UFC 98: MAY 23, 2009
venue: TBA in Las Vegas, Nevada

Main Card

Light Heavyweight Championship bout: Rashad Evans vs Lyoto Machida
Welterweight bout: Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra
Lightweight bout: Sean Sherk vs. Frank Edgar
Middleweight bout: James Irvin vs. Drew McFedries
Welterweight bout: Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Wilson

Preliminary Card

Light Heavyweight bout: Houston Alexander vs. Andrés Gusmão
Heavyweight bout: Pat Barry vs. Tim Hague
Lightweight bout: Phillipe Nover vs. Kyle Bradley
Welterweight bout: Yoshiyuki Yoshida vs. Brandon Wolff
Lightweight bout: George Roop vs. Dave Kaplan

[MJB23]

It's about time Machida gets his title shot.

There' a lot of good fights on the card, it should be pretty good.

[zzTIGERzz81]

Well, you guys know my thoughts on this main event.

As for the others:

Interested to see Irvin at MW I hope he has worked on his grappling but he won't need it against McFedries. I see a first round KO here, but not sure who yet.

I look for Hughes to GNP Serra for about 12 out of the 15 minutes and eek out a decision then announce retirement after the fight or in the following week.

Sherk will dominate Edgar.

Kos should start looking at tape now, but who knows. Hopefully he won't be like Overeem and continue to make that one mistake each fight. He needs the win here.

Interested to see Barry again. His striking is really impressive.

And I would love to see the Yoshida fight too.

[Aaron]

chris wilson at +400 is a really sick bet IMO

[ThatGuyJae]

I think Machida takes this fight. Rashad's best advantage with his standup is speed an power but i think Machida's super elusiveness takes those both out of the picture. Standing i see Machida getting the better of the exchanges with great movement like he always does. If Rashad wants the fight on the ground i think he will have a tough time getting it there, Machida has shown great TDD and good wrestling of his own.

I'm also excited to see Sherk v. Edgar. Sherk i think will keep it standing again by using his wrestling. His boxing has looked good, i'm curious what kind of game plan Edgar will have.

[Kingofkings]

I am going to go against the grain and pick Rashad....I don't see Machida as this dominate fighter, and even with his impressive record he can still be beaten. With the exception of Tito, he hasn't really faced top talent at 205 in the UFC. Even if he beats Rashad, I still find it hard to believe that he will beat Rampage on down the road.

Anyway, I'm taking Rashad with a tko in round four.

[SuvacoWawaweewa]

Chris Wilson vs Koscheck could be interesting. On paper you'd have to say Koscheck is an easy favorite, but lately he's been fighting like a boxer. If he wants to stand with Wilson, this could be an interesting fight.

That said, I don't know if Koscheck would want to run a risky gameplan like that. He should be the favorite no doubt, but don't count Wilson out completely.

[Keegman]

I think that this is a good test for Rashad but I also think Machida's going to win by Decision in this fight. I think Rashad is going to have some trouble on the feet because Machida avoids any punishes or kicks that come his way. Rashad might be a quick fighter but will not be able to catch Machida because he's so light on his feet. I don't see this fight going to the grown because of Machida's style. Machida WIN'S.

[SuvacoWawaweewa]

Machida will outpoint Rashad and either earn a UD or a late stoppage. He's just way too hard to hit. I really can't see Rashad landing a huge shot here or getting a takedown.

[louisn]

Rashad is an ever improving fighter. In his past two bouts against Liddell and Forrest Griffinn we are beginning to see Rashad develop a more explosive kickboxing style. I think the only way Rashad will ever beat Machida is to:

1. Being very aggressive
2. Surprise Machida and make him think
3. Stay calm and focused ( like Forrest Griffin fight)

I know many of you good people are already beginning to doubt my plan of aggressiveness but hear me out. Machida has a very solid striking game ( along with every mma skillset). On paper Machida's striking is vastly superior to Rashad's. If Rashad decides to play "lets counter Machida," he will ultimately lose. Machida has been developing this style for years and the only way Rashad is going to hit him is to rush hard and fast. I think Thiago Silva had the "right idea" to be overly aggressive and charge but his striking game of throwing hay makers made him very predictable to counter. I believe Rashad will have to rely on the jab heavily to lay his foundation of attack.

A second big point I think will ultimately improve Rashad's chances of winning is to be unpredictable. There are a variety ways a fighter can do this. By being explosive one can already have this advantage. Some other ways are to throw feints, get the clinch or even try and shoot on Machida. However, surprising Machida is no easy task because thanks to Machida's elusive style and the obscene amount of feints he throws himself during any of his matches, it's going to be difficult.

Lastly I think the most important point Rashad has to do to win is to stay focused. Anybody who fights Machida gets frustrated. Going into a match with Machida knowingly that he has never lost even a single round of any of his matches must be frustrating. I cannot predict how Rashad will enter this matchup but I know he is going to take beating mentally and on the scorecards before anything significant happens. Rashad has a great heart and being resilient and mentally strong is the biggest thing he can bring to this fight.