UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards 2 Fight Predictions

UFC Welterweight Championship

Kamaru Usman (c)(Favorite) v. Leon Edwards

Picking Usman- All of us

Paulo Costa (Favorite)vs. Luke Rockhold

Picking Costa: All of us

Jose Aldo vs. Merab Dvalishvilli

Picking Aldo: Dr. Law, DJ Mark
Picking Dvalishvilli:  Gooms

Marcin Tybura vs. Alexander Romanov(Favorite)

Picking Romanov: All of us

It's MMAzing 2022 Standings (as of 8/15/2022)

1. Doctor Law (c) (49-20)
2. Chalk - (47-22)
3. DJ Mark with a "K" (47-22)
4. Lavender Gooms - (46-23) 

UFC 239: Jones v. Santos Predictions

Jones v. Santos
Picking Jones: All of us
Santos: ...

Nunes v. Holm
Picking Nunes: All of us
Picking Holm: ...

Masvidal v. Askren
Picking Masvidal: Dr. Law
Picking Askren: Gooms, Kid Presentable, DJ Mark

Blachowicz v. Rockhold
Picking Blachowicz: Kid Presentable
Picking Rockhold: Gooms, DJ Mark, Dr. Law

Sanchez v. Chiesa
Picking Sanchez: Sorry
Picking Chiesa: All of us

Melendez v. Allen
Picking Melendez: DJ Mark
Picking Allen: Gooms, Dr. Law, Kid Presentable

Gadelha v. Markos
Picking Gadelha: Gooms, Dr. Law, DJ Mark
Picking Markos: Kid Presentable

It's MMAzing 2019 Standings (as of 07/03/19)
1. Lavender Gooms - (32-24)
2. Dr. Law - (31-25)
2. Kid Presentable - (31-25)
4. DJ Mark -  (30-26)

UFC 221: Rockhold v. Romero Picks

UFC Fake Intercontinental Interim Middleweight Championship
Luke Rockhold v. Yoel Romero

Picking Rockhold: All of us
Picking Romero:

Mark Hunt v. Curtis Blaydes

Picking Hunt: All of us
Picking Blaydes:

Jussier Formiga vs Ben Nguyen

Picking Formiga: DJ Mark
Picking Nguyen: Dr. Law, Kid Presentable, Lavender Gooms

It's MMAzing Standings (as of 2/7/18)

1. DJ Mark (c) - (9-5)
1. Kid Presentable - (9-5)
3. Lavender Gooms - (8-6)
4. Dr. Law - (6-8)

UFC Fight Night: Rockhold v. Branch Predictions

Luke Rockhold v. David Branch

Picking Rockhold: All of us
Picking Branch:

Thiago Alves v. Mike Perry

Picking Alves: Gooms
Picking Platinum Perry: Dr. Law, Kid P, DJ Mark

Hector Lombard v. Anthony Smith

Picking Lombard: All of us
Picking Smith:

It's MMAzing Standings (as of 9/17/17)
1. DJ Mark with a "K" - (57-36-1)
2. Doctor Law (c) - (54-39-1)
3. Kid Presentable - (52-41-1)
4. Lavender Gooms - (48-45-1)

UFC 199: Rockhold vs Bisping II Predictions

It is the cementing of legacies versus a moment of redemption. Will past losses be avenged? Or will the tides press on, confirming the past moments that resonate with us today. These are the story lines going into UFC 199: Rockhold vs Bisping II. Originally slated to defend in a rematch against the recently dethroned Chris Weidman, Rockhold now takes on Michael Bisping in his first, and almost entirely improbable title shot. For some reason the UFC brass has also deemed it necessary to give us the Cruz vs Faber rubber match that none of us really wanted. This card is deep on action fighters that should make for an action packed night. Max Holloway continues his ascent toward title contendership, while an ever aging Dan Henderson will continue to carry o see if he can land that mega-nuke right hand against the always dangerous (in the first round) Hector Lombard. But personally, I am most awaiting the return of the king, Bobby Green, who has a potential fight of the night bonus in waiting against the always exciting to watch, Dustin Poirier. Check out our picks for the fights.

