Kurt Pellegrino vs. Nate Diaz tonight....

[Trickster***]

should be as exciting as Diego v. Nick Diaz - This is the fight of the night!!!

I personally think that Kurt is going to take the young Gracie student to SCHOOL but I have been more and more impressed by Nate's skills every time I see him fight. The first guy to make a mistake is going to pay dearly!! Kurts stand up is too sharp, and his wrestling and GnP is going to be WAY too much for Nate.

Stand up: Kurt
Wrestling: Kurt
Takedowns: Kurt
Submissions: Nate

Does anyone here think that Nate can pull this off??

 

[BrianWins]

I do!

 

[DaRuckus337]

I'm not sure Nate has fought a grappler as tough and physical as Pellegrino before, while Pellegrino has fought and finished a world class bjj player in Alberto Crane in his last fight. I would take Kurt in this fight, but it should be very competitive.

 

[Trickster***]

I do!

Signature bet???????

 

[Kimuralex]

althought i like nate and dont care for kurt, how can you say nate has better submissions? kurt has been a blackbelt for some time now, and he has a very impressive grappling record from what i seen posted in another thread...he also got up to his brown belt from renzo/almeida, so i deffinetely wouldnt say nate has better submissions.

On paper, kurt will win, but the diaz bros are unpredictable, and i wouldnt be surprised if nate wins.

 

[SFinclined]

I can't wait for this one, I think Kurt is gonna take it also.

 

[armtriangle]

kurt is gonna put a beating on him. diaz is bottom submission guy, kurt is well rounded. being a converted wrestler, he is used to being on top and avoiding subs.

they both have mediocre standup skills, but kurt has the benefit of being able to take teh fight down if he wants. diaz wont be able to take kurt down, unless kurt wants to go down. kurt has every advantage. bad matchup for diaz. kurt by 15 minute bellto bell beat down

 

[devante]

kurt is gonna put a beating on him. diaz is bottom submission guy, kurt is well rounded. being a converted wrestler, he is used to being on top and avoiding subs.

they both have mediocre standup skills, but kurt has the benefit of being able to take teh fight down if he wants. diaz wont be able to take kurt down, unless kurt wants to go down. kurt has every advantage. bad matchup for diaz. kurt by 15 minute bellto bell beat down

actually they have decent standup skills; they are not world or national class at all, but mediocre, i think that is a little harsh. Leben may have mediocre standup, hughes may have mediocre standup, werdum has mediocre standup, frank mir, brock lesnar; but kurt/nate both have competent and effectively functional standup.

i haven't watched them extra close; but what i have seen, both guys are fairly measured, active, setup shots, throw short combos, use a decent array of strikes (jab/right hand, cross, uppercut, hook) and have shown some basic def skills w/footwork, angles, blocks/etc.

on paper its pellegrino; but the diaz bros aren't typical fighters, u can't just look on paper and say win or lose, u gotta fight the fight...these guys are one in a million. Seeing diaz run through the strongest tuf cast, against guys who all had world class exp/etc showed me something.

 

[Calogero831]

i think kurt has the upper hand but i want nate to win. he improves every fight

 

[grdstorm11]

I have to disagree, Kurt has been submitted before, to unheralded opponents.

I would say that Nate has a better chance than many of you guys are giving him. If he can use his range during the stand up it will really hinder Kurt's take down effectiveness.

 

[ooitzoo]

Signature bet???????

I'll take that action.

 

[easy tiger]

Drew Fickett is not unheralded. The Japanese guy was Kurt's wake up call. Like has been said before, Kurt was a 4-stripe Renzo/Almeida brown before he left the school. On paper, everything of his is better than Nate in my opinion. The only thing I see being a slight problem is nate's reach. Kurt's BJJ is better for sure though I'd have to say. His grappling record is over 100 wins and 3 or 4 losses (Cameron Earle, Marcelo Garcia, etc.). Anyway, Kurt wins I say. We'll see in a few hours.

 

[Trickster***]

I'll take that action.

You got it!! ::hand shake::??

 

[Goat Meal]

Didn't Nate submit a 4 stripe BJJ brown belt in his last fight? Nate's the bomb and will pull off the victory.

