By Sam Caplan
SPiN Contributor
The majority of UFC 67 could prove to be reminiscent of an old Saturday morning broadcast of WWE Superstars in which top-flight talent routinely squared off against lesser opponents. The "lesser opponents" were also known as "enhancement talent." Their sole purpose was to lose and bolster the credibility of the superior fighter.
While UFC 67 stands to feature a lot of lopsided matchups, the event will still be worth watching thanks to the debuts of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Mirko Cro Cop. In addition to Jackson and Cro Cop, the show boasts one of the more impressive undercards in recent UFC history. Thanks to the lopsided nature of some of the bouts on the main card, many of the strong undercard bouts will likely be shown on television.
With a night of big knockouts on tap, look for UFC 67 to be a strong "Super Saturday" appetizer for the main course on "Super Sunday."
UFC middleweight title:
Anderson Silva vs. Travis Lutter
Silva's MMA record: 17-4
Silva's UFC record: 2-0
Silva's notable fights: Defeated Carlos Newton via first-round TKO at PRIDE 25 in 2003; beat Jeremy Horn by unanimous decision at the Gladiator Fighting Championships in 2004; scored a unanimous decision over Lee Murray at Cage Rage 8; was disqualified against Yushin Okami at Rumble on the Rock 8 in 2006 due to an illegal kick; knocked out Chris Leben in the first round at UFC Fight Night 5; won the UFC middleweight title from Rich Franklin at UFC 64 by way of a TKO in round 1.
Lutter's MMA record: 9-3
Lutter's UFC record: 2-2
Lutter's notable fights: Knocked out Marvin Eastman in the second round at UFC 50 in 2005; tapped out in the second round to Matt Lindland due to guillotine choke at UFC 52; defeated Patrick Cote via armbar submission in the first round at The Ultimate Fighter 4 finale.
Preview: Lutter earned this title shot by winning the middleweight division of the fourth installment of The Ultimate Fighter TV show. There's a line of thought that Lutter has a chance of upsetting Silva because of his excellent ground skills. There's some credence to that, because even though Silva has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, he struggled in PRIDE against elite ground fighters.
If Lutter can take the fight to the mat, then Silva could be in trouble. But taking the fight to the mat appears to be Lutter's only chance. If both fighters remain on their feet, then the match will be over in short order as Silva is the most dangerous striker in the UFC outside of Chuck Liddell and Mirko Cro Cop.
Predicted outcome: Silva will successfully defend the middleweight title with a first-round knockout of Lutter due to knees to the body.
