All of but a handful of those people will be cheering for Georges St. Pierre when he steps in with Matt Serra for a second time. The arena will be rocking for this rematch and I can't wait for it.
The first encounter took place back in April of 2007 at UFC 69. It is considered one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Nobody gave Matt Serra and chance and he shocked the world. Nobody thinks he can do it again either.
Many people for some reason think that Matt Serra won the first fight on a lucky punch. That is not the case. Serra landed many hard solid punches and looked good doing it. He dominated a guy that many people consider the best pound for pound fighter in the world. He also has a chance to do it again, this time in GSP's own back yard.
Dating back to 2005, Georges St. Pierre has won seven out of his eight fights in the UFC, all in pretty impressive fashion. If he is really going to be mentioned as one of the sport's true greats, he needs to defeat Matt Serra and avenge his loss. I believe that St. Pierre is thinking this also. He is going to come into this fight more hungry and determined than ever before.
The welterweight title is on the line tonight and I expect a true battle. Matt Serra is a veteran of the sport and will never be considered a pushover in my book. I think we are in for a real treat when that bell sounds. Georges St. Pierre will prove that he is the better all around fighter and get the revenge he has been waiting for.
If it wasn't for such a great main event, the fight card would be one of the weaker one that the UFC has put together in quite some time. There are a few decent matches set but nothing that would be considered a must see.
Rich "Ace" Franklin makes his return to the octagon and will step in with Travis Lutter. The last time we saw Franklin, he was getting his face rearranged for the second time by Anderson Silva. That meeting was back in October at UFC 77. Franklin should be looking to take his frustrations out and Lutter might be tailor made for him. Rich will look to keep the fight standing and if he does, it could be an early night for Travis.
Michael Bisping is coming off of his first loss and looks to return to his winning ways against Charles McCarthy. It will be Bisping's first fight at middleweight, he is dropping down from 205 pounds to 185 where he can use his quickness more. This might be a good candidate for fight of the evening as they got nose to nose at the weigh in. I like Bisping to get his hand raised in this match.
The fight that possibly won't be televised, which I think should be, is the bout between Sam Stout and Rich Clementi. Sam Stout is an up and comer in the lightweight division. He holds a record of 2-2 in the UFC and has a total of 18 fights. Clementi is 3-3 in the UFC but has a lot more experience with 51 fights to his credit. I expect a fast paced all out battle here.
Full fight card:
Champ Matt Serra vs. Georges St. Pierre (title-unification bout)
Rich Franklin vs. Travis Lutter
Nate Quarry vs. Kalib Starnes
Michael Bisping vs. Charles McCarthy
Marc Bocek vs. Mac Danzig
Joe Doerksen vs. Jason MacDonald
Rich Clementi vs. Sam Stout
Alan Belcher vs. Jason Day
Jonathan Goulet vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka
Ed Herman vs. Demian Maia
Brad Morris vs. Cain Velasquez
Overall, not the best lineup of fights from the UFC. The main event however is worth the pay per view purchase. Georges St. Pierre is one fighter I don't want to miss when he fights. It will be even better with him looking to get some revenge. Can he do it? I think so.