UFC returns to Las Vegas Saturday with UFC 71 after taking its show on the road with recent stops in Manchester, England, Houston and Columbus, Ohio. The event features one of the most widely anticipated fights in recent UFC history -- the main event between light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and Quinton Jackson. The matchup pits a beloved and popular champion in Liddell -- who was featured on the May 21 cover of ESPN The Magazine and recently made a cameo appearance on the HBO show Entourage -- against the only fighter he has fought and never beaten.
Liddell's last loss came against Jackson in November 2003 in a Pride Middleweight Grand Prix semifinal match. Since that fight, Liddell has won seven straight bouts. Jackson enters the match on a four-fight win streak, including a second-round technical knockout over Marvin Eastman in his last bout and UFC debut at UFC 67.
In their first meeting, Jackson showed he could go toe-to-toe with Liddell standing up and could punish him on the ground as well. While Liddell has appeared virtually invincible since the loss to Jackson -- winning all of his subsequent fights by knockout or TKO Ā he called this bout "probably my biggest fight up to this point" in a media conference call last week.
Other key UFC 71 fights
While the rest of the UFC 71 matchups have been overshadowed by the Liddell-Jackson main event, there are a few other fights of note on the card.Welterweights Josh Burkman and Karo Parisyan square off in a bout where both men are looking for a victory to stand out in a crowded weight class and possibly earn a shot at a title fight in the future.
The fight between middleweights Chris Leben and Kalib Starnes brings together two The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) alums. Both fighters are coming off losses -- Leben to Jason MacDonald at UFC 66 and Starnes to Yushin Okami at UFC 64 -- and it will be interesting to see which fighter take advantage of this opportunity to get back into the win column.
In another light heavyweight matchup, rising contender and TUF alum Keith Jardine takes on UFC newcomer Houston Alexander. Jardine's stock soared after his UFC 66 victory over fan favorite and TUF 1 champion Forrest Griffin.
Two other fighters will also make their UFC debuts Saturday -- undefeated light heavyweight Thiago Silva will fight James Irvin, while UFC newcomer and lightweight Jeremy Stephens faces Din Thomas.
Eric Schafer's picks
Our guest prognosticator for UFC 71 is Eric Schafer, a light heavyweight from Wisconsin with a 1-1 record in the UFC.Schafer was scheduled to fight Sean Salmon at UFC 71, but suffered a broken rib in training May 14 during some light sparring and was forced to withdraw from the fight. Relegated to sideline status for UFC 71, Schafer graciously took time away from rehabbing his injury to analyze the entire UFC 71 fight card, relaying his picks for each bout via e-mail.
Light heavyweight title: Chuck Liddell (UFC light heavyweight champ) vs. Quinton Jackson
Schafer's Breakdown: "The main event should be awesome. If you saw the first fight, then you saw "Rampage" [Jackson] completely dismantle Chuck. "Rampage" was hurting Chuck on his feet, so Chuck actually shot in. Not since his early [Jose "Pele" Landis] fight do I remember Chuck resorting to [the] ground game to try to win. And when [the fight] did hit the ground, "Rampage" was on top landing some brutal ground-and-pound, especially those body shots at the end.
"Now, I am going to pick Chuck in this fight for two reasons. First, since the "Rampage" loss, Chuck has been the hottest fighter in MMA. He has won seven in a row, dominating some very tough guys. In the same period "Rampage" has had some rough fights. He has lost two brutal wars to Wanderlei [Silva] and one to "Shogun" [Mauricio Rua]. He also had some wins that were not going too well at points, like in the [Ricardo] Arona, [Matt] Lindland and "Ninja" [Murilo Rua] fights (the last two were split decisions).
"Second, Chuck is much more experienced in the cage and [more familiar] with UFC rules. Chuck uses the Octagon better than anyone, while "Rampage" has only had two cage fights in the last five years. Also, the UFC rules might play a big part (see "Cro Cop" [Mirko Filipovic] vs. [Gabriel] Gonzaga [in UFC 70]). Elbows instead of knees and kicks on the ground play a part in how you defend, but it can also be weird to get used to offensively [in terms of] knowing when to "pull the trigger."
"Plus that first 10 minute Pride round really wore on Chuck [in their first fight]. I am sure a break after five minutes might have helped Chuck regroup. I think this is going to be Chuck's biggest test since winning the belt. I see him beating "Rampage" in six out of 10 fights. Let's hope for a war."
Schafer's Pick: Liddell
Welterweight: Josh Burkman vs. Karo Parisyan
Schafer's Breakdown: "This fight should be awesome, but I do not think it will be as close as it looks. Karo is one of my favorite fighters. "The Heat" [Parisyan's nickname] is one of the best nicknames in the sport, because that fits his style so perfectly. The dude is awesome to watch because he brings it and never stops coming forward. Plus, his throws might be the coolest thing to watch in MMA -- no one even comes close to what he does.
"Burkman is the real deal too, but lately he seems to get very tired as the match wears on. Burkman could KO or submit Karo early in the match, but I do not see that happening. I think Karo brings it as usual and wears down Josh for a TKO or submission win. Karo will win eight out of 10 times."
Schafer's Pick: Parisyan
Middleweight: Terry Martin vs. Ivan Salaverry
Schafer's Breakdown: "This is the toughest fight to call on the card. Terry is a real badass. I have grappled [with] him twice in competition, and he has great wrestling [skills] and is very tough to submit. I have also heard from friends who have fought him that he is one of the hardest hitters around. I do not like the guy, but I fear him, ha ha.
