The UFC has officially announced it’s main card for the August UFC 102 card in Portland, Oregon and the main event will indeed feature the ‘losers’ bracket of the mini heavyweight tournament with former three time UFC Heavyweight champion Randy Couture set to face former PRIDE Heavyweight champion and former UFC interim Heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. The fight is one for MMA’s long time fans as both Nogueira and Couture held the PRIDE and UFC titles at the same time back in 2001/2002 before Couture was beaten by Barnett and Nogueira lost his title to Fedor. The fight could give us the next challenger for the division, but then again with contenders like Velasquez and Carwin emerging it may not. Also, with the chances of Lesnar beating Mir we could get the rubber match before we see anyone else challenge for the title.
The co main event is a shocker to me. I thought with the lack of names at 185lbs that the Demian Maia vs Nate Marquadt fight was a certain for co-main event but it was beaten out by Thiago Silva vs Keith Jardine. Really, what does that fight do for the 205lb division? Maia vs Marquadt gives us the next top contender in the division and if Maia wins it as easy as he’s won some of his other fights then all of a sudden there’s a serious threat to Anderson Silva but not a marketable one. If Maia is featured on a countdown show in length, then if he gets the chance to fight for the title his fight is that much easier to market. Regurgitating Keith Jardine and Thiago Silva when they should take their rightful place lower on the card makes little sense.
The Full main card:
Randy Couture vs Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Keith Jardine vs Thiago Silva
Demian Maia vs Nate Marquadt
Matt Hamill vs Brandon Vera
Chris Leben vs Jake Rosholt
