UK and International Fighters are “Fearless”
Fearless card cont’d
Pedro Wrobel Dec 8, 2006
Luiz
Azeredo (Pictures) vs. Paul Daley (Pictures) Paul Daley (Pictures) (12-5-2) is the reigning Cage
Rage British welterweight champion, as well as being another hot
prospect, albeit one that has been starting to realize the massive
potential that everybody can see that he has. Daley's game is
simple: he's a rugged, aggressive, heavy-handed striker whose
wrestling and submission defense have been improving as he gains
experience. He's pretty well rounded these days and it takes
something a bit special to put him off his stride.
Luiz Azeredo (Pictures) (10-6) is a Brazilian fighter from the Chute Boxe camp. Azeredo has been fighting for the best part of a decade, having made his name in a variety of promotions in his native Brazil, including Meca and Storm Samurai, before making the move to PRIDE Bushido last year.
Azeredo is no shrinking violet, and has faced pretty much
everything that the lightweight division has to offer, taking on
monsters such as Takanori
Gomi (Pictures), Joachim Hansen (Pictures), Anderson Silva (Anderson Silva'
class='LinkSilver'>Pictures) and Tony DeSouza (Pictures). Azeredo has had something of a
tough time lately, losing three of his last four matches
(admittedly these losses were against Gomi — twice — and Hansen),
and PRIDE has likely let him come to the UK in order to give the
Brazilian a chance to redeem himself.
This is quite a difficult one to call. Azeredo is classy but Daley is one tough cookie. Daley's weakness is still likely to be the submission game, which despite his pedigree is not something that Azeredo will go to as a first choice. This will probably be a stand-up war, with Daley more likely to take it down if he dislikes the stand-up exchange.
Danilo Cherman (Pictures) vs. Jean Silva (Pictures)
These days the once-great Jean Silva (Pictures) (12-4-3) seems to be seeking redemption every time he steps into the cage. Having shone in the UK circuit since making his debut back in mid-2002, Silva finally earned himself a dream trip to Japan to face the awesome Takanori Gomi (Pictures).
Despite a vicious assault from his Japanese opponent, Silva managed to hang tough and took arguably the best lightweight in the world to a decision. This may not have been a bad thing, but Silva's next fight was much less impressive with Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro demonstrating his vast technical superiority over his Brazilian compatriot en route to a dominating victory by arm-triangle choke.
Although Silva recovered a modicum of pride by registering a defeat over Paul Daley (Pictures), the Brazilian threw it all away by losing to Abdul Mohammed.
So once again "The White Bear" finds himself at that all-too-familiar crossroads. Another chance to embark upon the road to redemption.
But the question is this: Does he have the will and the strength of character to take it?
Nova Uniao's Danilo Cherman (Pictures) (5-2) is the man who will be standing across the cage from Silva. The Brazilian has been professional for three years, dividing his time between Brazilian promotions and a couple of trips to Shooto in Japan. Like his teammate "Shaolin," Cherman is a submission specialist with a nice line in chokes.
The outcome of this fight is dependent on which Jean Silva (Pictures) appears on Saturday. At his best, "The White Bear" is awesome. Silva by KO in the second.
Alan Murdock (Pictures) vs. Dave Legeno (Pictures)
This rematch is aimed at giving actor Dave Legeno (Pictures) (1-3) another win on his record. Legeno is a mountain of a man, known in the UK for lending his voice and acting talents to the main character on "The Getaway 2: Black Monday," the bestselling game for the PS2.
For those of you who are interested, Legeno was also in the movie "Snatch" and recent UK gangster film "Hell to Pay." None of this affects his fighting talent, of course, but it does help to explain his popularity. Legeno's acting talent also explains his hugely entertaining cage entrances, which have unfortunately been the highlight of some of his bouts. Nevertheless, Legeno is good entertainment value and he should have a chance in this one.
Alan Murdock (Pictures) (3-2) has already beaten Legeno once, in the latter's debut. That bout was a display of clumsy grappling, won by Murdock's rough-and-ready armbar. For his part, "Mad Raddy" is a brawler with a line in comically scowling facial expressions. He's tough and aggressive but again this is no technician.
This match will be a brawl, possibly punctuated by some grunting exertions on the floor. It'll be popular with the fans, and it might even be interesting to see whether either of these two have improved much. I'll take a punt and say that Legeno gets his revenge in the first round.
