As UFC fight night 119 draws closer, all eyes are on Lyoto Machida and Derek Brown who will take on each other in what is being touted as the highlight of the night. UFC 119 will take place in Brazil and coincidentally it also features some amazing Brazilian talent. This event is being termed the return of The Dragon as Machida will be coming back from after a rather long absence to take on Derek Brunson who is gaining quite a bit of traction and momentum in the highly competitive middleweight division.
Other fighters who will be featuring on the night and are worth mentioning are Demian Maia, Jim Miller and John Lineker. It is certainly going to be an entertaining fight night with a lot to look forward to.
Coming back to Lyoto Machida vs. Derek Brunson, Brunson will be fighting on Machida’s home soil as Machida makes a comeback and will be looking for nothing less than a win. Machida’s fighting is mostly influenced by Karate and he has a rather unique striking style which has proven to be difficult to deal with for most, if not all, of his prior opponents. However, the question everyone is asking is whether Machida will be able to hit the floor running since he has been out of action since June 2015 after having failed a drug test. It will be highly surprising if he isn’t at least a little rusty coming back. Brunson will not make things easy for Machida.
Brunson is more of a wrestler type of fighter who will be looking to get into close quarters. Machida however is agile and will not be easy to grab onto and take down. In terms of a prediction, despite the fact that Machida has been out for over two years, we cannot see him losing this one.
Machida to win by TKO.
Author : Rory McGregor
