Fantasy Booking the UFC

[Turd Ferguson]

Alright, say that for whatever reason Joe Silva retires and Dana White hires you to be the new matchmaker. How would you handle everything from now until, say, July 4th Weekend?

The rules are that you cannot change any matches that are already mapped out... so you can't take Rashad's title shot away from him. UFC 125 HAS to be Edgar/Maynard, and yes, you have to live with a co-main event of Chris Leben vs. Brian Stann... sorry.

Heavyweight Division

Champion: Cain Velasquez

#1 Contender: Junior Dos Santos

This match has not been booked yet, but needless to say, both guys are ready to go, so I schedule the fight for UFC 129 in April in the main event slot.

For #1 Contendership, I say "Fuck the haters" and book Lesnar/Mir III. They're the most marketable guys and if you stick Nogueira vs. Lesnar, it's lose/lose if Nogueira wins. Nobody wants to see Cain demolish Nogueira again and JDS is Nogueira's protegee.

So I go ahead and put Nogueira in vs. Carwin. It's a big enough fight, and Carwin has never really fought a submission specialist, especially one like Nogueira... Gonzaga doesn't count as he never realized that he was a BJJ Black Belt when he fought. Of course, there's also the very real possibility that Carwin murders Nogueira.

Brendan Schaub can fight Cro Cop. It's another good litmus test for Schaub... and getting past Cro Cop, even if it's 2011 Cro Cop is still a pretty big deal and would only help him get recognized.

Cheick Kongo can fight the winner of Stefan Struve vs. Sean McCorkle.

The division is really thin all of a sudden and the loss of Roy Nelson doesn't help matters.

Light Heavyweight Division

Champion: Shogun Rua

#1 Contender: Rashad Evans

They will fight at UFC 128 in March.

For #1 Contendership, I'm giving Rampage the shot at the winner. Rampage/Shogun II would be interesting, and Rampage/Rashad II, this time for a title, would do a huge buyrate as well.

UFC 126 has two light heavyweight fights worth noting:
Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader
Rich Franklin vs. Forrest Griffin

I match the winners up with each other, with the winner of that fight getting the next title shot. The loser of Jones/Bader gets Machida. The loser of Franklin/Griffin gets the loser of Shogun/Rashad.

I match up Phil Davis against Matt Hamill. The winner of that fight gets the winner of Tito/Lil Nog. I won't book Tito vs. Hamill if they both win though.

If Bonnar and Thiago Silva both win their upcoming fights, I match them up together.

There's a lot you can do with this division... I love it, and there are potentially some great fights.

Middleweight

Champion: Anderson Silva

#1 Contender: Vitor Belfort

Next In Line: Yushin Okami and Chael Sonnen

Silva and Belfort will fight at UFC 126 in February.

My endgame here is to book Anderson Silva vs. Georges St. Pierre for July 4th weekend. No title will be on the line, and it will be at a catchweight of 178 lbs. It will only be 3 rounds, but it doesn't matter, it's to determine who truly is the best. This fight needs to happen before Silva's out of his prime... he's getting up there at 35 years old.

So, I hope to god that Silva gets past Belfort. I also hope that Sonnen gets his suspension reduced. If that's the case, then I book Sonnen vs. Okami II to decide #1 Contender for the Middleweight Title.

I then decide to book Belfort, assuming he loses, against Demian Maia.

I also decide to book Marquardt against Bisping, as we can truly see what Bisping is made of. Of course, this is assuming his weak jaw makes it past the Jorge Rivera fight.

The Leben/Wanderlei fight also gets booked.

I don't give up on Rousimar Palhares, and I have him fight Maiquel Falcao.

I also don't give up on Yoshihiro Akiyama, and I have him fight Dan Miller.

Welterweight

Champion: Georges St. Pierre

#1 Contender: Josh Koscheck

Next In Line: Jake Shields

GSP and Koscheck fight at UFC 124 in December.

