Mike Thomas Brown vs. Leonard Garcia
The main event of the evening sees new champion Mike Thomas Brown, who scored a huge upset against former champion Urijah Faber, make his first title defense against UFC veteran and Greg Jackson protege Leonard “Bad Boy” Garcia, who is coming off a shellacking of former UFC Champion Jens Pulver.
Brown, unbeaten since 2005, is currently on an eight fight win streak which includes big wins over the likes of Jeff Curran, Yves Edwards, and Urijah Faber. Brown’s grappling is excellent, and his boxing, while not exactly technically excellent, is still powerful and dangerous.
Garcia is also a skilled grappler who has recently shown vastly improved standup. Considering both men’s proficiency on the ground, I can see the grappling game becoming a stalemate, meaning that the standup is going to make the difference in this one. In that regard, I give a slight advantage to Brown.
Ultimately, Brown should escape with his belt courtesy of a late knockout.