Xavier Foupa Pokam vs. Alex Reid (Pictures)
The match between Frenchman Xavier Foupa Pokam (10-7) and Cage Rage regular Alex Reid (Pictures) (7-5-1) is an international middleweight clash.
This a fairly good bout between two fighters who like to strike, whilst still boasting decent submissions. It will be an interesting clash.
Foupa Pokam's been on a good run and Reid has something to prove after a run of three successive defeats, with some of his victories having come under controversial circumstances. I've got a feeling this one will again be controversial, but I'll pick Foupa Pokam to win by decision.
Ross Mason (Pictures) vs. Jess Liaudin (Pictures)
In the first of two clashes between British and French fighters, hard-hitting Ross Mason (Pictures) (9-5) takes on a talented and resurgent Jess Liaudin (Pictures) (9-8).
Both of these guys are solid and well-rounded welterweights and the key here will be the physical condition of Liaudin. At his best, the Frenchman is imposing, with an excellent stand-up game and tricky submissions. But unless he has finally had an operation to repair his oft-broken nose then he is going to lose this one, as he lost against Paul Daley (Pictures), Abdul Mohamed (Pictures), Matt Ewin (Pictures) and others.
Mason is an accurate puncher, a good wrestler and entirely capable of hitting Liaudin in the face. If the Frenchman has recovered, then I'll pick him. If he hasn't, then Mason will be victorious by doctor stoppage.
Matt Ewin (Pictures) vs. Alex Cook
Matt Ewin (Pictures) (15-8-1) is an extremely durable fighter out of Mark Weir (Pictures)'s Range Fighting camp. He faces Alex Cook (8-5), a tough cookie from the Wolfslair Gym in Liverpool.
Both are well-rounded fighters, and the size advantage will go to Cook, a former light heavyweight. Nevertheless, Ewin's toughness, experience and methodical style should see him triumph here. I'm seeing a TKO in the second round, probably through ground and pound.
Francesco Ligato vs. Suley Mahmoud (Pictures)
Suley Mahmour (4-3-3) is a member of the London Shootfighters, an excellent wrestler with solid hands. His professional MMA career has been somewhat stop-start and past performances have been characterized by a defensive style.
He used to be tough when moving forward, but somewhat vulnerable on his back. It will be interesting to see if this has changed, as the last time I saw him fight was against James Nicholl (Pictures) at Cage Rage 8 back in 2004.
Italian Francesco Legato (2-3) has had limited success so far in his MMA endeavors, but will put up something of a challenge. Given his pedigree, I'll be surprised if Mahmoud doesn't score the win.
Luiz Azeredo (Pictures) (10-6) is a Brazilian fighter from the Chute Boxe camp. Azeredo has been fighting for the best part of a decade, having made his name in a variety of promotions in his native Brazil, including Meca and Storm Samurai, before making the move to PRIDE Bushido last year.
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This is quite a difficult one to call. Azeredo is classy but Daley is one tough cookie. Daley's weakness is still likely to be the submission game, which despite his pedigree is not something that Azeredo will go to as a first choice. This will probably be a stand-up war, with Daley more likely to take it down if he dislikes the stand-up exchange.
It's hard to bet against Azeredo in this one, but Daley has a
decent chance to achieve the upset.
Danilo Cherman (Pictures) vs. Jean Silva (Pictures)
These days the once-great Jean Silva (Pictures) (12-4-3) seems to be seeking redemption every time he steps into the cage. Having shone in the UK circuit since making his debut back in mid-2002, Silva finally earned himself a dream trip to Japan to face the awesome Takanori Gomi (Pictures).
Despite a vicious assault from his Japanese opponent, Silva managed to hang tough and took arguably the best lightweight in the world to a decision. This may not have been a bad thing, but Silva's next fight was much less impressive with Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro demonstrating his vast technical superiority over his Brazilian compatriot en route to a dominating victory by arm-triangle choke.
Although Silva recovered a modicum of pride by registering a defeat over Paul Daley (Pictures), the Brazilian threw it all away by losing to Abdul Mohammed.
So once again "The White Bear" finds himself at that all-too-familiar crossroads. Another chance to embark upon the road to redemption.
But the question is this: Does he have the will and the strength of character to take it?
