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Welcome to the FN 18 Preview! I am David Snipes and with me as always is Robert "X" Menn, We are going to change things up a bit here and actually keep score after these things and see who is better- tune back in Friday for the review and the Winner! 

Jeremy Stephens (16-4) vs. Gleison Tibau (16-6)

Robert: From Main Event status on the UFC Fight Night 17 to prelim on UFC Fight Night 18. Way to go Stephens. You must've pissed off someone named Dana or Joe. Anyways...Both of these fighters need to win this, or they are either A) going to be on Fight Nights for quite some time, or B) lose their job. Stephens looked okay in his fight with Lauzon last Fight Night before he was submitted, but he'll have his hands full when American Top Teamer Gleison steps into the cage. Tibau is one of the largest lightweights employed by the UFC, some saying he weighs about 180lbs by fight time. He also has pretty good BJJ skills, winning half of his fights by submission. That does not bode well for Stephens, as 3 of his 4 losses have come by some sort of tap.

David: Gotta feel for Jeremy here, from main eventing to being last out of the TV portion the next time around. Stephens is 16-4 (3-2UFC) and may be looking to stay on TV next time- I don;t think the loss hurt him in the rankings- but Tibau is a great opponent for him to get back up in rankings- if he can last as Tibau (16-6,4-3UFC) does have a reputation of gassing. Tibau is well rounded, costing Rich Clementi his job last time out- but Stephens needs this- and will stay ahead on the scorecards and work the 3rd round for a finish

Winner:

Robert: Tibau, Rd 2, Submission
David: Jeremy Sub 3

Ricardo Almeida (9-4) vs. Matt Horwich (22-11)

Robert: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt (3x over under Renzo Gracie), Almeida, looks to get back into the cage after last July's loss to Patrick Cote' against ex-IFL veteran, Horwich. Horwich is coming off a loss as well, his UFC debut at UFC 90, against Dan Miller. This fight to me is a toss up (and probably boring). Both guys can end this fight early with a submission. These guys will probably circle each other waiting for the other to make a mistake. Not enough fireworks. Matt has 18 wins by submission. 18! That's impressive. For the sake of picking, I'll side with Matt. 33 fights to 11 is a huge difference in cage knowledge.

David: Ricardo is 9-3, 1-1 since his comeback after he "retired" 2-3 in the UFC. Horwitch is 22-11 (0-1UFC) that loss coming from Dan Miller (a common name here on this card) Ricardo is on fight 3 of his 6 fight contract, and since both mens strenth is on the ground- I would think this is going to be there all 15 minutes, Matt does have KO power if he needs it- but I'll take the 3rd Degree Black Belt.

Winner:

Robert: Horwich, Rd 3, Decision
David: Ricardo R2 Sub

Brock Larson (24-2) vs. Jesse Sanders (20-4)

Robert: Larson is coming over from the WEC, and Sanders is finally making it to the big stage, riding a 6 fight win streak. Both have a ton of experience. Both like the ground game. But Larson has had the tougher opponents and won't be blinded by the stage. Look for Larson to use his wrestling to take Sanders down early and go for a submission.

David: Brock Lesnar's debut at Welterweight should be an interesting fight- seeing how the weight cut should REALLY shrink his frame to next to noth-

oh sorry.

Brock is 24-2(1-1UFC,4-1WEC) His only two losses are to Carlos Condit and Jon Fitch, so nothing wrong there. 19 of his wins have been in the first round, he also has 16 submissions, his opponent Sanders not only does not have a Wiki page- he does not have a UFC picture either (as of this writing) You know RObert, we need to go back and look at the W/L record of people without pictures on these things.

Winner:

Robert: Larson, Rd 1, Submission
David: Brock R1 Sub

Nissen Osterneck (5-1) vs. Jorge Rivera (15-7)

Robert: They should call this card, UFC Fight Night: WEC, because Nissen is another ex-WEC fighter. Let me say, I saw Osterneck lose to Jake Rosholt, and he lost bad. And Rivera is inconsistent at best, never really stepping up when good competition has shown itself. Lucky for him Osterneck is new to the game. Rivera gets Nissen to the judges, and the judges side with him.

David: I like Jorge, I'm a fan- he's a solid middle-level fighter and he has fought a TON of guys you can pick out of a lineup- by the way outside of the Orient he has lasted the 4th longest vs Anderson Silva- Hey how long would YOU last) He's 15-6 (5-5UFC) with loses to scrubs such as Rich Franklin,Chris Leben and Kampmann, but he also has beat Edwin Dewees (costing him is spot) and Kendall Grove(and almost booting him) He;s not a gatekeeper, but he's there to make sure if you need to go- he closes the door.
Nissen is looking to open that door, 5-1(0-1WEC)  but that 1 was to Dan Miller so no shame there.  I don;t see Jorge winning here- Nissen has some skills, but Jorge should keep his job.

