For the tenth Pay-Per-View event of the year, the UFC has come up with a great main event and a very good co-main. Beyond that, the quality of the main card matchups drops very quickly. On the plus side, there are a couple of interesting fights on the Fox Sports 1 prelims. There is also Joe Riggs vs Ron Stallings on the Fight Pass prelims… if you’re into that kind of thing. Let’s get on with it:
Main Card (Pay-Per-View)
Main Event: (C) [#1 FLW] Demetrious Johnson vs [#4 FLW] John Dodson
Worth: $22.50
Why: Despite this being a rematch, it is undoubtedly the best flyweight fight you could ask for at the moment: John ‘The Magician’ Dodson gave Demetrious Johnson his toughest fight since ‘Mighty Mouse’ won the title, and even though Dodson lost a unanimous decision, he managed to do some damage – even scoring a couple of knockdowns on the champion. Dodson is the only fighter in the division who can match Johnson’s speed and athleticism, and holds an edge in striking power. The only thing stopping me from giving this fight the max valuation of $25 is the fact that Johnson has seemingly improved in every fight, racking up five additional title defenses since his first encounter with Dodson, and finishing four of his challengers. Meanwhile Dodson has been plagued by injuries, fought infrequently, and has not shown any signficant improvements in his game. Unless Dodson can hurt Demetrious early and capitalize on it unlike last time, I see the rematch going much like their first fight – with Mighty Mouse taking home another decision by being the more active fighter if nothing else.
Co-Main Event: [#4 HW] Andrei Arlovski vs [#10 HW] Frank Mir
Worth: $15
Why: The heavyweight division is in a weird state in 2015: there is not a single fighter in the Top 10 under 30 (30-year-old Junior dos Santos being the youngest), and most of the names near the top of the division are the same guys who ruled the roost ten years ago. With Fabricio Werdum winning the heavyweight title, and rumors of Fedor Emelianenko returning from retirement and signing a UFC contract afloat, this has truly been the year of comeback for aging heavyweights. Our co-main event competitors, both former UFC champions of the decade past, are prime examples of this heavyweight resurrection.
Andrei Arlovski’s name has been tossed around as one of the most likely contenders for Werdum’s title, but for some inexplicable reason UFC decided to give an immediate rematch to Cain Velasquez instead. While Werdum-Velasquez II is a nonsensical fight at this point in time, it still leaves room for some very interesting matchups in the division. It’s a bit of a surprise that Arlovski and Mir have not met in the Octagon before, but late is better than never, and with both fighter coming off impressive back-to-back knockout victories this is promising to be a great fight. Something is holding me back from valuing this fight a bit higher though: a few nagging memories in the back of my mind of the tentative versions of Arlovski and Mir, rather than the ‘swing for the fences’ version that we’ve seen in their recent fights. Past bouts like Arlovski vs Brendan Schaub, Werdum, or his third fight with Tim Sylvia… or Mir’s fights with Alistair Overeem, Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic, Dan Christison… all make me consider the remote but distinct possibility that we might be in for a dance contest rather than a fight. But I’m going to put away the ancient memories and hope for the best: two well-matured contenders colliding in a blaze of glory, with the winner perhaps getting another shot at the gold.
[#1 W145] 
[#3 W105] 
[#7 W105] 