As I said, my endgame is for the GSP/Silva fight to finally happen on July 4th weekend. That puts me in a tough position though as GSP has already been on ice since March for the Koscheck fight and filming TUF. It's a tough decision, but I decide to keep GSP iced until July 4th weekend. GSP/Silva is a blockbuster fight and I can't risk either fighter going into it with a loss.

Besides, Shields' performance against Kampmann left a lot to be desired. BJ Penn and Jon Fitch are fighting each other at UFC 127, and in order to truly deserve a title shot, I feel that Shields needs to get past the winner of Penn/Fitch.

I also want Carlos Condit and Jake Ellenberger to get in the title mix as they're both exciting and fresh faces. If Condit beats Chris Lytle, then I have him fight Koscheck. Jake Ellenberger can square off against Martin Kampmann.

Diego Sanchez looked really good against Paulo Thiago, and I want him in the title mix as well, so I stick him against Thiago Alves, who I think will probably get past John Howard.

I also book Dan Hardy against Paulo Thiago, both guys were top 10 fighters just a couple months ago and both would have something to prove.

I also still want to see something out of John Hathaway, and I want Matt Hughes to retire already, so I match those two up.

There's also Nate Diaz, who if he gets past Dong Hyun Kim, has to be taken as a serious threat. I have him fight Mike Pyle next.

Rory McDonald is also going to be a major player, and I stick him against Dennis Hallman.

Lightweight

Champion: Frankie Edgar

#1 Contender: Gray Maynard

Next In Line: Ben Henderson/Anthony Pettis

Edgar and Maynard will fight at UFC 126.

Honestly, with the WEC merger, I don't even know where to begin here... there's a major lack of established contenders as well. If George Sotiropoulos gets past Dennis Siver, then I have him fight the winner of Jim Miller and Charles Oliveira, with the winner of that fight getting a title shot.

Kenny Florian is fighting Evan Dunham in January. I then match those two up with the losers of Edgar/Maynard and Henderson/Pettis. I do not under any circumstances, want a rematch of Florian/Maynard, that's for sure.

I have Sean Sherk fight Cole Miller in what should be a decent fight that would tell us a lot about where both fighters truly stand.

I assume Joe Stevenson will get past Mac Danzig, and I have him fight the winner of Guida/Gomi. If Gomi wins those two fights then I fast track him to a #1 contendership fight.

I also book Joe Lauzon vs. Donald Cerrone, and Jamie Varner vs. Melvin Guillard.

 

[jmt225]

Edit: Damn it, Guy, I read you first sentence and then just proceeded to read what matches you'd make and what not, and I didn't see the rule about not being able to change #1 Contenderships. Haha... hope you forgive me, man. But since this is truly fantasy, and since I get to take over the booking RIGHT NOW, and since all cards are subject to change, these are the changes I would honestly make. I wouldn't care what Joe Silva did before I came along, the UFC match-making is up to ME now in my fantasy UFC World.

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Before I start, let me make it clear that my picks are strictly biased. Nothing I pick is going to be from a "fair" or "business" point of view; just fights/situations I would personally prefer to see happen over anything else.

Heavyweight Division

Champion: Cain Velasquez

#1 Contender: Junior Dos Santos

Yeah, have to agree with Guy and the UFC on this one. Junior dos Santos deserves a title shot, and quite frankly, I believe dos Santos vs. Velasquez is the most entertaining title fight available right now. I mean, this one could really go either way. Velasquez could utilize the takedown, but how is good is dos Santos, a Nogueira Brothers BJJ Black Belt, off his back? Or what if dos Santos is able to stuff Velasquez's takedowns, and we end up getting a stand-up war? While dos Santos is certainly the better, more technical striker, Velasquez knocked out Big Nog in under 3 minutes, so he's no slouch himself on the feet.

For #1 Contendership to the winner of Velasquez vs. dos Santos, I would match up the last two guys who Velasquez beat, Brock Lesnar vs. Big Nog. This is the one match-up I've wanted to see since Lesnar defeated Couture. I'm really, really intrigued by the idea of Lesnar fighting a 100% healthy Nog. Plus, I would love to see Big Nog rejuvenate his career.

