Sept. 19 UFC Card Swells; 13 Fights on Tap

With the recent addition of Affliction and IFL castaway Vladimir Matyushenko to UFC 103 in Dallas, Texas, the September 19 card is now hosting a butt-numbing 13 fights; UFC 100 and UFC 101 each hosted 11 bouts. I think this is what’s known as a pandemic.

As anyone who’s attended one of the endless regional shows and their 15, 17, or even 20-bout slates, there’s something to be said for brevity. I like movies, but sitting through seven or eight reels chafes the nerves after a while. The problem gets worse when you’re watching a fight: I’m not entirely certain live audiences need five solid hours of bloody noses and doubled-over athletes.

UFC President Dana White recently told a gathered fan crowd in Philadelphia that there “wasn’t enough talent” for a live, weekly fight series on a network. Is he getting to events in time to see the prelims?

Rich Franklin (No. 7 LHW) vs. Vitor Belfort (No. 9 MW)
Junior dos Santos vs. Mirko Filipovic
Martin Kampmann (No. 5 WW) vs. Mike Swick (No. 9 WW)
Josh Koscheck (No. 7 WW) vs. Frank Trigg
Efrain Escudero vs. Cole Miller
Tyson Griffin vs. Hermes Franca
Jim Miller vs. Thiago Tavares
Dan Lauzon vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Paul Daley vs. Brian Foster
Drew McFedries vs. Tomasz Drwal
Eliot Marshall vs. Jason Brilz
Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Igor Pokrajac
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Robert Emerson