The highly anticipated September UFC pay-per-view event is next in line, and it’s going to be a good one. So far this year, it could even be considered the best card of the year, as it has many top names but also fantastic matchups that people cannot wait for. There are still some remaining cards this year that could definitely steal the ‘Best Card of the Year’ title, but no matter what expect UFC 178 to be a fun night of fights for everyone. Here are some things you can definitely expect from the event which takes place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sept. 27.
1. A dominant fight for Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson that will end in a decision in favor of the champ
UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson is taking on Top 10 flyweight Chris Cariaso in a five-round main event at UFC 178 next weekend, and when the matchup was announced originally for the co-main event of UFC 177, everyone, I mean everyone, was shocked. It was impossible to find someone who believed Cariaso deserved the shot at the title, which has only been held by Johnson. He is on a three-fight win streak, but none of his wins have come over ranked opponents. His last fight against Louis Smolka was even close, resulting in a close split decision. Of course upsets happen, some pretty big ones too. Go backwards to last spring, we saw one of the biggest upsets of all time, when now-champion T.J. Dillashaw displayed a spectacular and unexpected performance against Renan Barao, who was TKO’d in the fifth round after being dominated in all of the earlier rounds. The odds were high in Barao’s favour and no one gave Dillashaw a chance. This is even bigger, though; the odds are steeper, Cariaso is thought to be more of a mediocre fighter than Dillashaw was, and Johnson has completely dominated the division. If Cariaso pulls off the unbelievable I give him props, but don’t expect that to happen. What I see happening is a very dominant fight for the champion, who will remain the champion and win probably by decision.
2. Expect a very entertaining, exciting and close fight in ‘The People’s Main Event’, Poirier vs. McGregor
When this fight was announced, everyone went crazy. This fight has been so highly anticipated it’s impossible to find someone not excited for this fight. Not only does it feature two top featherweight fighters, which is a relatively stacked division right now, but it could also be a very entertaining fight. There has also been some beef between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor, as they clearly do not like each other, which you can see when they face-off. McGregor, not quite a household name yet but he’s on his way. He is by far the biggest MMA star in Ireland, and is quickly becoming a star in the world, even though he has not faced top competition. Poirier on the other hand, just wants to shut him up, derail the hype train. I’m personally picking Poirier to win, but expect a very exciting and close fight between the two standouts.
3. Donald Cerrone will likely continue his amazing win streak, but it’ll be a tough fight for sure against Eddie Alvarez
Donald Cerrone vs. Eddie Alvarez is the co-main event and boy am I looking forward to this one. It’s going to be absolutely nuts, a stand up war. Expect Alvarez to put pressure early on in the fight, looking to take ‘Cowboy’ out quickly. Cerrone sure loves his bonuses, and I think he’ll earn another 50 thousand dollars with this one, too. Expect it to be a great fight and I’d say a late TKO finish for Cerrone, which will extend his fight winning streak to five. I hate going into fights with high hopes, but how can’t you have high hopes for this one?
UFC 178 will be an absolute fantastic night of fights. The entire fight card, including the prelims is stacked top to bottom, with many other great fights you can expect lots from. Check back here for more pre-fight stuff, live results and post-fight UFC 178, only at MMASucka.com.
