But being number two does not sit well with the former champion. The Ultimate fighter season 2 winner has been on road to getting his title back since defeating Quinton Jackson back in 2010, but it has been a bumpy road for Evans.


Despite being given the opportunity to fight for the title on three occasions a list of injuries has held him back, two years later he is healthy and is eager to get a shot at his former training partner and arch rival Jon Jones. Evans looked outstanding in his fight against Tito Ortiz back in August showing no signs of ring rust, he believes he is a much better all round fighter then Davis and no matter where the fight goes whether on the feet or the ground is confident that he will come out on top and put on a show for his home fans.


Davis is undoubtedly facing the toughest test of his mixed martial arts career. The 27 year old hungry lion is 5-0 in the UFC, holding notable wins over Brian Stann and Antônio Rogério Nogueira. Davis’s main strength is his wrestling and many people are writing him off in this fight because they believe his striking ability is not on the same level as Evans. However, the same was said for Cain Velasquez when he fought Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and he ended up knocking out the veteran against all odds.  


Davis is well aware that he will have to improve his striking dramatically to combat Evans boxing ability or he’s in for a short night and he could well surprise us. Having said that of course, Davis is facing a former champion whom many believe to be the best in the division, is he ready to take on this test having not fought anybody similar to Evans before? Is he fighting out of his depth? I believe that Davis is still young, he has a lot to learn and Evans will emerge victorious after a long battle. But make no mistake about it this won’t be a boring wrestling match; this will be a very tenacious fight.

Michael Bisping v Chael Sonnen

The co main event will also feature a number one contender bout, as the two toughest fighters in the middleweight division collide in a guaranteed all out war. This is an interesting matchup because of the fact that you have a fighter in Chael Sonnen, who is by far the best trash talker ever in the UFC since Tito Ortiz, a man who is literally hated by the entire nation of Brazil after continuously insulting the country; against another fighter in Bisping who as we know from the past does not react well to trash talk and can get too emotional, like we saw in his fight against Jorge Rivera when he spat in his opponents corner after his win.


Sonnen will do his best to try and get Bisping so fired up that he gets too emotional, loses his composure and makes a mistake in the octagon. There is no doubt in my mind that there will be many anti Chael Sonnen fans in the UK leading up to this fight.


Sonnen is fresh off his win over Brian Stann back in October earning a victory via submission, after the fight he called out his arch nemesis Anderson Silva asking for a rematch. The ‘American gangster’ has been eager to get a second shot at Silva after coming so close to defeating him only to be denied in the last round back in 2010. But before Sonnen gets his dream fight he must first get past Bisping. The game plan for Sonnen in this fight is no different than any other of his game plans, he wants to press the tempo, wear out Bisping get on top off him and smother him with some ground and pound.


Sonnen is not the most technical fighter but he is a warrior, he will not stop coming forward until he finishes you and many fighters who have trained excessively in wrestling find it hard to deal with.


It is unquestionable that most UFC fans want to see Sonnen v Silva 2. It would be one of the biggest rematches in the history of the sport by far, but Bisping is prepared to deny the fans the much anticipated matchup and look to take out Sonnen.


Bisping, who was originally scheduled to fight Damien mia, jumped at the opportunity to step in for the injured Mark Munoz and fight for the number 1 contender ship, this is the biggest fight of his career and if he can get past Sonnen he will be granted the opportunity of a lifetime to fight for the belt. The British number one is on a four fight winning streak and is coming off one of the most one sided fights ever in the sport when he defeated veteran mayhem miller.


Bisping is tough as nails and is in fact a very good wrestler. However, in saying that having Chael Sonnen on top of you is alot different and i think and although Bisping will put up a fight i can see Sonnen grinding out a victory.