 

[armtriangle]

Didn't Nate submit a 4 stripe BJJ brown belt in his last fight? Nate's the bomb and will pull off the victory.

yes, a royce gracie brown belt. SOME people might say that means he is really a purple belt.

Diaz was also submitted by pelligrino's teacher and training partner, Hermes Franca.

 

[DaRuckus337]

Didn't Nate submit a 4 stripe BJJ brown belt in his last fight? Nate's the bomb and will pull off the victory.

^ He did, but Kurt's been a blackbelt for a couple years now, and is an accomplished wrestler who uses his top game and GnP better than most fighters (certainly better than Alvin Robinson). He also has more mma fights than Nate, has gone the distance with tougher competition (Danzig (W), Stevenson (L)), and has stopped a world class jiu jitsu player (Crane). This is a big step up for Nate Diaz, and on paper, he looks to be slightly over-matched (famous last words, huh?)

Here's to hoping for 15 minutes of awesome scrambles and grappling though.

 

[armtriangle]

actually they have decent standup skills; they are not world or national class at all, but mediocre, i think that is a little harsh. Leben may have mediocre standup, hughes may have mediocre standup, werdum has mediocre standup, frank mir, brock lesnar; but kurt/nate both have competent and effectively functional standup.

i haven't watched them extra close; but what i have seen, both guys are fairly measured, active, setup shots, throw short combos, use a decent array of strikes (jab/right hand, cross, uppercut, hook) and have shown some basic def skills w/footwork, angles, blocks/etc.

on paper its pellegrino; but the diaz bros aren't typical fighters, u can't just look on paper and say win or lose, u gotta fight the fight...these guys are one in a million. Seeing diaz run through the strongest tuf cast, against guys who all had world class exp/etc showed me something.

i dont think he "ran through" the cast. He fought a close fight with a c level rob emerson, was taking a beating until he submitted cory hill or was it maynard- or both, either way potato potahto), a guy who apparently had never seen a submission 4 weeks prior, and was on his way to losing to gamburyan before he was injured ( he had clearly lost the first round). My instinct is he was teh 3rd best fighter on that show, Manny being 1, Lauzon 2, and Diaz 3.

diaz has looked good in his last 2 showings. but i think he is about to step up in comp, and lose. pelligrino gets the benefit of deciding where to fight. diaz will have to beat him everywhere to win. pelligrino just has to find something he can beat diaz at.

 

[Trickster***]

Here's to hoping for 15 minutes of awesome scrambles and grappling though.

Cant wait!! I hope this lives up to what I am making it out to be in my mind!! =)

 

[BigKO34]

When you make a list of abilities ( such as stand-up, BJJ, wrestling, etc.), Kurt has the edge in almost every category. However, the Diaz brothers have the strange ability to take lesser parts and turn them into a better whole. Nate seems to combine all of his skills very well, and his transitions are very good at any spot in a fight. I think this will be a very competitive fight, and above all else, it should be a really fun fight to watch.

 

[Trickster***]

When you make a list of abilities ( such as stand-up, BJJ, wrestling, etc.), Kurt has the edge in almost every category. However, the Diaz brothers have the strange ability to take lesser parts and turn them into a better whole. Nate seems to combine all of his skills very well, and his transitions are very good at any spot in a fight. I think this will be a very competitive fight, and above all else, it should be a really fun fight to watch.

Why is everyone giving Nate the credit for Nicks accomplishments?? YES, Nick has the ability to pull out victories vs better opponents. YES, Nick has showed great heart. YES, Nick is clearly a cleaver fighter. BUT Nate hasnt showed any of these traits yet! Nate DOES fight like Nick (STYLISTICALLY) but that doesnt mean he should be credited for having the same type of game.

Nate needs to prove himself thru his OWN accomplishments!!! Tonight will be a huge test for him....and IMO he is going to fail his first REAL UFC expereience! Pellegrino could possibly fight for the belt....Nate is nowhere near that level!!

And I agree with "arm triangle" that Nate did not run thru the TUF 5 cast....and he was going to get ass handed to him in the Finale before Manny got hurt...however he HAS grown a lot as a fighter in the last year. He hit MMA puberty =)