UFC middleweight championship
Luke Rockhold (c) vs Michael Bisping

Luke feelin' himself

And then... a handsome man entered the room. As an FYI, that is how every story involving Luke Rockhold begins. I just thought you should know. At this point, there aren't too many superlatives I can give out that you wouldn't already know for the man who beat the man, who beat THE MAN. Rockhold is every bit a complete fighter with nasty power while striking, and may the Seven protect you if he gets control of you on the ground. Michael Bisping knows this first hand with the way he was so effortlessly rolled over into a nasty top-side guillotine in their first outing. This is a title fight so I feel like I should say more, but this title shot is more so just a resume padder. Rockhold by choke submission, round 2.

Rockhold: unanimous

Bisping: Bobby's heart

It's MMAzing 2015 Year End Awards

For information on how we came up with these wonderful selections please listen to Episode 164 of It's MMAzing Radio

The trophies look just like this.
I promise.

Fighter of the Year (Male):

Doctor Law: Conor McGregor
Kid Presentable: Conor McGregor
DJ Mark with a K: Conor McGregor
Lavender Gooms: Conor McGregor

Fighter of the Year (Female):

Doctor Law: Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Kid Presentable: Holly Holm
DJ Mark with a K: Holly Holm
Lavender Gooms: Joanna Jedrzejczyk

UFC 194: Aldo vs. McGregor Picks and Predictions

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people of all ages... we are finally here! Well... almost. It wasn't all long that ago that we said the featherweight division was devoid of stars and now it houses quite possibly the biggest fight the UFC can make on quite possibly the best card the UFC has ever put together. Anticipation for Aldo and McGregor is palpable after an initial postponement at what was supposed to be an It's MMAzing event out in Vegas. Mendes stepped in to fight McGregor as we all know and the legend continues. Somehow lost in all of this hullabaloo is a spectacular middleweight title fight between Chris Weidman and Luke Rockhold. Rockhold has been on one of the most impressive tears in recent memory while Weidman is the Anointed One, Vanquisher of Spiders, and reigning greatest fighter on the planet. Saturday night is bringing a stacked card with great fighters, but let's be real here... there is only ONE Conor McGregor.

UFC Featherweight Championship
Jose Aldo (c) vs. Conor McGregor (ic) 

@thenotoriousmma you look great

No... Notorious! It's a real credit to the man Conor that he managed to steal center stage from a monster of a man who has been without peer for nearly his entire Zuffa run in Jose Aldo. Aldo has been a human highlight reel of violence in his reign, yet in struts this brash Irishman who has stolen the hearts (and betting lines) of the masses. Aldo is a killer in the cage, yet something about McGregor seems so effortless and masterful. Listen to Conor long enough and you will surely hear about the art of movement and that is precisely what Conor is in the cage: an artist. Could the hype train come crashing down? Absolutely. Could we see the coronation of the one true king? I'm expecting it. It's not that long ago we saw what movement and fluidity could do to stifle a heralded Brazilian killer in Renan Barao, Jose Aldo's teammate no less. McGregor by third round TKO. Bust out the red panties.

Aldo:
McGregor: U... Unanimous!

UFC on Fox: Machida v. Rockhold Predictions

The UFC is back on network television and back in Newark because the city of New York hates money. With them they bring a fantastic card from top to bottom (despite the loss of Yoel Romero) headlined by a battle between two top middleweight contenders. Oh, did I mention that this is the most handsome main event in UFC history? Well this is me putting you ladies and gentlemen (I don't judge) on notice.

For as long as I run this site, this is the default Machida gif 

Lyoto Machida v. Luke Rockhold

I spent like 20 minutes trying to work a Handsome Boy Modeling School joke into this fight. It would have helped if I had more experience with listening to the group beyond the 2 or 3 times I heard them while riding in Kid Presentable's car 12 years ago. Anyway, this should be a very competitive fight between two beautiful sons of b*tches top contenders in the 185 pound division. Rockhold has won 3 straight since getting TRT Vitor'd while Machida recently kicked CB Dollaway's ribs into the third row. I have a hard time picking against Machida in a fight where I'm pretty confident he wont be taken down. That's why I didn't. I think Machida does what Machida always does. He will manage distance, avoid getting hit and strike when he sees an opening. Luke Rockhold is a fantastic fighter who is very well rounded and is only getting better. He has proven that he can come back from adversity and one day he will be fighting for the UFC title. I just think he's going to have to wait a bit. Machida by 4th round TKO.

Picking The Dragon: Dr. Law, Gooms, Kid P
Picking The Surfer: DJ Mark

It's MMAzing 2014 Year End Awards

Winners can expect their trophies to
arrive in the mail in 4-6...years. Yea...
let's go with that.

