Looking to kickstart this blog again with a preview of The UFC's return to Dublin in October. In this post I will preview the main three bouts announced so far.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Irish shores on October 24th with lightweights 'Irish' Joe Duffy (13-1) and Dustin 'The Diamond' Poirier (18-4) headlining.Duffy makes his UFC Main Event debut following two impressive stoppage victories this year with a first round TKO finish of Jake Lindsey in March at UFC 185 and a performance of the night submission finish over Ivan Jorge in July at UFC Glasgow.
Poirier will be looking to continue his impressive streak since his move to lightweight following his first round defeat to Conor McGregor in September 2014 at UFC 178.
Like Duffy, Poirier has had two very impressive first round stoppage victories this year against Diego Ferriera in April at UFC Fairfax and against Yancy Medeiros at UFC Fight Night New Orleans. Both victories showed how incredibly dangerous Poirier is with his striking and the difference in his stamina as a result of not cutting those extra ten pounds to make featherweight. His two victories at lightweight earned Dustin performance of the night bonuses.Both men will be looking to build on their two fight winning streaks in what is one of the most competitive divisions in the UFC. A victory for either man will see them move up the ladder and for Duffy would see his stock rise with a win over a UFC ranked opponent and cement a name for himself as a true contender and not just the last man to defeat Conor McGregor. Prediction. Duffy by Submission.
The Co-Main event is a potential number one contender fight for the UFC Heavyweight Title with number three ranked Stipe Miocic (12-2) taking on fellow American and number six ranked Ben Rothwell (35-9). Rothwell and Miocic had been outspoken in their attempts in getting a crack at the new UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum following his victory at UFC 188 over Cain Velasquez. With the next title shot going to the former champion Velasquez, Rothwell and Miocic will have to convince matchmaker Joe Silva of why they deserve their chance at the belt. As of right now, no other fighter on the October card has more at stake than these two heavyweights so this fight should deliver. With the other Heavyweight contenders looking impressive lately including Andrei Arlovski who is fighting Frank Mir in September at UFC 191 and who looked incredible in his victory against Travis Browne in May in with a shout for a title shot plus the looming return of Junior Dos Santos from injury, the winner of this fight will need to make a big statement to ensure they get their chance at UFC gold on the next go around. Prediction. Miocic by stoppage and also the Fight of the Night.
The next fight on the card is another lightweight bout, County Antrim's 'Stormin' Norman Parke (21-4-1) takes on Iranian Reza Madai (13-3). Parke who is currently on a two fight losing streak is coming off a controversial unanimous decision loss to Fransisco Trinaldo in May this year and a split decision loss to Gleison Tibau at UFC Boston in January.
Parke will be looking to get back to winning ways at the venue where his last victory came in July 2014. Parke will face off against Reza Madai. Madai comes into the fight following a two year lay off which came not as a result of injury, but a fourteen month prison sentence served by Reza for burglary. His last fight was a submission victory in April 2013 in Stockholm against current UFC Lightweight No.5 Michael Johnson. The same card Conor McGregor made his UFC Debut on to give his layoff a chronological context. It is unclear how this layoff will affect Reza, who is currently training in the All Stars Gym in Stockholm along with Alexander Gustafsson and breakout star Makwan Amirkhani. Parke will only have one thing on his mind which will be victory over the Iranian in order to get him back on track. Prediction. Parke by Unanimous Decision.
UFC Fight Night Dublin takes place on October 24th at the Three Arena ( Formerly the 02). Tickets are on sale to UFC Fight Club Members on September 2nd at 10am. General sale will take place on September 4th at 12pm Irish Time.
Originally published on 17th August 2015 on The MMA Andy Blog.