Two men walk into a cage and look each other in the eye, knowing that their sole mission is to beat the other. Some of the fighters today do it better than others and go inside the cage focused with a true drive to shut up their opponent.
Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone is the definition of a fighter at all times. Likable to the fans and media, always pleasant and giving of his time but able to understand when the talk is over and the fight is ready to happen. Fighting four times this year and winning all of them, he has made it clear that he is ready whenever and fears nobody who challenges him.
Across the cage from him at UFC 141 will be a fellow lightweight who is equally unfazed at a challenge or anyone really who gets in his face; That man is Nate Diaz. Coming from a very skilled team at Cesar Gracie and brother to welterweight juggernaut, Nick Diaz, the TUF season 5 winner has no issue antagonizing an opponent and punishing them with peppering punches as he sets up for submission attempts or continues the barrage of shots en route to a victory. Below check out who had the advantages in what category as well as my overall pick for this bout!
STRIKING: CERRONE
Diaz may hold more knockout victories on his record than Cerrone but does not have the power to knock down anyone and set up a TKO like we saw with Cerrone/ Oliviera this past year. Factor in leg kicks and other Muay Thai techniques that the Jackson MMA based fighter utilizes; It could be a quick night for the “Kid from Stockton” and see Cerrone victorious yet again.
SUBMISSION: CERRONE
Donald Cerrone has an underrated ground game if you have never seen him fight off of his back. Able to secure triangles, chokes and armbars, he is not scared if the fight goes to the ground. An area that may present trouble for him is the longer legs of Diaz that have helped him lock in many triangle chokes that nobody has escaped but rather tapped from. Call me crazy but Cerrone has more submission wins than Diaz and the two fighters have the same amount of fights which in my opinion makes me feel Cerrone barely edges out Diaz on that department.
ATTITUDE: EVEN
These guys do not like each other and that fuels the fire for both of them. Not only should the actual fight be entertaining but the weigh ins and any other time they are encourage to face off will be just as good to watch. One thing for both of them is not to fight off of emotions alone as it may detract a game plan but let their actions speak louder than any trash that could be said.
After this fight is over, what happens next is truly dependent on who wins. Cerrone should get a title contendership bout if his hand is raised. He has showcased the skill since the WEC merger that argues his ability with the best in the world at lightweight and keeping him back is wrong.
Nate Diaz will be in a forward motion with a win this weekend. Not ready for a title but a solid opponent could be worked out. The problem for him lies in the fact that, top tier opponents are normally wrestlers and that is all true in the UFC lightweight scene. Wrestlers have been the puzzle for Diaz to solve and time will tell if he can get past it or stay middle of the road for his career.