For information on how we came up with these wonderful selections please listen to Episode 112 of It's MMAzing Radio.

Fighter of the Year (Male):

Doctor Law: Robbie Lawler
Kid Presentable: Robbie Lawler
DJ Mark with a K: Robbie Lawler
Lavender Gooms: TJ Dillashaw

Fighter of the Year (Female):

Doctor Law: Ronda Rousey
Kid Presentable: Carla Esparza
DJ Mark with a K: Carla Esparza
Lavender Gooms: Ronda Rousey

State of the Middleweight Landscape

Image via terezowens.com

Hey there folks. It has been a while since I've had a chance to comment on all things mma as Comic Con took my attention away for a spell. In my catching up on the mma world it seems like the middleweight picture has become quite a mess and I have decided to take up the duty to try and sort out the picture for all you wonderful readers. (One side Comic Con note: apparently Josh Barnett was there and somehow we did NOT meet him. Lame.) So up next we'll take a look at the top names in the game, where they stand, and where do they go from here.

Anderson Silva: Fresh off the biggest win of his career, it seems most likely that Anderson will take some time off to enjoy his new A-list celebrity status in his home country, and have some fun with those fresh millions in his bank account. It does not seem likely he will fight again any sooner than the Spring or Summer of next year. I don't think he is retiring quite yet, but he might be moving toward the Undertaker annual super fight circuit mode sooner than later.

Chael Sonnen: Poor Chael. Your tremendous wrestling ability and gift of gab got you right near the top, but a "what were you thinking?" spinning back elbow probably cost you all of it. With a second loss, this time in devastating fashion, Chael will not likely get a third crack at Silva. He goes into Jon Fitch mode now with the option of being a gate keeper to the division unless Silva should fall or decide to retire. Next up he likely gets to settle his feud with Wanderlei Silva, or possibly retirement, though I would hope not.

Mark Munoz: Munoz was supposed to be up next, but he was quite simply tooled in his last fight. He's the decorated wrestler whose take downs aren't quite good in an mma setting, whose standup is only ok, and whose chin is questionable. Munoz probably falls out of the title picture and will need to put together 3-4 wins again before he's in it once more.

Chris Weidman: Just like Batman on Thursday, Weidman rises. For Munoz being up next, Weidman made that fight look like some routine can crushing. He probably has more momentum than any other fighter in the division going right now, but due to no one watching Fuel, likely needs another high profile fight as a co-main event to help sell his probably shot against Silva after.

It's MMAzing Staff Predictions for Strikeforce: Rockhold v. Jardine

Image via Strikeforce.com

Strikeforce Middleweight Championshp:
Luke Rockhold (c) v. Keith Jardine

Doctor Law: It’s free Showtime weekend all over the country. It’s a chance for Strikeforce to gain some new fans by showing what a great product they have. Strikeforce has decided to use this opportunity to air a card that is headlined by their relatively unknown middleweight champion defending against a UFC castoff. Nice job Coker, nice job. Luke Rockhold won the belt in mildly impressive fashion against Jacare Souza. I’m sorry, but I’m not going to be terribly impressed by someone defeating a world champion in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in a kickboxing contest. Keith Jardine has never fought at middleweight, so naturally, he’s being granted a title shot. He gets dropped by left hooks…a lot. The law of large numbers says Rockhold lands a few of them. Rockhold by 3rd round TKO.

Kid Presentable: I'll admit it. I am not sold on Rockhold. A solid victory over Jacare, sure, but that alone does not make you a top 10 fighter in the division. That said, Jardine hasn't looked good in a fight in God knows how long and he is making his MW debut in a title shot. That pretty much says everything you need to know about the state of affairs in Strikeforce. Rockhold, to his credit, showed very strong stand up skills and generally everyone who has that has made Jardine look silly. Rockhold by decision.

DJ Mark with a “K”: Well this is a title fight indicative of a somewhat weak division. Luke Rockhold’s win over Ronaldo Souza was shocking, but not all that impressive. Luke reminds me a lot of Frankie Edgar. Both guys just seem to outwork their opponents and seem like very beatable champions. However, Keith is making his first attempt at 185 and that makes his tank questionable. In a fight where stamina is key, I’m not going to pick the guy testing the waters at 185 for the first time. Luke by TKO via ground and pound in the 4th Round.

