UFC Fight Night 25: Fight Card Preview

Written by Roger Mayflower
Monday, 12 September 2011 22:27

It’s time to preview the UFC Fight Night 25 card that is coming up this weekend from New Orleans.

Some have dubbed UFC Fight Night 25 the “Battle on the Bayou”, and we’ll preview the September 17th fight card for the event that will be decided at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.  The UFC Fight Night 25 main event pits two top welterweight contenders against one another as Jake Shields faces off against Jake Ellenberger, while middleweight Alan Belcher makes his return to the octagon after over a year layoff to tangle with Jason MacDonald.  Let’s take a look at the entire fight card and give everyone a brief UFC Fight Night 25 preview.  Make sure to check back later in the week for UFC Fight Night 25 predictions and see what we think about these Spike TV-televised bouts.

Check out the UFC Fight Night 25 odds currently up at 5Dimes Sportsbook.  Readers who sign-up using the link we just provided will receive a 50% cash bonus from one of the best sportsbooks in the industry.

UFC Fight Night 25 Fight Card:

Jake Shields vs. Jake Ellenberger

Alan Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald

Evan Dunham vs. Shamar Bailey

Court McGee vs. Dongi Yang

Jonathon Brookins vs. Erik Koch

Daniel Roberts vs. Anthony Waldburger

Ken Stone vs. Donny Walker

Cody McKenzie vs. Vagner Rocha

Matt Riddle vs. Lance Benoist

Jorge Lopez vs. Justin Edwards

Seth Baczynski vs. Clay Harvison

Mike Lullo vs. Robert Peralta

UFC Fight Night 25 Preview:

Jake Shields vs. Jake Ellenberger

Shields (26-5-1) is a submission wrestler with great control who has proven very difficult to finish.  Ellenberger (24-5) is also a wrestler but he much prefers to knock people out.  Shields is going to need to find a way to get this to the mat because Ellenberger’s huge power and iron chin are not going to be fun to deal with.  Ellenberger has only been submitted once in his career, while Shields has only lost via punches a single time.  This is an interesting clash of styles between two wrestlers that fight with completely different game plans.

Alan Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald

Belcher (16-6) has been sidelined since defeating Patrick Cote back in May of 2010 but is back at full strength and ready to show he still belongs in the title picture.  He’ll take on MacDonald (25-14), a lanky submission ace that has proven to be a difficult matchup for many top fighters.  MacDonald injured his leg on the same card that sidelined Belcher but the Canadian came back at UFC 129 to get a first round submission win against Ryan Jensen.  It will be interesting to see if Belcher’s kick boxing and take down defense can keep this fight from hitting the mat where MacDonald has the advantage.

Evan Dunham vs. Shamar Bailey

Dunham (11-2) is an Xtreme Couture fighter with a well-rounded set of skills.  He was considered one of the top prospects in the UFC until losing his last two fights, a TKO to Melvin Guillard and a controversial decision against Sean Sherk.  He has solid defensive wrestling and will potentially try to keep this one standing against Bailey (12-3), a good wrestler that hasn’t shown much outside of his ability to stay on top.

Court McGee vs. Dongi Yang

McGee (13-1) won season 11 of The Ultimate Fighter and is extremely durable.  He is solid no matter where the fight goes but I don’t think he necessarily excels in any one area despite having above average wrestling.  Yang (10-1) is a heavy hitter with a Judo background who is known for constantly pushing the action.  This one should have a frenetic pace and I’d be a bit surprised if it goes to a decision with both fighters being the type that regularly get the finish.