UFC 127 Preview: The Main Event

 IT’S here! It’s finally here! After blowing the roof off Acer Arena last year with Cain Velasquez’s path of destruction to the Heavyweight title, the UFC is back for another go around, and BBM can’t wait.

When BBM caught up with Jon Fitch back in December, he knew he had some improvements to make before the fight against BJ Penn - he hadn’t won by knockout or submission in four years.

“I have had a lot of decisions in the past, and have struggled with that. We’ve been working on changing a few things up in training and focusing on setting up and finishing people. The good thing is that I’ve still found a way to win regardless of whether I could finish.”

On the other hand, BJ had a different strategy. “I’m not the guy to watch the tapes and pick everything apart, I just gotta go in and beat him.”

Penn is a one-in-a-million UFC fighter. With his  powerful knockouts, strong ground game and experience with big-time fights (he’s held both the lightweight and welterweight belts), he’s a tough man to beat.

Fitch, however, is a gritty, dominant fighter with  only one loss in his last twenty-one fights. A win in Sydney would almost guarantee him a title shot in 2011.

While the majority of BJ’s fights are made up of  striking (47% to be exact), only 51% of strikes have been successful. On the other hand, Jon’s fights are 47% takedowns, over half of which have been successful. The clincher is that BJ has avoided 80% of takedowns in his career - which will be BJ’s key to what will be a somewhat surprising victory.