Lavender Gooms: This fight shows the state of the Strike Force middle weight roster. This dude Jardine hasn’t won yet with Strikeforce, is 2-5-1 in his last 7 fights (let me repeat, that’s TWO wins in his last EIGHT fights) and this is his first fight at middleweight. That truly screams #1 contender. I guess with the current middleweight roster that Strikeforce has, this is the biggest name they could get for Rockhold to fight. I have no faith in Jardine, especially a Jardine fighting at middleweight for the first time. Rockhold’s cardio and wrestling gets him the W. Rockhold by TKO in the 4th round.

Picking Rockhold: Dr. Law, Kid P, DJ Mark, Gooms
Picking Jardine:

Robbie Lawler v. Adlan Amagov

Doctor Law: Fun Robbie Lawler fact for you: His fight against Steve Berger in 2003 was the first MMA fight ever aired on cable television in the US. Not so fun Robbie Lawler fact: It doesn’t look like he is that interested in being a cage fighter anymore. Lawler is coming off of back to back losses to Jacare and Tim Kennedy and looked especially bored in the Kennedy loss. He’s taking on Amagov, a Russian standup fighter coming off a first round knockout on a Strikeforce show attended by about 45 people. I want to pick against Robbie, but it’s hard to imagine him losing a stand-up fight. He’s only been KO’d once and that was by Nick Diaz. (A third fun fact for you: Diaz kept yelling “Stockton motherf*cker!” at Robbie before that fight even started.) Lawler by 2nd round KO.

Kid Presentable: Amagov has one of the sweetest head kick finishes you will ever see in MMA. Lawler has the hands of well... Robbie Lawler. Robbie has the more proven and storied track record, but recently he has seemed to look a little disinterested in his fights. Sure, he was outsized by Babalu, but he looked straight uninspired against Kennedy and Jacare. I'm going to take a spinning hook kick's chance in hell and pick the upset here. Amagov by KO, 1st round.

DJ Mark with a “K”: The problem with predicting Stirkeforce cards is that the fights tend to be either one sided or they feature one known fighter and a relative unknown fighter. Hence the picks tend to look very similar. I’m going to shake things up and pick Adlan here. Besides just doing it to mix things up, Russian fighters tend to have really strong stand up and I don’t know how interested Robbie is in MMA anymore. Adlan by 1st round TKO.

Lavender Gooms: Who lands the heavy leather first? Lawler does and saves his job. Lawler by KO in the 1st round.

Picking Lawler: Dr. Law, Gooms
Picking Amagov: Kid P, DJ Mark

Muhammed Lawal v. Lorenz Larkin

Doctor Law: Lorenz Larkin has a big test in front of him. He has shown great standup in his fights and I’m a fan of anybody who rocks the Melvin Manhoef shorts. Unfortunately for him, King Mo is a fantastic wrestler that can put him on his back. Mo rebounded from his tough loss to Feijao by knocking the holy hell out of Roger Gracie. He’s also officially a part of AKA, the premier camp for wrestlers turned mixed martial artists. This fight will take place wherever Mo wants it to. King Mo by 3rd round TKO.

Kid Presentable: Larkin offers a really nice young LHW prospect in a division that is in big need of a youth influx. King Mo, while no spring chicken, has also been considered one of the brightest prospects in the sport. I think Larkin will have moments and show why he is someone to look out for in the future, but Mo and his elite level wrestling will be too much for him. King Mo by decision.

DJ Mark with a “K”: I can’t wait for this fight. I’ve been a huge King Mo fan since I first saw him fight in Sengoku years ago. King Mo is just such an awesome, entertaining and smart fighter and I really think he can shine in the sport. I hope someday he’ll fight in the UFC and the whole world will get to know who this entertaining man is. On the other hand, I’ve had my eye on Lorenz Larkin as well. He’s an extremely talented and entertaining stand up fighter, but styles make fights and King Mo’s wrestling will trump Larkin’s stand up. King Mo by decision.

Lavender Gooms: Anyone who claims to be a king is ok in my book. Larkin faces his toughest challenge in King Mo. This is a huge step up in competition to the big leagues from the Challengers series cards he has been a part of. If King Mo is smart he’ll use his wrestling to wear him down. If King Mo tries to put on a show and stand, Larkin has a shot. King Mo by TKO in 3rd round.

Picking Lawal: Dr. Law, Kid P, DJ Mark, Gooms
Picking Larkin: