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Ricardo Almeida (10-3, 2-1 UFC this time and 3-3 all time in UFC) vs. Kendall Grove (10-5, 5-2 UFC)

The Story So Far: I would be surprised if anyone is amped up (I will never say amped up again) for this middleweight fight.  It features a former TUF winner in Grove and a veteran in Almeida.  Grove won TUF 3 and won his first 3 fights including a win against newly hyped Alan Belcher.  At 6'6 he is a different looking middleweight who uses his reach well with his striking and jiu-jitsu, but has gone 2-2 in his last 4 fights.  Almeida was a top fighter thanks to his excellent ground game.  However, he took a 3 year hiatus from the sport and has gone 2-1 since his return to MMA and the UFC.  Despite a decent start and a split decision loss to Patrick Cote (who went on to fight for the title) he has not looked all  that impressive.  This might be compared to his former days, but a win for him would be a nice jump up the ladder in a clouded division.  A win for Grove would provide him with a larger jump up the ladder putting him on a 3 fight win streak and giving him a sold, but not outstanding win.

UFC 101: Declaration coverage

Conventional Wisdom: Despite three times as many submission wins as opposed to KO wins Grove wants to stay on his feet.  Almeida is somewhat of a one dimensional fighter and very very good at that one thing; his ground game.  He will do everything he can to bring the fight to the mat while Grove will attempt to use his reach to keep the fight standing and Almeida at bay.  This consensus around the MMA community believes this fight is a strict style vs style fight.  Both fighters are capable in each other's wheelhouse, but should know to stay away from it.  Simply put, if the fight stays upright then Grove wins and if it goes to the ground then Almeida wins.

WKR Analysis: The analysis from everyone else is pretty spot on.  However, something that is not given enough weight is both fighters all around game.  Grove is being described as an effective unorthodox striker, but despite his submission wins his ground game is not given enough credit.  While he might not want to head down low his length helps with his jiu-jitsu, especially from the bottom position.  Grove is the weaker man on the mat, but it is not a done deal if the fight ends up there.

Almeida prefers not to be on his feet, but his boxing is far from horrible.  He has decent stand up and is not completely lost on his feet.  More importantly he is a durable fighter with a good chin and strong wrestling.  His striking is not on par with Grove, but Grove does lack power in his punches.  Almeida's strong chin allows him to push through and get close to Grove.  Grove's reach will not guarantee the fight to stay upright and Almeida does not have an automatic win if the fight ends up on the mat.  Both fighters are more well balanced than given credit for.

Fun Facts: Grove is Hawaiian (is this a fun fact, I think not) and celebrates his victories with the "Dagger Dance (according to the always trustworthy Wikipedia)."  I hope he does not actually call it that because that is as dumb as owning an Affliction shirt (what me, no, not me, alright I have two).

Almeida retired at the top of his game.  He had beaten Nate Marquardt and Ryo Chonan (who once beat Anderson Silva a long, long time ago).  It is very rare to see this happen in any sport and hopefully he can regain his original form.