Bisping (left) and Henderson (right) will face each other after seven years. (Photo: Getty Images)
Ultimate arrives in Manchester, England for UFC 204, an event that takes place this Saturday (08). In the main attraction of the show, Michael Bisping e Dan Henderson compete for the UFC heavyweight belt, while the Brazilian Vitor belfort makes a decisive duel against Gegard Mousasi for a chance to fight for the category title again.
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To get you in the mood for UFC 204, the SUPER FIGHTS prepared five reasons for you to attend the event.
1 – Rematch and belt on the line
Seven years after being brutally knocked out by Dan Henderson, Michael Bisping Finally, he received the chance to “revenge” his executioner. And this time, with a special flavor: he will defend, for the first time, the UFC middleweight belt, won by the Englishman in June this year, when he knocked out Luke Rockhold at UFC 199 and became champion.
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Since then, Bisping has had to make countless comebacks to secure his place among the best. Dubbed as an “almost fighter”, the one who always lost in the decisive phase, the Englishman overcame everyone's distrust and reached the maximum point an athlete can reach. Before that, however, he had already achieved a huge career feat by overcoming Anderson Silva, in February this year.
When it comes to overcoming, Henderson is not far behind. Former champion of organizations such as Pride and Strikeforce, the 46-year-old veteran achieved a very unlikely title shot, it is true, but it is necessary to emphasize that the knockout over Hector Lombard It was quite a passport to the challenger position. Considered one of the greatest legends in the sport, Hendo has the opportunity to end his career with a flourish.
Next Saturday, when the lights go out and Bruce Buffer announces the names of Michael Bisping e Dan Henderson, we will be living in a historic moment. Regardless of who leaves with their arm raised, we are certain: the main fight of UFC 204 will be remembered as one of the most important chapters in MMA.
2 – Vitor Belfort’s last chance?
At 39 years old, Belfort needs to win to think about the belt. (Photo: Getty Images)
After being knocked out by Ronaldo Jacare at UFC 198, held in Curitiba, in May, Vitor belfort return to the octagon this Saturday (08) with the pressure of winning again if he still wants to dream of a new title fight. To do this, you will need to beat the always dangerous Gegard Mousasi in the second most important fight of the night.
Belfort alternates between highs and lows in his career. After an overwhelming 2013, when he knocked out Michael Bisping, Luke Rockhold e Dan Henderson subsequently, the Brazilian took a sabbatical year and only returned in May 2015, at UFC 187, when he faced Chris Weidman for the middleweight belt, but was knocked out in the first round. In the same year, he won again by knocking out again Dan Henderson, but the defeat to Jacaré once again delayed the “Phenomenon”’s plans.
Mousasi arrived at the UFC with the status of a title challenger, but some stumbles along the way took away from the Dutch/Iranian the aura of threat to the elite. However, the current phase is good. The last two times he entered the Octagon, two victories over Brazilians. First, he overcame Thales leites on points, in February this year, at UFC Fight Night 83. Afterwards, he knocked out Thiago Marreta at UFC 200 last July. Of the nine times he played in Ultimate, he had six positive results and three negative results.
At 39 years old, Vitor knows that a new defeat, at this point in the championship, represents the end of his dream of winning another UFC title. Mousasi, on the other hand, needs to triumph to show that he is finally ready to enter the top 5 in the category.
3 – Big dog fight
St. Preux (left) and Manuwa (right) duel with an eye on the top 5 light heavyweight division.
What should we expect when two members of the top 10 light heavyweights are pitted against each other? I'll say more: what if these two fighters were known for their aggressive strikes and high knockout power? If your answer is “high level striking”, you’re right. And that is exactly the current situation of the third most important fight on the show, between Ovince St Preux and Jimi Manuwa.