Winner:

Robert: Rivera, Rd 3, Decision
David: Nissen DES

Rob Kimmons (21-4) vs. Joe Vedepo (7-2)

Robert: Both these guys are coming off of losses. Kimmons was submitted by Dan Miller, and Vedepo was head kicked in dreamland by Alessio Sakara (not a good way to make a UFC debut). This fight is ending before round 3. It's almost guaranteed. Vedepo has never gone to decision and Kimmons only once. Vedepo likes to throw punches and Kimmons loves the submission game. Classic clash of styles. I think that head kick is gonna make Vedepo uneasy and it will cost him.

David: Rob is 21-4 (1-1UFC) and the 2007 American Bushido GP Winner, Curtain Jerked the FN 16 in a loss to Dan Miller. Vedepo is also a non WEC alum 7-2(0-1UFC) also coming off a loss- to say this is a win-or go home matchup is obvious in the current UFC- Joe is 5-0 in his home state by the way. Joe's CHIN is 1-2 outside of his state- Sakara beat him in under 2 minutes last time we saw Joe. Kimmons will be looking for a similar finish

Winner:

Robert: Kimmons, Rd 1, TKO
David: Kimmons KO R1

Tim McKenzie (12-5) vs. Aaron Simpson (4-0)

Robert: I'm gonna say it. McKenzie is just not good. He's not. Exciting, yes. He loves to strike and ground and pound. But he just doesn't know when. He needs to be more cerebral entering fights. He's 2-2 in his last 4 fights because he just dives in and gets caught. Add Aaron Simpson to the mix, fireworks. All 4 of his wins have come by some for of KO. This fight has either Fight of the Night, or Knockout of the Night, or both, written all over it. And I wasn't gonna say it, but yes, both of these guys are ex-WEC'ers.

David: Tim is the next WEC guy fighting here (I think the reason for all the fights is for Dana and Joe to clear off the decks of the WEC guys) He's  12-5 with a 3-3 WEC record in several stops. Seems like a minors journeyman here- but I did get to see the Sonnen fight, he seems like he has good power though. His Opponent, Simpson is 4-0 (1-0WEC) with 4 KO's I don;t like Tim's chances as his takedowns don;t seem that good and Simpson seems to have 1 punch KO in his hands.

Winner:

Robert: Simpson, Rd 2, TKO
David: Simpson R2 KTFO

Ryan Jensen (13-4) vs. Steve Steinbeiss (4-2)

Robert: Jensen can beat subpar fighters, but his losses are to top Middleweights. He just can't seem to get over the hump. But let's face it, this is basically a tune-up fight for him. If he doesn't win, he probably doesn't have a job in the UFC. And I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Steinbeiss actually has a great chance at winning this fight. He's taller with a larger reach and he likes to throw punches. Jensen has to get him to the ground if he wants to win this. I say this fight is 55-45 Jensen. Sorry ex-WEC'er, this is the UFC.

David: Jensen is almost as old as you there Robert, so I know you love him, Ryan is 13-4 (0-3 UFC) <- Actually let me back up that UFC record here- he was 11-1 coming into the UFC, ran into Thales Leites & Demian Maia went 0-2 and back to the minors, I guess 95% of the MWTs would got 0-2 there, so Dana brought him back and he lost his last fight to Wilson Gouveia - so if he loses I don;t think he is coming back anytime soon as the second pair is WAY down from the first pair. Jensen does have a good ground game, and a confidence to go to the ground (of course he lasted less than 4 minutes in his 3 UFC losses.
Steinbeiss is 4-2 (0-1 WEC - and that was to Carmelo Marrero, who fought at HEAVYWEIGHT at UFC 66), his only 2 losses went the distance- so if you extend him, you win it seems- I can;t Youtube his fights, So I'll take Steve here- JOe must see something in the 0-1 WEC guy

Winner:

Robert: Jensen, Rd 2, Submission
David: Steve Sub 2

Middleweight bout:  Tim Credeur vs.  Nick Catone

David: Sorry, First thing I think about here is Harlem Nights. Next is how much fun Tim Credeur is to watch. Mr Catone (no relation) is 7-0(1-0UFC) and it seems we will find out JUST how good Tim 11-2 (2-0UFC) is.

By the way, just to get off topic- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaux_Bridge

Look who has come from there- I'm thinking field trip!!

Anyway. Tim is slowing rising up the ranks and a win here moves him up a notch, Catone is going to be looking for a KO but I think Tim has WAY too much experience to get caught and will drag him to the ground. I expect this to see the main card

Ryan Bader (8-0) vs. Carmelo Marrero (10-2)

Robert: Bader needs no introduction. He won TUF 8 Light Heavyweight. If you don't watch the show, get with the times. Marrero , however, may need some. He's an ex-WEC'er as well, coming off a win over Steve Steinbeiss. This guy has also fought against Gabriel Gonzaga and Cheick Kongo, winning against Kongo. This fight is supposed to be a win for Bader, but it's not gonna be as easy as it should be. Carmelo has fought some tough competition and is also a wrestler like Bader. I believe Bader is the stronger and faster of the two and should take this win. Ground and Pound.

