Sylvia-Vera Serves As Tantalizing Precursor To Main Event

For as much hype as is swirling around Silva-Franklin (as well there should be), there is equally little being dedicated to the next most important fight on the card, Sylvia-Vera. Sylvia is still reeling from his loss to Couture while Vera is undefeated and on the fast track to a title shot. With Cro Cop's loss and Nogueira's less than stellar performance (and even worse promoting), this looks to be the bout which will feed the fans their new #1 contender. Of course, nothing has been announced (expect that at the post-conference), but I can't imagine anything else happening.

If Sylvia wins (which he isn't "supposed" to, just like Jardine and Forrest weren't "supposed" to), the fans will have to deal with Couture-Sylvia II. If Sylvia were to pull that off, it would be just about the worst thing that could happen to the UFC's Heavyweight division. Right now, Dana White only has two marketable champs, and he doesn't need that knocked down to two. In fact, I would be comfortable arguing that if Sylvia manages to beat Couture, not only will Cro Cop get a title shot, Fedor will be signed. White won't have a choice.

If Vera wins, we'll have an awesome showdown between young and old, and no matter who wins, fans should expect to see a rematch. White and the UFC have been waiting to get Vera involved in the title picture for some time now, and he'll offer a fresh face to combat the disappointments of CC and Big Nog. Look for White to build Vera into his Golden Boy, pitting him against the PRIDE HWs.

Although Silva-Franklin should be really fun, make sure to keep an eye on this bout too. It might just steal the fight of the night away from the Middleweights, and provides insight into a far more interesting and deep division.