Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), far and away the most popular and recognized mixed martial arts promotion in the planet, will kickoff its summer season with UFC 130 this Saturday night (May 28, 2011).
Five Fun Reasons To Watch UFC 130 Memorial Day Weekend
A few reasons to watch UFC 130 online this weekend, featuring Quinton Jackson vs Matt Hamill and Frank Mir vs Roy Nelson at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The annual Memorial Day weekend pay-per-view (PPV) event was supposed to feature a trilogy match between lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and number one division contender, Gray Maynard.
Both fighters sustained injuries in training, however, forcing the bout to be postponed until later this year. It’s a major reason UFC 130 has been “struggling at the box office.”
The newly-promoted main event, Quinton Jackson vs. Matt Hamill, which could possibly determine the next light heavyweight title challenger for division champion Jon Jones, is apparently not sexy enough to lure hoards of rabid fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
That’s a bunch of baloney.
Here are five fun reasons to watch UFC 130 this Memorial Day weekend:
Your sporting options are slim to none
The NBA Finals are set. The same can be said for the NHL after tonight. The Belmont Stakes is two weeks away. Baseball? Who cares. So unless you want to watch the third round of the French Open or riveting PGA tournament “action,” then UFC 130 is as good as it gets. It’s “As real as it gets,” too, according to promotion’s ancient tagline. So take advantage of the sporting “down time” this weekend. It doesn’t happen often.
It’s better than random boardwalk beatdowns
For months, muscle-bound gorillas have been hitting the gym hard, pumping iron (and lord only knows what else) to rip their shirts off this weekend. These himalayan levels of testosterone, when blended with massive amounts of alcohol and beautiful women in white capris, almost always leads to disaster. So rather than watch Ronnie slug "The Situation" in Italy -- or its ugly, sloppy, drunk equivalent here stateside -- check out how the trained professionals handle their business. These are the best fighters in the world, highly skilled, extremely athletic and hungry for opportunity. You might learn a thing or two. And you don't have to worry about any goons looking to land any cheap shots. Unless, of course, your name is Paul Daley.
You might see a werewolf, for real, sorta
Quinton Jackson, a former UFC light heavyweight champion, has been training hard with the hopes that a win over "The Hammer" this weekend will earn him the opportunity to challenge for the belt he lost to Forrest Griffin in 2008. Jackson hates training with a passion -- he likes pizza and cheese way too much. So by the time fight night rolls around, the A-Teamer has got quite a bad attitude. He's irritable, angry, and, well, not himself. That's when Quinton transforms into his alter-ego, "Rampage," an aggressive, hard-hitting brawler who shows no mercy. Donned in his trademark eight-pound chain, the self-proclaimed werewolf of mixed martial arts howls before he enters the Octagon. It's always a sight to be seen.
'The King' ain't got nuthin' on Roy Nelson
Think all great fighters have shredded six-pack abdominal muscles and horrible tattoos? Maybe most, but not all. Certainly not UFC 130 co-headliner, Roy Nelson. "Big Country" is a mullet-wearing, beer-bellied badass who makes you question traditional perceptions and stereotypes. He's proud of his unique look, too. In fact, at every opportunity he attempts to cash in on it, requesting "Whoppers" after his wins to entice sponsorship dollars from fast food franchise, Burger King. That offer hasn't come yet, but it's certainly not for lack of effort … or eating. Perhaps that will all change this weekend with a win over former two-time heavyweight champion Frank Mir. Either way, Nelson has it his way every day. And it's always a treat to watch.
Brian Stann will help you memorialize
Brian Stann is a United States military veteran who has battlefield experience in Iraq. He's survived being "outnumbered by elite foreign insurgents" in hostile territory, making his fighting career seem like a stroll through the park. Dodging Jorge Santiago's punches on Saturday night is going to be much easier than avoiding Republican Guard bullets that's for sure. Nonetheless, "All American" is a big underdog -- Santiago is a Sengoku champion and tested MMA veteran. Stann has remarked that Santiago will "need to kill him" at UFC 130 to get the win. That's hyperbole, but you can see that Stann is taking this fight, as well as his role as armed services ambassador, very serious. Even if he unsuccessful, Stann will still make you take a moment to think about those selfless troops overseas doing our dirty work. That's got to count for something.
For more background information on UFC 130, including the entire fight card and all the awesome stories tied to it, be sure to check out our event archive right here.
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