UFC 173 Preview

The UFC returns to Pay-Per-View on Saturday night when UFC 173 takes place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. This card has been changed again and again and has a completely different look than it did just a few months ago.

Both original Main Event participants, middleweights Chris Weidman and Vitor Belfort, have dropped out and so the top-billed fight of the event will now be a bantamweight title bout between Renan Barão and TJ Dillashaw. Dillashaw himself is fighting in place of Rafael Assunção, who pulled out with a rib injury.

Even after all of the maneuvering to make this event happen, the final card is stacked and should provide more than enough excitement for fight fans. Here’s everything you need to know about this weekend’s lineup.

Fight with the Best KO/TKO Potential

Dan Henderson vs. Daniel Cormier

There are a number of fights on this card that promise to be all-out wars and could certainly yield knockouts. Robbie Lawler vs. Jake Ellenberger (hold that thought) is certainly a possibility and Renan Barão is always a threat to land a big punch or submit his opponent. On the whole, however, the fight with the best chance to end early has to be the co-Main Event, Henderson vs. Cormier.

Both of these fighters are coming off knockout wins in their last bout, Henderson over Mauricio Rua and Cormier over Patrick Cummins. Also, as everyone saw in Henderson’s fight against Shogun, Hendo, at age 43, is not nearly as quick as he used to be. He took a pounding from Rua before pulling out a miraculous victory and that was preceded by a first round knockout loss against Belfort. It would not surprise me at all to see the undefeated Cormier land a knockout blow that pushes Henderson into retirement. You can bet the former champion will be looking to bring a premature end to the fight, as well.

Important Quote:

“I work harder [in training], because I know that Dan Henderson is a guy that has been around the block a time or two. He beats everybody up, he has won at every level and it’s an opportunity for a passing of the torch.”- Daniel Cormier

Most underrated fight

Renan Barão vs. TJ Dillashaw

As strange as it seems, probably the most underrated fight on this card is the Main Event itself. There are two words that back up this statement: Renan. Barão. Barão is not often mentioned when fans or pundits discuss the brightest stars or most dominant fighters that the UFC has to offer, but he certainly should be. The 27-year old Barão has an overall record of 34-1 and has won an incredible 30 fights in a row, but you wouldn’t know it from the publicity he gets.

“The Baron” probably gets less respect than Rodney Dangerfield and Tim Duncan put together, but he’s one of the best pound-for-pound fighters who competes in the sport today. If he wins Saturday, he’ll become just the 10th fighter ever to defend a belt four times in a row. Standing in his way is Team Alpha Male champion TJ Dillashaw, a training partner of Urijah Faber, Barão’s most recent victim. It’ll be up to Dillashaw to stay away from the Baron’s skilled submission techniques and keep him moving. If the champion has a weakness, it’s his cardio. It’s always exciting to watch greatness in action, so don’t sleep on this one.

Important Quote:

“I believe T.J. [Dillashaw] thinks he is a striker now, and he isn’t. I think he will mess up and make mistakes in this fight, and this will present the chance for me to finish him.” –Renan Barão (through a translator)

Fight of the Night

Robbie Lawler vs. Jake Ellenberger

I covered this one in my preview on Wednesday, but in case you need a refresher, this is far and away the most intriguing matchup of the night. Lawler and Ellenberger are both jockeying for position at the top of the welterweight division, a division that has been thrown into flux with the retirement of Georges St. Pierre. Both are coming off a loss but they (especially Lawler) could put themselves in position to get the next shot at current champion Johny Hendricks with a victory Saturday.

The matchup itself calls for some fireworks from these two big punchers. Either could land a fight-ending blow, as they have combined for 36 knockout victories in their careers. Ellenberger, however, would like to get this fight to the ground, where he has an advantage in grappling; the Juggernaut has only been submitted once in his entire career. Make sure to tune in early enough to catch this one.

Important Quote:

“Every fight’s important, but this is the most important fight [of my career] by far.”-Jake Ellenberger

For your viewing pleasure, here is the complete fight card for UFC 173:

Early Preliminaries (UFC Fight Pass)-6:30 PM EST

David Michaud vs. Li JingLiang – Welterweight

Sam Sicilia vs. Aaron Phillips – Featherweight

Vinc Pichel vs. Anthony Njokuani – Lightweight

Preliminaries (Fox Sports 1) 8:00 PM EST

Al Iaquinta vs. Mitch Clarke – Lightweight

Chris Holdsworth vs. Chico Camus – Bantamweight

Tony Ferguson vs. Katsunori Kikuno – Lightweight

Michael Chiesa vs. Francisco Trinaldo – Lightweight