So this week is the week of the highly anticipated UFC 101: Declaration. Which is a fitting title in regards to the main/co-main event fights. Here we take a look at possibly story lines that could result from the event and how things would shape up:
BJ Penn/Kenny Florian: The fight is basically all about BJ Penn solidifying himself as the #1 LW in the world here and putting the loss to GSP behind him. Florian has moved up in the rankings based on an impressive winning streak which started after his loss to former LW champion Sean Sherk at UFC 64. Penn has widely been considered the #1 LW in the world for some time now. However, a loss to Florian would definitely put an end to that. Many people think Florian has little chance of winning this one, but I disagree and will be making the case for him later on this week. If Florian is able to pull off the upset, does that impact BJ Penn's legacy? Does an impressive win impact it as well?
Anderson Silva/Forrest Griffin: This fight is all about Anderson Silva actually fighting, opposed to facing opponents that offer very little in regards to competition. However, that will not be a problem at UFC 101 when Silva takes on former LHW champion Forrest Griffin. Griffin is gritty, can take a lot of damage, and fights with a big motor (high output). He's also one of the larger light heavyweights, so this fight should answer a lot of questions in regards to how good Anderson Silva really is. On the flip side, if Forrest Griffin is able to pull off the upset (he has a chance to) it would absolutely send his stock soaring in regards to him becoming the next Randy Couture (winning fights he is supposed to lose). If Silva wins, well he was expected to, but how he wins is the most important thing I suppose. If he wins another boring decision, could that add more fuel to the fire that started with his last two performances? What does it mean if he loses to Forrest Griffin?
Amir Sadollah/Johny Hendricks-This fight is Sadollah's official PPV debut and his first MMA fight in over a year after missing several bouts due to injuries. Sadollah is TUF 7 champion and definitely doesn't want to travel the path of TUF 6 winner Mac Danzig. He'll be facing a fighter with a strong amateur wrestling background in Johny Hendricks. However, Sadollah is no stranger to amateur wrestlers since he has submitted one twice in C.B. Dollaway. This fight could be the first of many to determine if TUF 7 was a bust or not. With Sadollah's hiatus from the MMA world, could TUF 7 be considered a bust already?
Kendall Grove/Ricardo Almeida-This is a fight for Kendall Grove to keep his momentum going after winning two in a row. With an exciting win here, one could make the case for Grove to face TUF 3 winner Michael Bisping later in the year. Almeida is coming off a win, but has indicated that he'll be moving down to the welterweight division after this fight. So with an impressive win over Grove, that could place Almeida somewhere right in the middle of the shark tank of the UFC welterweight division.
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