Event primer - UFC 168

Welcome to Leg Kick TKO, a MMA blog that's quicker with an excuse than a defeated Brazilian.

Prelims (Facebook, YouTube)

Featherweight - Robbie "Problems" Peralta vs Estevan "El Terible" Payan

• Peralta's Style - Striking
• Payan's Style - Boxing
• Prediction - Payan by KO

Welterweight - William "Patolino" Macario vs Bobby "Vicious" Voelker

• Macario's Style - Striking
• Voelker's Style - Striking
• Prediction - Voelker by TKO
• Thoughts - Macario has a bit of a Doug Yuma thing going on, which usually never works out in MMA.

Prelims (Fox Sports 1)

Welterweight - John "Doomsday" Howard vs. Siyar "The Great" Bahadurzada

• Howard's Style - Muay Thai
• Bahaduzada's Style - Kickboxing
• Prediction - Bahadurzada by TKO

Featherweight - Dennis "The Menace" Siver vs Manvel "The Anvil" Gamburyan

• Siver's Style - Kickboxing
• Gamburyan's Style - Judo
• Prediction - Siver by TKO

Lightweight - Gleison Tibau vs Michael "The Menace" Johnson

• Tibau's Style - Wrestling, cutting weight
• Johnson's Style - Wrestling, sprinting
• Prediction - Tibau by decision
• Thoughts - Glacier Tebow will weigh 500 pounds on fight day. Also, Johnson is probably the only non-Dennis to have the nickname "The Menace"

Middleweight - Chris "The Crippler" Leben vs Uriah "Prime Time" Hall

• Leben's Style - Boxing, Zombie boxing, smashing cats
• Hall's Style - Kickboxing, malapropisms
• Prediction - Hall by TKO

Main Card (PPV)

Featherweight - Dustin "The Diamond" Poirier vs Diego "DB" Brandao

• Poirier's Style - Grappling
• Brandao's Style - Muay Thai, BJJ
• Prediction - Poirier by decision

Lightweight - Jim Miller vs Fabricios "Morango" Camoes

• Miller's Style - Grappling
• Camoes' Style - Grappling
• Prediction - Miller by decision

Heavyweight - Josh "The Warmaster" Barnett vs Travis "Hapa" Browne

• Barnett's Style - Catch wrestling, anime, tabletop role playing games
• Browne's Style - Kickboxing
• Prediction - Barnett by submission
• Thoughts - I think Browne might be too big, but I really want to see Barnett break out the Torture Rack.

Women's Bantamweight - "Rowdy" Ronda Rousey vs Miesha "Cupcake" Tate

• Rousey's Style - Judo
• Tate's Style - Wrestling
• Prediction - Rousey by submission
• Thoughts - I would not be surprised if Ronda goes full Toquinho and keeps cranking the armbar until she has actually removed the limb from Tate's body.

Middleweight - Chris "The All-American" Weidman vs Anderson "The Spider" Silva

• Weidman's Style - Wrestling, boxing
• Silva's Style - Muay Thai, BJJ
• Prediction - Weidman by KO
• Thoughts - Last time, I said anyone that picked Weidman to win was pretty dumb. This is why I will never be a respected blogger.

Event Primer - UFC on Fox 9

Welcome to Leg Kick TKO, a MMA blog that's hoping Pat Barry can assistant coach on Thug Rose's team on TUF.

Prelims (Facebook, YouTube)

Flyweight - Darren "BC" Uyenoyama vs Alp "Turkish Delight" Ozkilic

• Uyenoyama's Style - BJJ
• Ozkilic's Style - Grappling
• Prediction - Ozkilic by TKO
• Thoughts - Ozkilic has my new favorite nickname

Prelims (Fox Sports 1)

Lightweight - "Relentless" Roger Bowling vs Abel "Killa" Trujillo

• Bowling's Style - Boxing
• Trujillo's Style - Wrestling
• Prediction - Trujillo by KO

Lightweight - Sam "Hands of Stone" Stout vs Cody "AK Kid" McKenzie

• Stout's Style - Kickboxing
• McKenzie's Style - McKenzietine
• Prediction - Stout by decision
• Thoughts - On paper, this looks like a terrible mauling will happen to McKenzie. Then again, he famously decreed his opponent on TUF had better striking, wrestling, cardio and strength, but that he'd still win, and he did.

