UFC 71: Liddell vs. Jackson
Chris Leban vs. Kalib Starnes
Saturday May 26, 2007
Starnes +260
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When it comes to mixed martial arts when one fighter is great on the ground and one fighter is good at stand up, nine times out of ten I will take the more skilled ground opponent. Well at UFC 71 this is not one of those times. I feel Ivan Salaverry (12-4) is good on the ground with his submission skills but he doesn't overwhelm me in this match up.

For a 185 pound fighter Salaverry is solid but he will be the smaller man when he fights Terry Martin (15-2) who is a big 185. Martin is 5 foot 8 and usually fights at 200 pounds.

Technically Salaverry has good fundamentals in stand up as he has fought in both MMA events and at K1 kickboxing events. However, he does lack power and in this mixed martial arts event Martin will use his punchers chance in this MMA match up.

Martin will have to cut weight down to 185, but when he steps into the UFC octagon he will be back up to 200 pounds. Neither man is considered a great fighter but Martin has explosive power with his bigger frame. Salaverry will have a tough time shooting in and taking him to the ground.

The start of the fight will be dominated by Salaverry who will stick and move with jabs and kicks. He will attempt to but will get tired from the attempts due to the size advantage of Martin. By the end of the round I predict Martin will take over and finish off Salaverry.

Bottom Line: Too much power Martin possesses in his punches. He will be slower but when he lands on Salaverry it will be a definite impact. Salaverry has not fought anyone with this much power before. I didn’t think Salaverry's last fight versus Nathan Marquardt was very impressive.

Rear Naked Choke in the second round. I'm laughing all the way to the bank with this one

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