A recent frenzy of Zuffa-sponsored shows reaches its climax this Saturday, as
UFC 106 “Ortiz vs. Griffin 2” features some of the best pure matchmaking mixed martial arts has seen in some time. A bizarre development considering the injuries and reshuffling that gutted this event, but a set of quality matches designed to please even the most demanding palates remains.
At a show headlined by a rematch between heated rivals
Tito Ortiz and
Forrest Griffin, the collection of main card bouts serves as the real selling point. From the grapple-fest starring
Karo Parisyan and
Dustin Hazelett to the sure-fire clash of the titans between
Anthony Johnson and
Josh Koscheck, expect plenty of competition for post-fight bonuses.
More than three years removed from their contentious first encounter, the stakes remain very much the same for the rematch. For Griffin, it represents an opportunity to rebound from consecutive losses and reestablish himself as a contender for the light heavyweight title he once held. As for Ortiz, this serves as his chance to prove that a fresh round of surgeries have him back to his old, incalculably grating self.
With his 35th birthday right around the corner and more injuries than Evil Knievel already in his file, Ortiz enters this fight as an unknown quantity. With that said, if his shots still have some juice on them, he has already proven he can take down Griffin and work the ground-and-pound game plan to perfection.
For all his improvement inside the cage, Griffin still loses his discipline with alarming regularity, and Ortiz will look to prey on that weakness. How long will Ortiz’s gas tank hold up as he tries to physically overpower a guy built like the unholy lovechild of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox? The first time around, Ortiz could not sustain his ground-and-pound game past the first round and just barely survived two periods of attrition with Griffin. Survival will not be an option if Ortiz gets thrown into that crucible all over again, and Griffin will try and drag him into that exact scenario.
As has been his pre-fight custom, Ortiz claims to be back to 100 percent and ready to reclaim dominance of a division he ruled for three years. Unfortunately, it has become hard to take those claims seriously considering they are about as believable as the Birther conspiracy theory.
Assuming sanity for Griffin seems no more appealing. One has to wonder about the state of mind of a man who willingly traded strikes with UFC middleweight champion
Anderson Silva. All of Griffin’s UFC success can be traced back to adopting a more conservative fighting style, and if he plans to ignore those facts, he will find himself on the fast-track to the second-tier.
Nostalgia routinely loses to reality in sports, and this fight will be no exception, as Ortiz will be confronted with the fact that his prime came and went a long time ago. Expect him to find some success early with ground-and-pound, but the physical strain will be too much, as Griffin seizes the upper hand with his striking as the bout progresses. Griffin’s vastly improved conditioning will be what secures him the win, as he takes a unanimous decision nod.
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