Now, of course, the problem with that match-up though is how would Big Nog and dos Santos feel about fighting each other? Well, just in case, on the same card of Lesnar vs. Big Nog, in the co-main event I would have Frank Mir vs. Shane Carwin 2, and if Big Nog and dos Santos don't want to fight each other, then the winner of Mir/Carwin would get the first shot at dos Santos' championship, if dos Santos would indeed defeat Cain Velasquez.

Light Heavyweight Division

Champion: Shogun Rua

#1 Contender: Jon Jones

I have no interests in a Rashad Evans/Shogun match at this point. In my opinion, Jones' last six fights absolutely crushes anything Rashad has done lately. You look at what Rashad Evans has done in his last six fights: He BARELY beats Michael Bisping (which I thought Bisping won, btw), knocks out a washed-up Chuck Liddell in an otherwise boring ass fight, beats Forrest Griffin (big whoop), has his ass handed to him by Lyoto Machida, BARELY beats Thiago Silva, and barely beats an out-of-shape Rampage Jackson. To me, Rashad's recent wins do not warrant a title shot.

Therefore, I put Jon Jones in his place for that reason, and because I think Shogun vs. Jones would be an incredible fight and I would much rather see it sooner rather than later.

Now, as to who would get the winner of Jones/Shogun, well simple... I would book Rashad vs. Bader and Rampage vs. Matt Hamill on the same card, and which ever victory impressed me the most would get the next title shot. The winner of the other fight would have to win one more (most likely against someone like Phil Davis, if he keeps on winning, or maybe Rich Franklin), and the winner of that one would then get a shot at the title.

Middleweight

Champion: Anderson Silva

#1 Contender: Yushin Okami

Fuck Vitor Belfort. If I were running the UFC, he would not be getting a shot right not. Okami and Silva would be booked for whenever Okami felt like he would be at full health, and that would be that. Okami not only deserves it more than Belfort, but I fear coming off such a long time off, Belfort will be extremely hesitant in a fight against Anderson, which of course would lead to most likely a highly boring fight.

As far as to who would be next in line... I want to see Wanderlei Silva vs. Vitor Belfort. I want to see Wandy kick that motherfucker's ass. Wand has said that he looks at Belfort as his #1 enemy in MMA right now, so yeah... let's see them duke it out for a shot at the MW Championship. Let's see Wandy avenge his previous loss to Belfort.

And then I would have Chael Sonnen/Chris Leben waiting in the wings for the next shot after that. I would book them to coach TUF to give Chael something to do while he serves his suspension, and while I know Leben and Sonnen are friends, they're also both business guys and I know they would do what was best for the company and make the season as entertaining as possible.

Welterweight

Champion: GSP

#1 Contender: Josh Koscheck

The way things are currently set-up is how I too would handle the WW Division, unless Nick Diaz became available for a signing. But besides that, GSP vs. Koscheck with Shields getting the winner, and the winner of BJ Penn/Jon Fitch getting the winner of whoever wins when Shields gets his shot. Simple.

Lightweight

Champion: Frankie Edgar

#1 Contender: Ben Henderson

Fuck Gray Maynard. Nothing he has done has overly impressed me to the point where I feel he deserves a title shot. Ben Henderson, on the other hand, has been dominating the WEC Lightweight Division for almost two years now, and I would much rather see a unification bout between he and Edgar than Maynard get a shot at this point.

Maynard though would still get his opportunity. I would book him against Takanori Gomi, and if he somehow pulled a miracle out of his ass and won that fight, no matter what, then I would give him a shot at the LW belt. However, that wouldn't happen. Gomi would crush him, and then go on to get a shot himself against the winner of Edgar/Henderson.

In the meantime, I have to scrape Henderson vs. Anthony Pettis, but to make up for it, I send Clay Guida to headline the WEC event against Pettis, and the winner of that would get George Sotiropoulos next, and whoever won that fight would get the next shot after Gomi when he crushes Maynard.

