UFC on Fox 4 shaping up: Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader, Travis Browne vs. Ben Rothwell both added to card
Recently UFC on Fox 4 on August 4 in Los Angeles was targeted as the location for the promotional debut of Hector Lombard. Scheduled to fight highly-ranked Middleweight Brian Stann, the fight will be an anticipated war with future title implications. Now two more exciting bouts have been added to the card.
Former Light Heavyweight champion Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida will find himself facing wrestler Ryan Bader. This bout will be very important to both fighters in a division stacked with talent and an enigma waiting at the top in Jon Jones. Both fighters seem to be at a crossroads of sorts in their own respective careers, and a win would put them back on the cusp of contention. A loss, however, may catapult them down the ladder with a long way to climb back.
For Machida, the bout will be a chance to prove that the elusiveness and karate stylings that gained him the belt three years ago are still effective in the UFC. Starting his career an amazing 16-0, Machida has been on a bit of a slide lately, going 1-3 in his last 4 outings. Some say he won his close decision loss to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Despite that, he had another shot at the belt last December, and made Jon Jones look surprisingly human in the first round before being brutally submitted in the second.
Bader is at another place in his career right now but still needs a win badly. Starting out undefeated at 14-0, he also ran into the freight train of Jon Jones and succumbed to a guillotine, similar to Machida. He then lost to Tito Ortiz in a huge upset, and people started jumping off the Ryan Bader hype train quickly. Undeterred, he clawed back by knocking out Jason Brilz and then grinding out a well-fought decision versus Rampage at UFC 144 in Japan. A win puts him back in contention, a loss may put him back in limbo.
Who will win this battle of wrestler vs. karateka? Both fighters are hungry and still relevant, but having been manhandled by Jon Jones, another title shot will be tough to come by at 205 lbs. UFC on Fox 4 is shaping up to be an exciting card. The Heavyweight bout of Travis Browne vs. Ben Rothwell has just been added as well, a match featuring two fighters who earned a bonus at UFC 145, Browne for Submission of the Night and Rothwell for Knockout of the Night. A win puts the victor into the mix at the increasingly more stacked Heavyweight division. Stay tuned to Lowkick.com for more coverage of the event from Los Angeles.
Further Reading: Hector Lombard will face Brian Stann in his debut at UFC on Fox 4