St. Preux, fifth in the ranking, is coming off a defeat to Jon Jones at UFC 197, last April, when he competed for the interim belt in the category. Before that, in four fights he faced three Brazilians. Two of them stayed along the way – Mauritius Shogun and Rafael “Feijão”, but the submission suffered against Glover Teixeira left him at a low level among the division's top performers.
Manuwa experiences a similar situation. He arrived at the UFC undefeated, with a record of 11 victories – 10 by knockout and one by submission – and with the status of a future title challenger. The start was devastating, and the three knockouts in a row showed that the “Poster Boy”, as he is known, was not messing around. However, the defeats suffered by Alexander Gustafson e Anthony Johnson, interspersed with a victory over Jan Blachowicz, put their status in check.
After all, which of the two fighters will serve as the “gatekeeper” of the elite and which will invade the select group of challengers in the category? Saturday, the 8th, we will have the answer.
4 – 100% Brazilian confrontation
Martins (left) and Santos (right) will open the UFC 204 preliminary card.
In the first fight of the night, a 100% Brazilian clash promises to raise the spirits of the local public. Adriano Martins from Manaus faces Leonardo Santos from Rio in a duel valid for the lightweight category, with the winner getting closer to the top 15 in the weight class.
At 33 years old, Martins, former champion of Jungle Fight, an important national organization, has five battles held in the UFC, with four positive results and one negative. Without acting since October last year, when he delivered a brutal knockout to the Russian Islam makhachev At UFC 192, Adriano knows that a victory over Santos definitely puts him on the radar of the lightweight elite.
Winner of TUF Brasil 2, Léo still doesn't know what it's like to lose in the Ultimate Octagon: there are four wins and a draw. In his last fight, he surprised by knocking out the favorite Kevin Lee at UFC 194, in December 2015. Three years older than his opponent, the jiu-jitsu specialist wants to score his fourth consecutive victory and show that he is ready to be among the best.
5 – Other highlights of the card
Struve, Bektic, Marajó and Tumenov will also be in action at UFC 204
In addition to the four clashes highlighted above, there are some interesting developments to keep an eye on. The clash of giants between Stefan struve and Daniel Omielanczuk promises to make the Octagon shake. Struve comes from a lightning knockout over Antonio Pezão, while Daniel is going through a great phase: there are now three consecutive victories.
Still on the main card, promising Mirsad Bektic returns to fight after a 17-month hiatus and faces Russell Doane. Ranked, Bektic wants to show that the time away will not be enough to prevent him from moving up in the featherweight division. Already in the preliminary portion, the Brazilian Iuri Marajó and the veteran Brad pickett measure strength in search of rehabilitation in the bantamweight division. Both are not going through a good phase: Pickett has won just one of his last four fights, while Marajó alternates between good and bad results, which has caused his name to disappear even from the category rankings.
Last but not least, the underrated Albert Tumenov faces Leon edwards, in a duel valid for welterweights. Tumenov had won five in a row, but was surpassed by Gunnar Nelson in his last appearance. Against Edwards, 3-2 in Ultimate, the Russian needs to win and convince to get closer to the top 10 in the division.
UFC 204 technical sheet
DATE AND TIME: 08/10/2016, from 20pm (Brasília time)
PLACE: Manchester Arena, Manchester, England
STREAMING: Combat Channel
MAIN CARD
Average weight: Michael Bisping x Dan Henderson
Average weight: Vitor belfort x Gegard Mousasi
Light Heavyweight: Ovince St Preux x Jimi Manuwa
Heavyweight: Stefan struve x Daniel Omielanczuk
Featherweight: Mirsad Bektic x Russell Doane
PRELIMINARY CARD
Bantamweight: Brad pickett x Iuri Marajó
Bantamweight: Ian Entwistle x Rob font
Feather weight: davey grant x Damian Stasiak
Welterweight Weight: Leon edwards x Albert Tumenov
Welterweight Weight: Danny Roberts x Mike Perry
Lightweight: Leonardo Santos x Adriano Martins
Lightweight: Lukasz Sajewski x Marc Diakiese
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