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Opinion & Analysis : The Specialists
COLUMN: With a busy four weeks ahead for UFC, the fights I'm most looking forward to that aren't main events

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Feb 16, 2010 - 5:03:16 PM

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By Mark Skiba, MMATorch Columnist

In the MMA world, pedal to the metal is the only way to describe the next month and a half. The UFC will be hosting four events in 40 days starting this Saturday. Two of them will be pay-per-view events, one will be the debut of the UFC on Versus, and finally Fight Night with the season debut of the Ultimate Fighter 11 afterward.

The UFC is not the only promotion to be holding events in numbers. Strikeforce will be holding two challenger events on the 26th of the next two months. Also keep in mind that the WEC will be live on Versus March 6th with the bantamweight title on the line.

With all of that ahead, my question to you is this: Which fight over the next 40 days are you looking forward to the most?

Forget the title pictures or the pay-per-view main events because, those are expected to be good fights. As I look through the matches, one has caught my eye and I think has Fight of the Year potential: Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves on Mar. 27.

That fight has the makings to be explosive. Can Alves keep it standing? Will Fitch be able to take him down like GSP? The winner should catapult back into the top spot for a shot at GSP or Dan Hardy, who will be competing later that evening.

The next fight that catches my attention is Gabriel Gonzaga matched up against Junior Dos Santos. Gonzaga really needs a victory and Dos Santos has done nothing but win since his start in the UFC. The winner of this fight should definitely vault themselves into the top five at heavyweight and start being talked about as possible title contender once Brock Lesnar returns.

Some other fighters to keep an eye on over the next four events.
-Clay Guida needs to get back on track after his last two fights.
-Jon Jones can shake off the DQ loss with a win over Brandon Vera.
-Nate Diaz moving up to 170.
-Ryan Bader steps up in class with against Keith Jardine.

So from bantamweight to heavyweight and everything in-between, we have plenty of action to keep an eye on over the next 40 days. Which fight(s) are you looking forward to? Do you foresee any upsets? Will any titles be changing hands? Who will make 2010 their year? (Comment below or email us.)

[Jon Fitch (post GSP fight) photo credit Wade Keller (c) MMATorch]

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