Aaron Weinbaum, Aaronsayswhat.com
If Chael can close the distance he wins. If Machida maintains ‘fistance’ with punches and kicks to keep him at bay, it’s going to be a tough night for Chael.
Sean Covington, MMATorch Contributor
Machida is going to make Chael look like a complete fool. Chael is just not skilled enough in my opinion however, he might be too big for Machida to manhandle so who knows. Machida should win easily unless Machida is done as a fighter, it’s do or die for Machida being taken seriously.
Frank Hyden, MMATorch Columnist
Machida should beat Sonnen in the first round. Machida has talked about wanting to have championship success in Bellator. If he can’t beat Sonnen, and beat him decisively, he has no chance of even getting a title shot, let alone winning a title. I think he comes into this fight motivated and finishes Sonnen by TKO towards the end of the first round.
Aaron Crider, MMATorch contributor
I like Sonnen and I like Machida. I can see Sonnen looking to go to the ground against a karate expert like Machida, but to do that he has to actually get ahold of him first. That is a hard thing to do against “The Dragon”. I give this fight to Machida. I see him working a game plan similar to the one he used against Randy Couture. He will be evasive and will look for the right opportunity to strike.
Mike Hiscoe MMATorch Columnist
If Chael Sonnen can get Lyoto Machida down and keep him there as he did to Wanderlei Silva two years ago, he might have a chance. Machida isn’t going to come out swinging as Silva did and he’s not going to allow himself to be taken down easily. I think Machida will play it safe, circle the outside of the cage a lot and outpoint Sonnen on his way to a decision win.
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