UFC on FOX's five burning questions
There are plenty of storylines going into Saturday's UFC on FOX 4 card.
From Jon Jones’ potential next challenger coming out of a pool of talent that he’s already defeated to Jamie Varner’s comeback from the ashes of the finale of his WEC run, plenty of questions will be answered Saturday. With any luck, those answers will more than make up for the underperformance of the main card of UFC 149.
What questions will be answered by this UFC on FOX card? Here are the top five:
1. Has the UFC compiled a killer card that will make fans forget about Calgary?
If you paid for UFC 149, there’s sufficient cause to want your money back. After a killer undercard, the main card failed to deliver in every way possible once Matt Riddle won via arm triangle over Canada’s own Chris Clements. You had to feel badly for Renan Barao and Urijah Faber, who had a fairly solid five-round fight that Calgary fans didn’t have any sort of stomach for after the fights that came before it. If the UFC is going to make it up to everyone involved, a first-rate card on network television is a good start. Here’s hoping UFC on FOX delivers.
2. Is Brandon Vera finally ready to become an elite fighter?
Every time he steps up to fight, Brandon Vera talks the same game: Either he’s returned to being the “old” version of himself or some newer version that somehow is going to win. And somehow we believe him. But the fact remains that, outside of a borderline decision loss to Randy Couture, the man who once told us he’d hold championships in both the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions just hasn’t looked like a fighter who deserves to be among the UFC’s elite for a long time. It’s almost as easy to argue that Vera doesn’t belong in the UFC, period, and in front of him lies what he’s properly gauged as a “golden ticket.” If Brandon Vera is going to become that elite fighter that he's promised, the time is now.
3. Is potential UFC title contender Jamie Varner officially putting his disastrous losing streak in the WEC behind him?
Losing three of his final four fights in the WEC, including two by submission and a draw, Varner was on the outside looking in as the WEC folded into the UFC. The 2009 Varner could’ve made a case as one of the top lightweights in the world. The 2011 Varner was stuck fighting on the regional scene, struggling to get back to the big leagues, despite a great name and resume. And then, on short notice, he got called back up to face one of the best lightweight prospects in the UFC in Edson Barboza. Brought in for what seemed like an easy victory for Barboza to propel him up the ranks, Varner shocked everyone (and maybe himself) but dismantling the Brazilian in short, and spectacular, fashion. This was the Varner that made pundits think he was potentially an elite fighter in the division. And now one thing remains.
Is this for real?
That’s what his scrap with Joe Lauzon means Saturday night. If he can win against a game opponent like Lauzon, then perhaps the man we remember is back.
4. Can Vera, Ryan Bader, Shogun Rua or Lyoto Machida make a case for another shot at the championship?
Brandon Vera’s loss to Jon Jones signaled that “Bones” was for real. Jones tapped out Bader in making a statement that he was ready for a title shot. Six weeks after Bader tapped, Rua tapped to strikes by Jones. Machida fell to the canvas after passing out in a guillotine choke by the current champion in a moment turned into a hype video for Jones later on. It’s not like Jones took close decisions or won in some controversial fashion; Jon Jones’s tour of destruction has all four of these men on it as highlight reel finishes.
Can any of them show something on the main card that justifies a title shot?
A rematch between any of these men and Jones (should he defeat Dan Henderson later this year), would be hard to justify unless one of them wins in a way that makes you think that a rematch would go differently. Someone has to win in such spectacular fashion that a title fight makes sense; anything else feels like another dismantling waiting to arrive.
5. How much does Mike Swick have left in him?
Swick hasn’t fought in over two and a half years for a lot of reasons. When he left, he was still a guy you could consider a top-10 welterweight. The world has changed radically in his absence and whether or not he has anything left in a fairly stellar career is in question. If he can climb the mountain again, he has to start at UFC on FOX against Damarques Johnson. Will Swick re-enter the title mix? We’ll find out Saturday night.
