Breaking Down UFC 121: Paulo Thiago Vs Diego Sanchez

Added on Oct 21, 2010 by John Petit in

UFC & MMA

Diego Sanchez moved up to welterweight for his last fight with John Hathaway, and he looked nothing like he did as a lightweight. The “Nightmare” looked foolish against Hathaway, and Dana White even commented after the bout; “He will be fighting back at Lightweight.” Diego was on a two fight win streak when he announced he was going to be moving down to fight at lightweight. He defeated lightweight standouts Joe Stevenson and Clay Guida that earned him two fight of the night bonuses (plus a fight of the year,) and it earned him a shot at then lightweight champion BJ Penn. Penn dismantled him, and the fight was stopped because of a vicious cut that opened up on his forehead. After being a contender, it took everyone by surprise that he was going to be moving back to welterweight. Losing to BJ Penn is nothing to be ashamed of, as they don’t call him the prodigy for nothing. Sanchez recently rejoined Jackson’s Submission Fighting so we may see a better game plan out of him this time.

Paulo Thiago is as cool as one can be in the Octagon. This is the man that fought now number 1 contender Josh Koscheck his first fight in the UFC. He exploded on the scene when Josh was clearly winning the fight until Thiago connected with an uppercut that completely starched Koscheck. The Brazilian is also a member of the Batalhão de Operações Especiais, the elite special police force in Brazil. This guy clearly understands pressure, and is not concerned with the virtual circus that goes on around him when he fights in the Octagon. He trains with an affiliate of Team Black House (Silva, Nogueria, Machida train there,) and is not only a Black Belt in Jiu Jitsu, but is also a Black Belt in Judo. He is coming off a loss to Martin Kampman, who is fighting strikeforce champ Jake Shields for the number one contender slot. His only other loss is to grinder John Fitch.

The x factor here is Diego Sanchez. If he comes out like he did against Hathaway, then he has little or chance of being victorious this Saturday night. I still don’t understand why he left the lightweight division after one loss, but if he hasn’t sharpened up his game Thiago will have his choice on how he wants to put the Nightmare away. Assuming Diego comes in good shape, and with the same intensity as he fought when he fought Clay Guida and Joe Stevens, this could be a fight of the night candidate. However, being calculating would be a good way to go at a fighter like Paulo Thiago. This will be a back and forth fight unless Paulo can stop the momentum early. If that happens, Diego gets frustrated easily, and could be out before the fight gets started. I’m assuming Diego has grown since he has joined Greg Jackson’s camp, and will come in with a good game plan, and a lot of focus. With that being said, I see Thiago controlling the fight and winning an easy decision.