Bart Palaszewski vs. Karen Darabedyan

The Fighters: Palaszewski is just 26 years old, but has 44 fights under his belt. Recently, he has gone 2-2 in the WEC. He defeated Anthony Pettis by Split decision in his last fight. He is well rounded, as he has achieved his 31 wins in a variety of ways.

Darabedyan is another of the Armenian judo practitioners that came into the MMA world with Karo Parisyan. Although he is not related to Karo like Manny Gamburyan, he is their training partner. A black belt in Judo, Darabedyan also has a background in Kickboxing and Karate. He is 9-1 in his burgeoning career, and his most recently victory came over the always overrated Razor Rob McCullogh.

The Breakdown: While Palaszewski holds the massive experience edge, he simply doesn’t have a part of his game that really jumps out at you. We’ve seen from Karo that Judo can take you far in MMA, it just won’t ever get you into the elite level. Expect Darabedyan to continue proving his worth.

The Prediction: Darabedyan via unanimous decision

Deividas Taurosevicius vs. LC Davis

The Fighters: Taurosevicius is a pseudo-local for us. He fights out of Copiague, New York, which is like thirty minutes from our hometown. He is 15-3 in his career, with eight of the wins coming by submission. He’s 2-0 in the WEC and is coming off a win against the previously undefeated Mackens Sermerizer.

Davis is a survivor of the former Pat Militech camp with a virtual gaggle of big fight experience. He’s fought in the IFL, for Affliction, and now with the WEC. He’s 15-2 in those fights, and 2-0 in the WEC. He’s coming off consecutive wins against Javier Vasquez and Diego Nunes. And yes, I really wanted to get the world gaggle in there.

The Breakdown: This is a matchup of a wrestler and a BJJ specialist. Naturally, that will probably lead to a boring standup fight. If it does go to the ground, Davis will look to stymie the guard of Taurosevicius and do his damage without getting submitted.

The Prediction: Taurosevicius via submission

Jens Pulver v. Javier Vasquez

The Fighters: Pulver is a legend of the sport and the UFC’s first lightweight champion. He is also a survivor of the Pat Militech camp in Bettendorf, Iowa, but has had harsh words for his former trainer recently. Pulver has lost 8-of-12 and is really fighting on nothing but reputation at this point. Some of the losses are good ones, like the two losses he suffered at the hands of Urijah Faber. However, some of them aren’t so good like the time he was choked out by Josh Grispi. Pulver knows that this is his last chance, and has discussed retiring if he loses.

Vasquez seems to be the place WEC featherweights go when they need a win. He is 0-2 and also likely fighting for his WEC life. He is 17-4 in his career with most of those victories coming by submission.

The Breakdown: I’ve watched a lot of Pulver fights in preparation of this column and I’ve noticed some things. While he’s never had the best boxing technique, it’s almost gotten worse recently. Also, when is the last time that we saw Pulver wrestle? He won’t break that streak against the BJJ skills of Vasquez. The real question is: Does Pulver have anything at all left?

The Prediction: Pulver via TKO

Miguel Angel Torres v. Joseph Benavidez

The Fighters: Until recently, Torres ruled over the bantamweight division with an iron fist. He is well-rounded, and capapable of fighting for an eternity before he gets tired. Unfortantely, that didn’t mean much when he rushed in to finish Brian Bowles and gotten flattened. Now, Torres must climb back into the title picture with a win. He is 37-2, and is still improving his game. He brought in noted Muay Thai trainer Mark DellaGrotte to work with him for this fight.

Benavidez is a pupil of Urijah Faber who is 12-1. His only loss came in a number one contender’s fight against Dominick Cruz. Another energizer bunny of a fighter, his cardio is off the chain. He has won most of his fights by submission, but does have some TKOs to his credit. His last win was over noted BJJ stylist Rani Yahya.

The Breakdown: Torres has taken the “That loss was the best thing that ever happened to me” road and vows to come back stronger than ever. He can win the fight just about anywhere, but I expect his biggest advantage to come on the feet and for his to try and outstrike Benavidez.

The Prediction: Torres via unanimous Decision

Brian Bowles v. Dominick Cruz

The Fighters: Bowles dethroned Torres and shocked the world in his last fight. He also broke his hand on Torres jaw, forcing him out of action. He is 8-0 and looks like just about any middle America wrestler. While he may not look imposing, he is strong as hell for 135, and has imposed his will on his opponents with various skills taught to him by former UFC fighter Rory Singer. In fact, Bowles trains at the gym where Forrest Griffin got his start.

Cruz is 14-1 and 4-0 in the WEC. The majority of his wins have come via decision, but he is a stand up specialist with five T/KOs to his credit. He trains at Alliance MMA alongside UFC light heavyweight Brandon Vera. While he does have some wrestling, don’t expect him to go to it much in this one.

The Breakdown: Bowles is a powerhouse. He is so thick for 135 that I can’t really see anyone in the division taking him down. However, he also packs a powerhouse punch. Just ask Torres. Cruz’s only hope is to stick and move for five rounds.

The Prediction: Bowles via TKO