UFC 143 Preview – Mike Pierce vs Josh Koscheck

I’ve been very high on Mike Pierce ever since his fight against Jon Fitch. He hurt Fitch badly in the third frame of the bout and came close to finishing him. He lost that fight via decision but he ended up going on a three fight win streak until he faced Johny Hendricks. A good amount of people thought that Pierce beat Hendricks in that very good fight. It was a close bout, but Hendricks ended up getting the decision and would go on to knock out Jon Fitch in December of 2011. Pierce then beat Paul Bradley pretty decisively in a bout that showed that Pierce continues to be one of the toughest unknown fighters on the roster.

Koscheck’s journey has been well documented before. But I must say that Koscheck didn’t look very good in his last fight with Matt Hughes. Maybe it’s cause his face is still not properly healed but Hughes was able to make Koscheck wince many times with his strikes. Let’s remember that this is a way past his prime Hughes and that as legendary as Hughes is, his striking was always the weakest part of his game. Pierce sure hits a lot harder than Hughes and that is something Koscheck should be worried about. Also, let’s remember that it wasn’t that long ago that Paulo Thiago knocked Koscheck out. Again, Pierce has better striking and hits harder than Paulo Thiago too. I have a feeling that Pierce is finally going to get the big win he needs to get the attention he so richly deserves.