Written by Scott Swerbinsky

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Many UFCs have come and gone and we are now getting ready for UFC 148 tonight live from Las Vegas. It’s no secret that I get pumped up for every event but this one is going to be different.  Tonight could possibly be the biggest night in the history of The Ultimate Fighting Championship. The best mixed martial arts fighter in the world will be defending his belt against a guy he hates and wants to hurt.

 

Anderson Silva versus Chael Sonnen part two. Wow. I’m getting goosebumps thinking about it. The middleweight championship is up for grabs and Sonnen claims to be the rightful owner of the crown, but he’s not.

 

Silva and Sonnen first met at UFC 117 in August of 2010. Sonnen dominated the fight with takedowns and ground and pound for the first four rounds of the scheduled five. Silva, being the true champion that he is, never stopped looking for opportunities and finally sank in a beautiful triangle choke with just a few minutes left in the fight he was clearly losing.

 

Anderson Silva is 14-0 inside the UFC’s octagon and holds a career record of 29-4 overall. There isn’t much debate when people say he is the best all around striker the sport has ever seen.  Sonnen will need to duplicate his performance if he has any chance of winning.

 

Chael Sonnen has the biggest mouth in the MMA world. He calls himself the true champion and said this fight is going to be easy. Saying that might be the dumbest thing he could have done. Silva is normally very respectful and doesn’t bad mouth anyone. All of that changed a little over a week ago on the press call to discuss the fight.

 

Silva said he wants to hurt Sonnen and went as far as saying he wants to smash his teeth and break bones. That’s nothing like anything we have heard before from the pound for pound king.

 

I think Chael Sonnen is going to get hurt. I am expecting an Anderson Silva that we have never seen before and that’s a pretty scary thought. A lot of observers think the head games and anger will be to Sonnen’s advantage. I’m not one of those people. Anderson Silva will show the world what striking is all about in a very brutal fashion.

 

The main event alone is worth tuning in for but there are other fights on the card. One of those fights will include the newest member of the UFC’s Hall of Fame.

 

Tito Ortiz has done wonders for the world of mixed martial arts and belongs in the hall of fame. Ortiz was the first fighter to bring an entertainment value to the sport, and all for the better. While the game has clearly passed him by, I still have to tune in every time he fights.  He is the fighter that first got me involved in the sport.

 

Ortiz will take on another fan favorite, Forrest Griffin, and this will be their third meeting. Tito is retiring after the fight so he should have nothing to lose. Ortiz won the first matchup way back in 2006 and the second time it was Forrest victorious in 2009.

 

Expect this one to be a crowd pleaser. I look for them to stand and bang and give the fans watching a treat. Neither guy is known for their submissions so somebody is probably going to sleep here. I’m a huge Ortiz fan and hope he can get another ride as he rides off into the sunset.

 

Another one of my favorite fighters, Chad Mendes, is in action this evening. The last time we saw Mendes, he was losing for the first time to the 145 pound champion Jose Aldo.

 

Tonight Mendes will take on Cody McKenzie who is well known after appearing on the Ultimate Fighter reality show. Both fighters have impressive records, Mendes at 11-1 and McKenzie at 13-2.

 

Chad Mendes could hop back into the title picture with an impressive victory over a very tough McKenzie. Mendes has much improved striking and great wrestling while McKenzie has an impressive submission attack. This to me is a fight nobody is really talking about that could steal the show.

 

Full fight card:

 

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)

 

• Champ Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen (for middleweight title)
• Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz
• Patrick Cote vs. Cung Le
• Dong Hyun Kim vs. Demian Maia
• Chad Mendes vs. Cody McKenzie
• Mike Easton vs. Ivan Menjivar

 

PRELIMINARY CARD (FX)

 

• Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Gleison Tibau
• Fabricio Camoes vs. Melvin Guillard
• Riki Fukuda vs. Constantinos Philippou
• John Alessio vs. Shane Roller

 

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)

 

• Yoislandy Izquierdo vs. Rafaello Oliveira

 

I love everything about this card. Just a few days after the 4^th of July, fight fans are in for a night of fireworks. It’s going to be action packed and the grand finale is going to be spectacular. Tune in, don’t miss this one.