 

[Kid Joker]

Heavyweight Division

Champion: Cain Velasquez

Number One Contender: Junior Dos Santos

Like you guys said before me, the UFC got this one right in putting Dos Santos next in line, the only other way I could see the UFC changing that his top contender status would of been if Lesnar put up a great fight, which didn't happen, so the UFC has the pretty dead on in my opinion.

The Rest: I'd give the match up that was suppose to happen at UFC 119 and make a Mir vs Big Nog match up, winner of that gets winner of a Lesnar vs Kongo, why Kongo? With Nelson out, who else is there? Carwin is available but I don't think a Lesnar vs Carwin match should be put together just yet. Hopefully though those match ups produce a Lesnar vs Big Nog match. Either of Velasquez or JDS lose, put him in a match with Shane Carwin.

Light Heavyweight

Champion: Mauricio "Shogun" Rua

Next One Contender: Rashad Evans

I can't wait to see this match personally, I think it'll be an interesting fight to see if Rashad does what he did to Rampage and just hold him down for a boring fight, or if Rua does to Rashad what he did to Machida and knock him out. So this match up would stay the same for me.

Next In Line: The Jon Jones vs Ryan Bader fight set for UFC 126 is a good fight so I wouldn't touch that. Now also on that card is Griffin vs Franklin, in my opinion two things could happen here. If Rua is ready to go quick (Which I think he is, haven't heard anything in a while) then I have the winner of Rua vs Evans face winner of Griffin vs Franklin. If not, then I do Winner of Jones vs Bader vs Winner of Griffin vs Franklin for top contender ship, then have the losers face off to have a match vs loser of Rua vs Evans.

Next I'd have a Rampage vs Couture fight, just because I like both and want to see them go at it.

Next have Matt Hamill face off against Lyoto Machida next, and winner of that gets winner of Couture-Rampage.

Also just because I can, I'd put in Liddell vs Ortiz III, just because I want to see Liddell destroy Tito's career. Just a personal preference.

Middleweight

Champion: Anderson Silva

Number One Contender: Vitor Belfort

I don't like this match up, personally I'd put Sonnen in Belfort's place and have a Belfort vs Okami match, but I'll abide by the rules set out by the OP and stick with the match up.

Next In Line: With that match up, Okami was "Promised" another title shot so I'd say screw it let it happen. I'd put Bisping and Sonnen as the coaches for TUF 13 and have an amazing season of great promos and hilarious footage, followed by Sonnen demolishing Bisping and earning his rematch (or potential match) with the winner of the title shot that Okami gets.

Next I'd finally put Leben in a fight with Wandy, I would love to see that slug fest and just watch them for 15minutes punching 'till they can't no more, then continuing on like its nothing.

Welterweight

Champion: George St. Pierre

Number One Contender: Josh Koscheck

I hate Koscheck, being there at UFC 113 I hate him, not to mention G.S.P being from Quebec like me, you can pretty much guess who I'm routing for here. When, not if, but when G.S.P wins, the match up I'd put in would be...

Next In Line: ... Jake Shields. He was "promised" a title shot, I'd I'll gladly give him it, I like Shields, although he didn't look like the weight cut did him any good, not healthy but he won so give him the shot.

Next for UFC 128 theres the bout between Fitch and Penn, with in my opinion will be a boring fight which will end with Fitch winning by decision, but who knows, either way winner gets the next shot at whoever is Champ at that point.

Lightweight

Champion: Frankie Edgar

Number One Contender: Gray Maynard

I like this match up, why not, as much as jmt225 said Maynard doesn't deserve it, hes the only guy to beat Edgar, something even BJ Penn cant say, so he gets the next shot.

Next In Line: Well clearly next in line would be the winner of Henderson vs Pettis in a Unification 'Bout vs the UFC Champ. I think if it turns out to be Henderson vs Edgar that be a great fight in my opinion.

Next I'd put Guida in match with Gomi, hoping that Guida knocks Gomi out, although I doubt it. And have the winner face the loser of Edgar vs Maynard.