Rory MacDonald (right) is out to prove he deserves another crack at Carlos Condit and will try to use his well-rounded skills to do it. (Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC.)
The UFC returns after a brief hiatus for another trip to the northeastern state of Pennsylvania for UFC 133: Evans vs. Ortiz this Saturday. The marquis bout of the evening features a rematch between “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz (16-8-1) and “Sugar” Rashad Evans (15-1-1), and the supporting cast includes a wealth of talent from the limbo between contender, prospect, and gatekeeper. In a middleweight tilt, former light heavyweight champion and 185lbs. title contender “The Phenom” Vitor Belfort (19-9) will pit his murderous hand speed against the effortless technique of Japanese golden boy “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama (14-4). Welterweight “Superman” Dennis Hallman (45-13-2) will look for his third straight UFC win against fire hardened veteran Brian Ebersole (40-14-1). “El Conquistador” Jorge Rivera (18-8) will look to get back on track by defeating late replacement Constantinos Philippou (7-2) and starting things off for the evening “Quicksand” Mike Pyle (21-6-1) will meet “The Water Boy” Rory MacDonald (11-1) at 170. The talented and experienced Pyle has a well versed ground assault that is based in his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt. Arrayed against him is the balanced skill set of the young former King of the Cage champion in MacDonald. Both men are looking to make a case that they deserve to challenge the big dogs at welterweight and the result should be a tight, technical ground match where each man hunts for an impressive finish. Continue reading »
