The fight between “Rampage” Jackson and Lyoto Machida is truly one of epic proportions, and the winner will no doubt score either a title shot or a place in a Number One Contender’s bout. The two have been top five contenders in the Light Heavyweight division for years, and it is due time that the two met in the Octagon. The fight is obvious Main Event status and has garnered an incredible amount of interest among fight fans, so much so that it has overshadowed the closing fight of the trilogy between Matt Hughes and BJ Penn. The winner of this fight will cement his place among the all time greats of the Light Heavyweight division, and both Jackson and Machida undoubtedly know that this fight will have a significant impact on their legacy.
At UFC 123 “Rampage” will be looking to bounce back after his loss at UFC 114 to Rashad Evans, and will also be looking for his only win over a UFC Champion other than his wins over Kevin Randleman and, of course, Chuck Liddell years ago. Jackson is in desperate need of a win to revitalize his status as a top fighter, and a win over “The Dragon” would do just that. However, Jackson is going to be hard-pressed to catch the unorthodox Machida but if anyone in the world can end a fight with just one punch it’s “Rampage” Jackson.
After appearing unstoppable against every opponent beforehand, Lyoto Machida lost the Light Heavyweight Belt to Mauricio Rua in his most recent outing at UFC 113, and will be looking to come back from his only loss this Saturday. In Quinton Jackson Machida will find a more than worthy opponent to test his improvement since his loss to Rua, as Jackson is not only a former champion like Machida but also has been defeated by the very same man. Each of them is likely itching to erase that loss off of their record, but it has to be a little bit fresher on Machida’s mind than Jackson’s.
The fight between Quinton Jackson and Lyoto Machida should not only be an historic one, but an exciting one as well. Both fighters like to stand, and that is undoubtedly what we’ll be seeing for however long the fight lasts. Stylistically speaking though, Machida possesses what would appear to be the counter to Rampage’s style. In boxing it is well known that a slugger will always have trouble against a fighter who likes to stay on the outside and dance around their opponent, and that is exactly what we find in “Rampage” vs. Machida. Unless Jackson is able to take Machida down at some point and wear him out, his entire game plan will revolve around the hope that he catches “The Dragon” with one big punch and knocks him out. With Machida being as fast as he is it will be incredibly difficult for Jackson to do this, but at the same time it is unlikely that Machida will be able to do little more than batter the ever resilient “Rampage” and will not be capable of putting him away. Lyoto Machida will win this fight via Unanimous Decision so long as he makes sure not eat any sweeping hooks during the duel between the former champions, and will find himself back in the vicinity of the championship once again.
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