UFC Fight Night 13: Good Judge of Character

Naturally, and as usual the page on which I make my selections is closed so I have to make them up again for you.

This is a really, really, no irony included, really good card. Fights galore. Good fights. No superstars.

Johnson vs. Speer - Speer by decision. Speer's wrestling and toughness will get him through. Johnson's cardio could go out early leading to TKO.

Mitichiyan vs. Sotiropoulos - Armenia vs. Greece. Mitichiyan is really an unknown commodity. Sotiropoulos is the real deal. He is a smooth striker and grappler. His stamina is not in question. Plus he trained at Purebred Omiya. I have Sotiropoulos by sub in the 2nd.

Guida vs. Schiavo - Guida by whatever. Probably G-n-P TKO.

Cox vs. Gamburyan - More Armenians. Gamburyan is too powerful. He wins by TKO in the 2nd. His shoulder might pop out of joint however.

Aurelio vs. Roberts- For as long as Aurelio has been around, I feel like I don't know much about him. Still, I have him winning by submission in the 3rd. American Top Team on a roll.

Neer vs. Thomas- I wish this fight was on the main card. Thomas is one of my favorite fighter of all time. He is good on his feet. He is good on the ground. He is technical in all aspects. He has the best head movement in MMA. Thomas by sub in the 3rd.

To the main card.

Edgar vs. Maynard- Stamina is the deciding factor in most MMA bouts. While both of these guys are talented wrestlers, I give the stamina edge to Edgar. Edgar by exciting decision.

Alexander vs. Irvin- If you follow fighting, your only real question about this fight is what craziness is going to happen. Both of the guys are explosive and have quick victories. They also, especially Irvin, have very strange finishes. Someones knee could explode. Someone's head could explode. A paraglider could drop into the ring. The cage could explode. Alexander by spontaneous combustion in the 1st round.

Diaz vs. Pellegrino- Pellegrino is a tough tough guy. I am scared of him. His wrestling is superior to Diaz'. Pellegrino is also a black belt (I think) in jiu-jitsu. That being said, I never bet against a Diaz. Diaz by crazy sub in the 3rd.

Boetsch vs. Hamill- If you haven't seen Boetsch's last fight, watch it. It is a crazy beat down culminating in him throwing David Heath onto his head. I like Boetsch's fights. I am interested. I still believe in Hamill's talent. It hasn't all come together yet, but I think it will. Hamill by decision.

Alves vs. Parisyan- I love watching Karo Parisyan fight. This is going to be tough for him. Alves has savage leg kicks that could disrupt Karo's hybrid judo game. Parisyan, although being an explosive athlete, lacks real striking power. If Karo can overcome the kicks, he wins in the clicnh game. If his stamina is there, he takes the decision.

Florian vs. Lauzon- Two fighters that I love to watch fighting. Florian is a slick jiu-jitsu black belt that his really integrated muay thai into his game. Lauzon is a nutty grappler who integrates computer networks. They are both very, very good and the kind of fighters that I like to watch and pull for. I think at this stage in their careers, Florian is the more well developed and he wears down Lauzon. Nasty G-nP gets Florian the decision. Lauzon grows as a fighter.

Great card all around.