Nova Uniao's Danilo Cherman (Pictures) (5-2) is the man who will be standing across the cage from Silva. The Brazilian has been professional for three years, dividing his time between Brazilian promotions and a couple of trips to Shooto in Japan. Like his teammate "Shaolin," Cherman is a submission specialist with a nice line in chokes.
The outcome of this fight is dependent on which Jean Silva (Pictures) appears on Saturday. At his best, "The White Bear" is awesome. Silva by KO in the second.
Alan Murdock (Pictures) vs. Dave Legeno (Pictures)
This rematch is aimed at giving actor Dave Legeno (Pictures) (1-3) another win on his record. Legeno is a mountain of a man, known in the UK for lending his voice and acting talents to the main character on "The Getaway 2: Black Monday," the bestselling game for the PS2.
For those of you who are interested, Legeno was also in the movie "Snatch" and recent UK gangster film "Hell to Pay." None of this affects his fighting talent, of course, but it does help to explain his popularity. Legeno's acting talent also explains his hugely entertaining cage entrances, which have unfortunately been the highlight of some of his bouts. Nevertheless, Legeno is good entertainment value and he should have a chance in this one.
Alan Murdock (Pictures) (3-2) has already beaten Legeno once, in the latter's debut. That bout was a display of clumsy grappling, won by Murdock's rough-and-ready armbar. For his part, "Mad Raddy" is a brawler with a line in comically scowling facial expressions. He's tough and aggressive but again this is no technician.
This match will be a brawl, possibly punctuated by some grunting exertions on the floor. It'll be popular with the fans, and it might even be interesting to see whether either of these two have improved much. I'll take a punt and say that Legeno gets his revenge in the first round.
Xavier Foupa Pokam vs. Alex Reid (Pictures)
The match between Frenchman Xavier Foupa Pokam (10-7) and Cage Rage regular Alex Reid (Pictures) (7-5-1) is an international middleweight clash.
This a fairly good bout between two fighters who like to strike, whilst still boasting decent submissions. It will be an interesting clash.
Foupa Pokam's been on a good run and Reid has something to prove after a run of three successive defeats, with some of his victories having come under controversial circumstances. I've got a feeling this one will again be controversial, but I'll pick Foupa Pokam to win by decision.
Ross Mason (Pictures) vs. Jess Liaudin (Pictures)
In the first of two clashes between British and French fighters, hard-hitting Ross Mason (Pictures) (9-5) takes on a talented and resurgent Jess Liaudin (Pictures) (9-8).
Both of these guys are solid and well-rounded welterweights and the key here will be the physical condition of Liaudin. At his best, the Frenchman is imposing, with an excellent stand-up game and tricky submissions. But unless he has finally had an operation to repair his oft-broken nose then he is going to lose this one, as he lost against Paul Daley (Pictures), Abdul Mohamed (Pictures), Matt Ewin (Pictures) and others.
Mason is an accurate puncher, a good wrestler and entirely capable of hitting Liaudin in the face. If the Frenchman has recovered, then I'll pick him. If he hasn't, then Mason will be victorious by doctor stoppage.
Matt Ewin (Pictures) vs. Alex Cook
Matt Ewin (Pictures) (15-8-1) is an extremely durable fighter out of Mark Weir (Pictures)'s Range Fighting camp. He faces Alex Cook (8-5), a tough cookie from the Wolfslair Gym in Liverpool.
Both are well-rounded fighters, and the size advantage will go to Cook, a former light heavyweight. Nevertheless, Ewin's toughness, experience and methodical style should see him triumph here. I'm seeing a TKO in the second round, probably through ground and pound.
Francesco Ligato vs. Suley Mahmoud (Pictures)
Suley Mahmour (4-3-3) is a member of the London Shootfighters, an excellent wrestler with solid hands. His professional MMA career has been somewhat stop-start and past performances have been characterized by a defensive style.
He used to be tough when moving forward, but somewhat vulnerable on his back. It will be interesting to see if this has changed, as the last time I saw him fight was against James Nicholl (Pictures) at Cage Rage 8 back in 2004.
Italian Francesco Legato (2-3) has had limited success so far in his MMA endeavors, but will put up something of a challenge. Given his pedigree, I'll be surprised if Mahmoud doesn't score the win.