Flyweight - Zach "Fun Size" Makovsky vs Scott "Young Guns" Jorgensen

• Makovsky's Style - Wrestling
• Jorgensen's Style - Wrestling
• Prediction - Makovsky by decision

Lightweight - Pat "Bam Bam" Healy vs Bobby "King" Green

• Healy's Style - Grappling
• Green's Style - Grappling
• Prediction - Green by decision

Lightweight - Danny "Last Call" Castillo vs Edson "Junior" Barboza

• Castillo's Style - Wrestling
• Barboza's Style - Muay Thai, SONIC BOOMS
• Prediction - Barboza by TKO (Hopefully of the leg kick variety)

Welterweight - Ryan LaFlare vs Court "Crusher" McGee

• LaFlare's Style - Wrestling, omoplata sweeps
• McGee's Style - Wrestling, boxing, surviving heroin overdoses
• Prediction - LaFlare by decision

Main Card (Fox)

Lightweight - Joe "J-Lau" Lauzon vs Mac Danzig

• Lauzon's Style - BJJ, COBOL
• Danzig's Style - Grappling, photography, veganism
• Prediction - Lauzon by submission
• Thoughts - Look at what a dorkus malorkus baby Mac Danzig was

Featherweight - Chad "$Money$" Mendes vs Nik "The Carny" Lentz

• Mendes' Style - Wrestling, boxing
• Lentz's Style - Wrestling
• Prediction - Mendes by KO
• Thoughts - The first of three Team Alpha Male fights on the main card means it is Dougie Time!

Bantamweight - Urijah "California Kid" Faber vs Michael "Mayday" McDonald

• Faber's Style - Wrestling
• McDonald's Style - Striking, BJJ
• Prediction - Faber by decision
• Thoughts - Team Alpha Male wants to wish you a Merry Christmas.

Flyweight - Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson vs Joseph "Joe-B Won Kenobi" Benavidez

• Johnson's Style - Wrestling, grappling, super-duper speed
• Benavidez's Style - Grappling, TRAPS
• Prediction - Johnson by decision
• Thoughts - This fight is going to be forty-eight different kinds of super-rad!

Fighter primer - Dagestan

Welcome to Leg Kick TKO, a MMA blog that's all kinds of hype for the strawweight season of TUF!

Typical Dagestani attire

Fighters come from all over the world, and if they end up being moderately non-terrible, they will probably end up fighting for a major American-based promotion. In recent years, fighters from the Russian republic of Dagestan have emerged as top fighters, generally with a strong sambo background. So now I'm going to run through some top-level Dagestani fighters, going from smallest to largest, even though that means I'll end up talking about the most notable guys right in the middle of this post.

UFC Flyweight - Ali "Puncher King" Bagautinov

Ali Bagautinov had a pretty good UFC debut, showcasing his nickname of "Puncher King" with a third round knockout, and followed that up with another impressive performance against Daniel Bryan/Mose Schrute-hybrid lookalike, Tim Elliott. He is unbeaten in three years and ten fights, with five TKO and two submission victories during that span.

Bellator Featherweight - Magomedrasul "Frodo" Khasbulaev

The Hobbit-named fighter has been putting on impressive performances in Bellator, showcasing the kind of grit and scrappiness only found in a halfling tasked with transporting the One Ring to Mount Doom (Facing Daniel Straus for the Featherweight title), as he's undefeated in the past three years and nine fights.

Check out more rad Dagestanis after the jump!

Event primer - Invicta FC 7

Welcome to Leg Kick TKO, a MMA blog that's sad to see Julie Kedzie retired.

Prelims (Invicta.com)

Flyweight - Munah "The Perfect Storm" Holland vs Nina "The Strina" Ansaroff

• Holland's Style - Boxing
• Ansaroff's Style - Striking
• Prediction - Holland by KO

Bantamweight - Sarah "The Monster" D'Alelio vs Tonya Evinger

• D'Alelio's Style - BJJ
• Evinger's Style - Boxing, wrestling
• Prediction - D'Alelio by submission

Main Card (PPV)


Flyweight - Vanessa Porto vs Zoila "Warrior Princess" Frausto Gurgel

• Porto's Style - BJJ
• Gurgel's Style - BJJ
• Prediction - Porto by submission

Featherweight - Julia "The Jewel" Budd vs Charmaine "Not So Sweet" Tweet

• Budd's Style - Striking
• Tweet's Style - Grappling
• Prediction - Budd by TKO

Strawweight - Joanne "Bad Mofo Jo-Jo" Calderwood vs Katja "Killer Bunny" Kankaanpaa

• Calderwood's Style - Muay Thai
• Kankaanpaa's Style - Freestyle
• Prediction - Calderwood by TKO

Strawweight - Felice "Lil Bulldog" Herrig vs Tecia "Tiny Tornado" Torres

• Herrig's Style - Kickboxing
• Torres' Style - Striking
• Prediction - Herrig by decision

Bantamweight - Lauren Murphy vs Miriam "The Queen of Mean" Nakamoto

• Murphy's Style - Boxing, BJJ
• Nakamoto's Style - Muay Thai
• Prediction - Nakamoto by KO

Strawweight - Carla "Cookie Monster" Esparza vs Claudia "Claudinha" Gadelha

• Esparza's Style - Wrestling
• Gadelha's Style - BJJ
• Prediction - Esparza by decision

Flyweight - Barb "Little Warrior" Honchak vs Leslie "The Peacemaker" Smith

• Honchak's Style - Grappling
• Smith's Style - Boxing
• Prediction - Honchak by decision

Event primer - World Series of Fighting 7

Welcome to Leg Kick TKO, a MMA blog that lost its gat-dang mind during Hunt versus Silva.