David: Of the 4 main card fights- this is the one I want to see- I think after 10 fights the crowd will be looking for some MASS in the ring- I mean there is WAY too many Junior High Kids on this card! Gimmie some guys that look tough- that can THROW! GImmie something for the boxing fans that the UFC is leeching away!

Aw Man!

TWO WRESTLERS!! Geez!

anyway, Ryan "NicknameSucks" Bader is (8-0,1-0UFC) and is better on the ground than he showed on the show- Marrero (10-2,1-2UFC)is back for his second shot in the majors- This should go a LONG way to showing if Dana is scraping the bottom for his TUF fighters or if its a valid show still for new faces. I'll take Darth here.

Winner:

Robert: Bader, Rd 3, TKO
David: Bader DES

Junie Browning (3-0) vs. Cole Miller (14-3)

Robert: If you don't think the UFC wants Junie to succeed you are kidding yourself. Whether you like him or not, he's gonna sell. I know Cole Miller is no pushover by any means. But he's not winning this fight. Junie's last outing he looked uber-impressive. I guess training with Couture will do that for you. He's striking was improved. His cardio was improved. And his mental game was improved. This will be a tough fight for Junie to win, yes, but I think he'll do it. He has to close the distance and/or take Miller down. Miller is the taller of the two, but I don't think he's the strongest.

David: Cole (13-3,4-1UFC) is going to be looking to make a MAJOR statement here vs Junie (3-0,1-0UFC) and I am stunned Junie has been able to keep his mouth shut- I know Dana is hoping and praying he can put him up against Diaz sooner rather than later (Wrestlemania?) Browning seems to have grown up finally since the show and he looked VERY good ve Kaplan- But Miller has been around and he knows he needs this to climb the ladder- and I think he has the ground game to make it happen, Browning's frame might be making him drop to the WEC after this one. I just think the step up in competition is too much here.

Winner:

Robert: Browning, Rd 3, Decision
David: Miller Sub 1

Rafael dos Anjos (11-3) vs. Tyson Griffin (12-2)

Robert: Rafael has talent, no question. But Griffin has the experience of fighting better fighters (not to mention one of the cooler names in MMA). His last fight against Sean Sherk was a classic. Two wrestlers striking, winning Fight of the Night honors. So he has shown he can go toe to toe. He's also has the superior strength in this matchup. Have you seen his legs? The guy has tree trunk stumps (he is only 5'6" afterall) as legs. Crazy. Tyson will take Anjos down and pound him out.

David: Tyson has a win over Faber! Awesome- something I did not know- If anyone out there can find it- let me know. Anyway- we all know Tyson, (12-2,4-2UFC) and this is the return of Rafael (11-3,0-1UFC)last seen having his chin caved in by Jeremy Stephens, THis was his first KO loss, Tyson doesn;t have that much KO power (we think, I didn;t think Rashad had KO power either) But this fight should go to the ground and QUICK- Tyson's last 6 fights have gone to the scorecards- he needs to get a finish But dos Anjos has some ground skills as well- I expect this to be a dull fight, majority decison

Winner:

Robert:  Griffin , Rd 2, TKO
David: dos Anjos Sub 2

Carlos Condit (23-4) vs. Martin Kampmann (14-2)

Robert: "The Natural Born Killer" vs "The Hitman". Fantastic! I've been praising Condit for a while now. Finally, he makes it to the dance. Yes, WEC was great for him, but now he can showcase his talents to a much larger audience. And the UFC isn't giving him any handouts. Kampmann is no joke. He's only lost twice, and he's a well rounded fighter. He loves to stand and bang, but can and will submit you. This fight is going to be a sort of chess match. Both fighters can end this fight early. All it takes is one mistake. And Condit has been on fire, winning his last 8 fights, ending all of them. I fully expect Condit to make waves in the UFC Welterweight Division, and this is the first step. This will be a hard fought battle, but in the end, Condit surfaces at a viable contender to Alves'..err GSPs belt.

David: Condit (23-4,5-0WEC) is the final Welterweight champion, and has fought some names in his career- Jake Sheilds,Frank Trigg,Brock Larson, and now he gets to shine on the Big Stage- vs Kampmann (14-2,5-1) who is looking to get back on the road to title contention- and a win here I think puts him one or two fights away, as Condit is respected in the UFC. This is only his second fight at WW however, and I think COndit's star is on the rise.

Winner:

Robert:  Condit, Rd 3, TKO
David: Carlos Sub R2

Submitted 3/27/2009

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