User:MarottaLemmon80

FC 78 is approaching fast and it's main event match-up between Rashad Evans and Michael Bisping made me think of fighters who could cut weight to drop to a lower ufc weight classes In that spirit I am going to discuss four UFC fighters who may be well served by dropping weight and fighting below their current class.

I want to start at the top, the UFC heavyweight division. There are a couple of UFC heavyweights who could make 205lbs, remember Randy Couture fought as a light heavyweight for a while, he even held the light heavyweight title. There is really only one UFC heavyweight who I want to talk about dropping weight. Brandon "The Truth" Vera just dropped a three round decision to former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia. Brandon didn't loose this match because of his skill-set. He lost because of Tim's size. Tim pushed Vera up against the fence and used his weight to close the distance, essentially negating Vera's superior kicking game. If Brandon Vera dropped down to 205lbs Personally i think he would be competing on an even playing field and would likely quickly move into title contention.

The UFC light heavyweight division gets the majority of guys who should think about dropping weight. There are three that I'd like to discuss, they are Rashad Evans, Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson. You'll note that Bisping and Evans are the main event fighters at UFC 78. Both of these fighters are undefeated at light heavyweight.

Michael Bisping is an outstanding fighter, a good striker with an adequate ground game. However, his recent fight with Matt Hamill shows that he is able to be manhandled by a stronger opponent. Bisping mostly stayed on the outside in this fight and let Hamill control the action. I believe that this is basically because he was staying away from Hamill's strength... with is wrestling, and physical strength. All of us remember on the Ultimate Fighter when Hamill was overwhelming the other fighters along with his physical strength, a move to 185lbs would not only put him into title contention, but allows Bisping to be stronger than other opponents in that mma weight classes.

Rashad Evans has already dropped a weight classes. Rashad competed at heavyweight on the Ultimate Fighter TELEVISION series and did well, winning his division, but his recent bout with Tito Ortiz showed that Rashad, despite his superior wrestling skills is a small light heavyweight. Rashad will have no problems matching strength with Bisping at UFC 78, nevertheless when fighting the larger light heavyweights like Forrest Griffin, Wanderlei Silva and Tito Ortiz he will get manhandled, essentially negating his wrestling advantage. A move to 185lbs would likely make Rashad an instantaneous title contender.