By Josh Nason, WrestlingObserver.com
Follow @JoshNason
We’re right in the thick of an eight straight week stretch of UFC Saturdays, ideal if you’re alone and don’t have any responsibilities on the weekends. After a one-week respite, it’s five events in seven days. Go get your sunlight now, friends.
The most interesting fight on this UFC Fight Night 67 card features the return of Carlos Condit, one of the most exciting action fighters in the UFC today. He was last seen in a sluggish March 2014 affair with Tyron Woodley, having torn his knee during the second round. Standing in his way is Thiago Alves, a guy still in the position of his own comeback after fighting sparingly over the past few years.
This is a classic FS1 show in Brazil: a few names we know, a lot we don’t, and the promise of either an exciting night or a dull one. After last weekend’s UFC 187, however, we don’t have much room to complain.
Also, be sure to check out the first edition of my new WrestlingObserver.com podcast called Josh Nason’s Punch-Out! that should hit the site Saturday morning. It’s so amazing, your earbuds will melt. The debut guest is someone familiar to readers of these picks: Sherdog’s Jack Encarnacao.
From last week’s UFC 187 picks: Josh Nason, Steve Juon, Mike Sempervive, John Pollock, Jack Encarnacao, and Mike Sawyer all went 4-1 in main card picks. Dave Meltzer, Front Row Brian, and David Bixenspan were all 3-2 as they chose Anthony Johnson in the main event. Everyone got Andrei Arlovski’s win wrong.
*****
– Jack Encarnacao (47-13 | .783) Sherdog Rewind host, The Lapsed Fan podcast co-chair, Steve Austin impersonator
– Mike Sempervive (42-18 | .700) Wrestling Observer Live co-host | Big Audio Nightmare
– Steve Juon (42-18 | .700) AngryMarks founder, MMA Mania writer
– John Pollock (42-18 | .700) Fight Network personality, Live Audio Wrestling co-host, The MMA Report host
– David Bixenspan (40-20 | .666) Figure Four Weekly writer, Observer Daily Update writer, podcast host
– Front Row Brian (37-23 | .616) MMA newsbreaker, Twitter personality, podcast host
– Dave Meltzer (37-23 | .616) Wrestling Observer founder & writer, occasional cougher
– Josh Nason (34-26 | .566) Wrestling Observer digital media and content guy, WON Twitter enabler
– Mike Sawyer (33-27 | .555) Tough Talk MMA, 2014 picks panel champion
*****
> Carlos Condit (29-8) vs. Thiago Alves (21-9)
Welterweight
Despite being a past UFC interim welterweight champion, Condit has lost three of his last four since beating Nick Diaz for the belt in 2012. Granted, those losses have been against top competition in Georges St. Pierre, Johny Hendricks, and Woodley, but his only win has come over the basically retired Martin Kampmann.
Alves returned from a near year-long absence in January with a second round TKO of Jordan Mein, and has fought just three times in the last four years. It’s essentially a miracle he’s fighting twice in the span of five months. Any division with these two healthy and competing is a better division. I can’t wait for this one.
Condit (favorite): Nason, Sempervive, Juon, Meltzer, Bix, FRB, Sawyer, Pollock, Encarnacao
> Nik Lentz (25-6-2-1) vs. Charles Oliveira (19-4-0-1) II
Featherweight
Would you believe this rematch has been four years in the making? When these two first squared off, they were both lightweights and Cheick Kongo and Pat Barry were fighting in the main event on Versus. In their first tilt, Oliveira hit Lentz with an illegal knee the referee missed, leading to a submission win for Oliveira. What a heel!
The decision was later overturned into a no contest. A rematch was scheduled for 2014, but Oliveira missed weight and got sick the day of the fight, so it was scrapped, costing the UFC zero PPV buys. Lentz has been out since last May, while Oliveira has surged to win three straight.
Oliveira (favorite): Nason, Sempervive, Juon, Meltzer, Bix, FRB, Sawyer, Pollock, Encarnacao
> KJ Noons (13-7-0-1) vs. Alex Oliveira (10-2-1)
Welterweight
Following consecutive wins, Noons faced Daron Cruickshank in his last fight and went to a no contest due to an errant eye poke that rendered Cruickshank unable to continue. Oliveira replaces Yan Cabral who contracted, wait for it, Dengue fever. He made his UFC debut in March with a third round submission loss to Gilbert Burns.
– Noons: FRB, Pollock
– Oliveira (slight favorite): Nason, Sempervive, Juon, Meltzer, Bix, Sawyer, Encarnacao
> Francimar Barroso (16-4) vs. Ryan Jimmo (19-4)
Light Heavyweight
Barroso is 1-1 in the UFC, and has had fights with Patrick Cummings and Ovince St. Preux scrapped in recent months. Jimmo is coming off a near year-long absence due to a broken arm suffered against OSP, and is just 3-3 in the Octagon after a seven second debut marked his debut. He’s also been very vocal about the UFC/Reebok deal, so it will be interesting to see what happens if he loses.
Jimmo (favorite): Nason, Sempervive, Juon, Meltzer, Bix, FRB, Sawyer, Pollock, Encarnacao
> Norman Parke (20-3-1) vs. Francisco Trinaldo (16-4)
Lightweight
Once slated to face Diego Sanchez in a high-profile fight, Parke is coming off a split decision loss to Gleison Tibau in January. Trinaldi has won two in a row and after being in the UFC since 2012, he’s just another lightweight stuck in the middle of the division.
Parke (favorite): Nason, Sempervive, Juon, Meltzer, Bix, FRB, Sawyer, Pollock, Encarnacao
Dave has you covered starting with the prelims. Enjoy!