|
Predictions
for Strikeforce’s Evolution
Cung Le vs. Scott
Smith
Josh Thomson vs.
Gilbert Melendez
By: Jeff Townsend, Boxing writer
Bayareasportsdrive.com
12-16-09
Cung Le
vs. Scott Smith
The main event for the December 19th
Strikeforce Evolution event taking place at the
HP Pavilion in San Jose,
California features undefeated former Strikeforce
Middleweight (185) champion Cung Le (6-0) against
Scott ‘Hands of Steel’ Smith (16-6).
Cung Le
may have to shake off some ring rust since it has been
20 months since his last fight. Le last fought on
March 29, 2008, forcing a TKO stoppage against MMA
legend Frank Shamrock after breaking Shamrock’s arm
with a kick. Le made a business decision and
relinquished his Strikeforce Middleweight title in
order to focus on his movie career. Starring in two
movies in 2009 may have been great for his exposure
but it remains to be seen if it will hurt him in the
ring. In recent interviews, Le has stated that he
trained eight weeks for this fight. One wonders if
this is enough time to prepare for a tough fighter
such as Smith, especially in light of the long
layoff.
Scott Smith is a
hard-hitting puncher and was a contestant on season
four of Spike TV's The Ultimate Fighter. To
illustrate Smith’s power, Smith has racked up 13 wins
via KO or TKO with just three wins coming via
submission. Smith’s stand-up game is very good but he
needs to be close to his opponent in order to have a
chance to land his shots. This could be a major
problem since Le will probably employ a lot of kicks
and strikes to keep Smith on the outside. Expect this
fight to be a complete slugfest, with both fighters
wanting to keep this a stand-up shoot-out. Neither
fighter will want the fight to go to the mat which
will be great for the fans.
Prediction:
Cung Le by unanimous decision. Le will
definitely emerge as the victor in this match-up. The
only question will be if Smith takes so much
punishment that the fight has to be stopped.
Josh
Thomson vs. Gilbert Melendez
Strikeforce Lightweight (155) champion Josh ‘the Punk’
Thomson (16-2) faces off against the Strikeforce
Interim Lightweight champ Gilbert ‘El Nino’ Melendez
(16-2) in a rematch from their June 27, 2008 fight.
In that first fight, Thomson fought a very smart,
technical fight, focusing on staying on the outside
and using his speed and agility to control the
action. Melendez looked a bit slow and uninspired
which might have been due to Thomson’s incredible
performance. Thomson was awarded a five round
unanimous decision over Melendez, making him the
Strikeforce Lightweight champ.
Since
their first fight, Thomson has suffered several
injuries which has allowed him only one fight during
this whole time. Thomson made quick work of Ashe ‘The
Archer’ Bowman on September 20, 2008 but that was 14
months ago. First, Thomson suffered a broken fibula
in his left ankle and then he sustained a break in the
bone located above the original injury early in 2009.
The bone broke a second time which meant more time
away from training and fighting.
In his
last fight, Melendez avenged a loss to Mitsuhiro
Ishida by stopping him in an impressive fashion.
Melendez looked very focused and determined and it was
clear that the old Melendez was back. While Thomson
has been forced to sit out, Melendez has been training
and fighting.
This will
be a very competitive fight with two fighters are at
the top of their game. Both fighters are very
well-rounded with various dimensions to their game.
Both fighters have good stand-up games as well as
being able to be effective on the ground. Thomson
was coming off of shoulder injuries when the first
fight occurred and many thought he would be at a
disadvantage because of that. Again, Thomson must
overcome injuries and the resulting ring rust to fight
one of the best all-around fighters in the sport.
Prediction:
Melendez by unanimous decision.
Neither fighter has one-punch knockout power so expect
this fight to go to the scorecards. However, I can
definitely see a situation where Melendez’s
ground-and-pound forces a stoppage. The momentum is
with Melendez and he looks to be coming into this
fight looking sharper and more fired up in this
rematch.
Email Jeff with questions or comments at
jtownsend@bayareasportsdrive.com
Copyright © 2009 All rights reserved.
|