Prelims (topmmanews.com)

Middleweight - Micah "The Bully" Brakefield vs Brendan Kornberger

• Brakefield's Style - Grappling
• Kornberger's Style - Striking
• Prediction - Brakefield by decision

Lightweight - Jake Macdonald vs Myles "The Cowboy" Merola

• Macdonald's Style - Striking
• Merola's Style - Freestyle
• Prediction - Macdonald by TKO

Lightweight - Gabriel "Gabby" Solorio vs Shawn Albrecht

• Solorio's Style - Grappling
• Albrecht's Style - Striking
• Prediction - Albrecht by TKO

Middleweight - Matt "The Riot Maker" Baker vs David "Showtime" Perron

• Baker's Style - Grappling
• Perron's Style - Freestyle
• Prediction - Baker by decision

Welterweight - Michael "The Messenger" Hill vs Richard "Relentless" Arsenault

• Hill's Style - Striking, letting bros bang
• Arsenault's Style - Freestyle
• Prediction - Arsenault by submission

Main Card (NBC Sports)

Light Heavyweight - Kalib Starnes vs Dwayne "D-Bomb" Lewis

• Starnes' Style - Fleeing
• Lewis' Style - Striking
• Prediction - Lewis by decision

Lightweight - "Notorious" Nick Newell vs Sabah "The Persian Warrior" Fadai

• Newell's Style - Grappling
• Fadai's Style - Striking
• Prediction - Newell by submission

Middleweight - Jesse "JT Money" Taylor vs Elvis "The King" Mutapcic

• Taylor's Style - Wrestling, BJJ
• Mutapcic's Style - Kickboxing
• Prediction - Taylor by submission

Featherweight - Lance "The Party" Palmer vs Georgi "Insane" Karakhanyan

• Palmer's Style - Wrestling
• Karakhanyan's Style - BJJ, Boxing
• Prediction - Palmer by KO

Event primer - UFC Fight Night 33

Welcome to Leg Kick TKO, a MMA blog that's a silly motherfucker.

Prelims (Facebook, YouTube)

Welterweight - Ben "Manimal" Wall vs Alex "The Dominican Nightmare" Garcia

• Wall's Style - Grappling
• Garcia's Style - BJJ
• Prediction - Garcia by submission

Prelims (Fox Sports 2)

Middleweight - Bruno "Carioca" Santos vs Krzysztof Jotko

• Santos' Style - Grappling
• Jotko's Style - Striking
• Prediction - Santos by decision

Flyweight - Richie "Vas" Vaculik vs Justin "Tank" Scoggins

• Vaculik's Style - Grappling
• Scoggins' Style - Kickboxing
• Prediction - Scoggins by KO

Middleweight - Nick "The Promise" Ring vs Caio Magalhaes

• Ring's Style - Muay Thai, BJJ
• Magalhaes' Style - BJJ
• Prediction - Ring by decision

Bantamweight - Takeya Mizugaki vs Nam Phan

• Mizugaki's Style - Grappling
• Phan's Style - Boxing, BJJ
• Prediction - Mizugaki by decision

Main Card (Fox Sports 1)

Women's Bantamweight - Julie "Fireball" Kedzie vs  Bethe Correia

• Kedzie's Style - Kickboxing
• Correia's Style -
• Prediction - Kedzie by TKO

Middleweight - Dylan "The Villain" Andrews vs Clint Hester

• Andrews' Style - Boxing, wrestling
• Hester's Style - Boxing
• Prediction - Hester by TKO

Heavyweight - Pat "Hype or Die" Barry vs Soa "The Hulk" Palelei

• Barry's Style - Kickboxing, throwin thunda
• Palelei's Style - Kickboxing, BJJ
• Prediction - Barry by KO
• Thoughts - Barry is smart AND athletic

Light Heavyweight - Ryan "Darth" Bader vs Anthony "The Hippo" Perosh

• Bader's Style - Wrestling, boxing
• Perosh's Style - BJJ
• Prediction - Perosh by submission

Light Heavyweight - Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs James Te Huna

• Rua's Style - Muay thai, BJJ, airplane arms
• Te Huna's Style - Boxing
• Prediction - Rua by TKO

Heavyweight - Mark "Super Samoan" Hunt vs Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva

• Hunt's Style - Kickboxing
• Silva's Style - BJJ
• Prediction - Hunt by KO
• Thoughts - The man with the biggest punches against the dude with the biggest head. This seems like cruel and very unusual punishment for Silva.