I suppose that the MMA gods in Mt. Olympus, Japan have heard my appeals. The "super fight" cards for the final round of the PRIDE Middleweight tournament will be even better than in the first round. "How could this possibly be true?" You might ask yourself. Well, imagine a man who once upon a time conquered the cage on May 15,1998. During its "obscure era," shall we say those last few years before Zuffa took over? He is a Greco Roman wrestler who took the eight-man tournament single handedly defeating two excellent Jiu-Jitsu technicians, Brazilian Allan Goes and Canadian Carlos Newton. Try to look up his photo or record in the UFC web site, and it is as if he didn’t exist. Here's a couple clues. "He's dynamite!" "Hollywood!" And he is the "Godfather's" partner in crime. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Dan Henderson. Yes folks, in case Chuck, Quinton, Wanderlei, or Yoshida hurt each other too much and can't go on, there will be an "alternate" fight. The mighty Dan Henderson vs. the awesome Murilo Bustamante. This is a phenomenal card, two former UFC kings meeting in Japan. This should be a great tactical match, which can go either way. Henderson can clinch and has big fists, while Murilo is one hell of a Jiu-Jitsu master; Dan needs to watch the limbs for possible submission attempts.

And if you hadn't heard the news, Hidehiko Yoshida got to pick his dueling partner, and he has chosen "The One," the current PRIDE Middleweight champion, the man who trampled a larger Cro-Cop, Mr. Wanderlei Silva. Because of special rules (handicaps) favoring Mirko, this bout was deemed a draw. Yoshida will now have the chance to prove himself, and I think he made a wise choice trying to pull a Saku, by confronting the mightiest of the crusaders. I actually believe that Yoshida has a chance against Wanderlei, if he can tie him up and take him to the ground. Otherwise, it's going to be over fast and furiously, with Yoshida asking, "Where am I?"
At the debut of PRIDE Bushido, Takada brought them up into the ring. As tiny drops of sweat began beading up on Yoshida's forehead, Silva's words in "Brasileiro," where adamant and unkind. "I am the champion! And I'm returning here on November 9th and I am going to show you once again, that I am champion. I don't cheat or anything. You!" Pointing his finger at Yoshida "I knock you out! You, knock out!" Of course the "cheating" allegation was left out of the translation into Japanese. Yoshida replied grinning, but nervously, "Oh, but not so hard. Okay!" It's a grudge match, and Yoshida's reputation is on the line. Theoretically, if he were to beat Silva, will he be too damaged to go on to the final round?

And speaking of Silva, Sakuraba decided not to retire after all, and instead is demanding a "super fight." And so, another renegade and former UFC champion is stepping in. The Buckeye, Mr. Kevin Randleman from the "Hammer House." It's important to remember that Randleman was heavyweight champion in the Octagon, and was then "robbed" by a premature call by the referee, in his first light-heavy bout against Chuck Liddell. Most recently Kevin suffered a hard defeat to Rampage in PRIDE. By the way, Jackson is Takada's pick to go all the way in this tournament.

And now you may wonder, what could top off all of this? Well at the end of my last K-1 GP preview I mentioned a missing man, Mirko Filipovic, a.k.a. "The Bad Lieutenant of MMA." My wish was that Cro-Cop should have to fight Nogueira first, and lo and behold, it's happening! Fedor Emelianenko (the only man to defeat Minotauro in PRIDE) has fractured a hand in training, and therefore Rodrigo Antonio "Minotauro" Nogueira gets a more than well-deserved shot at the "interim title." (Sounds like the UFC) And, as I stated before in reference to Emelianenko vs. Filipovic, I'll say the same about Minotauro vs. Cro-Cop. If Mirko wins, I will eat my computer. Minotauro will lock up and submit Cro-Cop. According to the Japanese media, Cro-cop stated that he has watched all of Nogueira's fights on tape and thinks there is nothing to worry about. Cro-Cop believes he does not need to change his strategy because Nogueira will not be able to take him down.
He went as far as saying that he will KO Noguiera with a straight left just as he did to Sapp in his last K-1 fight. Rodrigo mentioned a few words recently before going into hiding, insinuating a stand up, knock out type of scenario. "Mark my words - Peter Aerts – high kick, right hook. Pedro Rizzo next week. If this fight goes to the ground it will be over too quickly. I'm confident enough to KO Cro cop. He's only a stepping stone to my title." Yes folks, Nogueira is a true warrior and he wants to please the fans, unlike Cro-Cop who has fought about 2 minutes in total, in his last two MMA bouts, and holds only one trump card. Nogueira will crumple him up like a cheap policeman's uniform, submit him, and then kick him to the curb like a parking ticket.

Liddell Jackson will definitely not go all the way. I think unless Chuck ends it fast, "Rampage" will prevail either in the first or second round by striking (ground and pound). Quinton has to take "The Ice Man" down quickly, and prove that he is a superior grappler. "Rampage" has already twice defeated Cyril Abidi in K-1, so Chuck definitely has to watch out for the strikes and end it quickly with a good high kick or land one to the chin. Then again folks, what the hell do I know? After all this is MMA, and anything can happen, the reign of a champ is usually illusive. If Wanderlei takes Yoshida quickly, he will most likely take out his next victim, who will already have fought a ferocious first fight. But we must remember, Rampage is on a roll!

P.S. Yamamoto, the victor of the Takada Dojo showdown, will be taking on a larger Heath Herring from Golden Glory, who has lost his last three MMA encounters in Pride.
Its do or die for both of these young veterans.