"Ivan is almost a polar opposite. Ivan is [a] real technician. He has great precision punches, knees, and kicks. Ivan is also an amazing technical grappler. This fight will come down to [whether or not] Ivan can handle Terry's power and control. I think this is a pick'em. If they fought 10 times, they'd each win five. If I had to pick, I'd say Ivan."
Schafer's Pick: Pick'em, with a slight edge to Salaverry
Middleweight: Kalib Starnes vs. Chris Leben
Schafer's Breakdown: "I was really impressed with Starnes on TUF 3. He is very technical, but I think he needs to be a bit more aggressive. A lot of people do not like Leben, but I think he is a great fighter. He might never be the champ, but he is a solid contender. They are both coming off of losses (Leben looked good up until the choke from [Jason] MacDonald and Starnes had the bad luck of running into Okami). I just think Leben is at a higher level experience-wise. He has had eight UFC fights, and with [the] exception [of] the Anderson Silva fight, he has looked good in them all. Starnes only has two fights, a win over [current lightweight] Danny Abbadi and the Okami loss. I would like Starnes to get pushed, but Leben wins eight out of 10 times."
Schafer's Pick: Leben
Light heavyweight: Houston Alexander vs. Keith Jardine
Schafer's Breakdown: "Man, this is another one of those rookie versus veteran fights. I really think it is unfair to debut against a guy with so much UFC experience. I would rather see Alexander fight another rookie or at least a guy with only one or two UFC fights -- oh well.
"I could not find any footage on Alexander, but it looks like he was fighting a lot at heavyweight up until now. It also sounds like he is very busy with six kids and a full-time job. Jardine is coming off that big win over Forrest [Griffin], which threw him into the top [ranks] of the UFC light heavyweights (maybe a bit too fast). While I do not think Jardine is a top five [light heavyweight] yet, I think he should win over Alexander based on experience alone. I have a weird feeling that this might be one of those crazy upset fights, but on paper Jardine wins this nine out of 10 times."
Schafer's Pick: Jardine
Light heavyweight: Thiago Silva vs. James Irvin
Schafer's Breakdown: "Apparently half of Brazil has the last name of Silva Ā The undefeated Thiago is making his UFC debut, which is always hard. I watched a few of Thiago's fights and it looks like he is solid on his feet and on the ground. He does seem to keep his chin up, and that is not good when you fight [a] guy that hits as hard as James Irvin. Irvin can knock you out at any time, but of the fights I have seen of his, he tends to get controlled easily (even his wins over [Terry] Martin and [Hector] Ramirez were not looking good until the finish). If Thiago stays safe on his feet and can get [the fight] onto the ground, a la Lodune Sincaid, he should win. I think Silva wins seven out of 10 fights."
Schafer's Pick: Silva
Light heavyweight: Sean Salmon vs. Alan Belcher
Schafer's Breakdown: "Of course this fight is interesting to me, because instead of sitting in my undies and watching The View, I should be in Vegas right now getting ready for Salmon. Salmon is a great wrestler (he took down Rashad [Evans] twice, which is no easy task). Salmon's real strength is that he is from Wisconsin, which pretty much guarantees a win here.
"Belcher is by far the better striker. While Belcher's jiu-jitsu is good, it is going to be tough to grapple against a wrestler like Salmon. The biggest question is Belcher's preparation on short notice. Belcher fought last month, so did he spend the last few weeks in the bar or the gym? Personally I think it is going to be tough for Alan to switch from Grove to Salmon, who are physically and technically complete opposites. Salmon wins seven out of 10 times (though it would be closer to even if Alan had proper prep time)."
Schafer's Pick: Salmon
Lightweight: Jeremy Stephens vs. Din Thomas
Schafer's Breakdown: "Jeremy Stephens is an Iowa fighter with a good record, but he lacks big show experience. It is always rough winning your UFC debut, especially when you are fighting a veteran like Din. While Stephens lacks any big name opponents, Din has fought some of the best lightweights ever ([Jens] Pulver, [B.J.] Penn, [Caol] Uno, and [Matt] Serra to name a few). I do not know anything about Stephens except that his UFC picture makes him look like some kind of shadow monster, but he does have a pretty cool nickname -- "Lil' Heathen." I did watch [Stephens'] highlight video on YouTube, but since most of the seven minutes involves footage of him doing everything but fighting, it was hard to rate him. You have to go with Din, but Stephens is a wild card. Din wins nine out of 10 times."
Schafer's Pick: Thomas
Light heavyweight: Carmelo Marrero vs. Wilson Gouveia
Schafer's Breakdown: "I have met and trained with Carmelo, who is best known for his upset of Cheick Kongo. Carmelo is a really cool guy, but the first thing I noticed was how small he was for a heavyweight. In fact I thought his frame was better suited for 205 [pounds] if not 185, so it is good to see him at light heavyweight.
"Wilson is looking like a really solid light heavyweight. He looked great against Jardine early on in his UFC debut loss, and then went on to finish his next two opponents. I think Carmelo has better wrestling, but Wilson's superior jiu-jitsu and striking should be enough to pull out the win. Wilson is also more of a finisher who can win with a KO or submission, while Carmelo's best chance is with a controlling decision or cut stoppage. While I am rooting for Marrero, I think Gouveia wins 8 out of 10 times."
Schafer's Pick: Gouveia
Pramit Mohapatra covers mixed martial arts for baltimoresun.com. Visit his blog, MMA Insider, for updates from the UFC 71 weigh-in Friday and live reports during the fights Saturday night.
Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC.