On Saturday June 15th the UFC will come back to Canada for UFC 161 which will feature the main event of Rashad Evans vs Dan Henderson. Roy Nelson will also try to keep his winning streak alive as he tests his skills against Stipe Miocic. The event will take place in Winnipeg, Canada, and was supposed to have Barao vs Wineland as the feature event. Barao was forced to pull out due to injury.
Pat Barry vs Shawn Jordan
Barry will bring his 5-5 record into the octagon against Shawn Jordan. Jordan is coming off a big W against a very durable fighter in Mike Russow. Both fighters have losses against Cheick Kongo. Jordan got dominated against the cage, while Barry was seconds away from winning his fight before Kongo caught him and knocked him out. I expect Barry’s striking to be the difference in this fight. Shawn Jordan will try to test his stand up against Barry and it will not end well for him. I feel Barry should be more of a favourite, so take Pat Barry @ -105 (5Dimes).
Roy Nelson vs Stipe Miocic
Big country vs Miocic is an interesting matchup and it seems like many are counting Miocic out. Big country has been on a knockout streak; knocking out Kongo, Mitrione, and Herman in the first round of his last 3 fights. In the past, Roy has had trouble with fighters who are good at keeping a distance from him. Stipe is one of the most athletic fighters in the division and has the speed and reach to do this against Roy. With the odds here I will be going with the upset, because I think Stipe can use his size advantage to pick apart Roy. Take Stipe Miocic @ +210 (5Dimes).
Rashad Evans vs Dan Henderson
Two of the most dominant fighters in the sport over the past 10 years will fight each other in the main event. Rashad Evans will look to come back from a poor performance and finally get himself in the W column after dropping 2 straight. After losing to Jon Jones, Evans lost a decision victory to Antonio Nogueira. The key to Rashad winning this fight will be dodging the Hendo bomb. Rashad has seemed to slow down a bit of late and looked horrible his last fight, so if he does not come prepared it will not be a good night for him.
Dan Henderson, on the other hand, has looked good over his last couple fights. Even though he lost to Machida, I thought he should have gotten the nod. Machida used his elusiveness to keep Hendo at a distance. Rashad will try to do the same thing but is not as quick as Machida.
I expect Henderson to swarm Rashad early, and finish the fight. People are still questioning Henderson’s age, but we see no signs of him slowing down, and I don’t expect anything less this fight. Take Henderson by TKO/KO @ +315 (5Dimes).
Dan Henderson • Pat Barry • rashad evans • Roy Nelson • Shawn Jordan • Stipe Miocic • UFC 161