The September 27th UFC 178 card has added a Lightweight co-main event between ‘The Cowboy’ Donald Cerrone and ‘King’ Bobby Green that could put the winner in a title shot come 2015. Both men competed and won in July, so both men are on a fast return with approximately 2 months between fights. The line should go up pretty close when it gets to the sportbooks.
The match comes at the expense of a rumored match between Cerrone and Bellator champion Eddie Alvarez, as the UFC was rumored to be working on purchasing the services of the explosive Alvarez. Instead of the glossy opponent however, Cerrone gets a tough fight from a guy who has been fighting well for a long time but is yet to receive true recognition. That could all change for Green with a win over Cerrone.
Green has won 8 fights in a row overall and is 4-0 since coming to the UFC from Strikeforce. His last two wins, over Josh Thomson and Pat Healy are both solid wins that elevated his stature and earned him this fight. A win here could sit Green in the #1 contender spot and earn him a shot at the title in 2015.
But Cerrone is on a 4 fight streak of his own. He seems to have overcome a streak of bad luck in 2012-2013 that saw him go 3-3 in that span in the octagon. What is more, he seems to have found the fire he had back in 2011 before he lost to Nate Diaz, and he has finished his last two fights in impressive fashion.
For Cerrone, it is his 4th fight of the year, making him the most active of the Lightweights out there. The title fight between Champion Anthony Pettis and Gilbert Melendez is schedule for early December, and then there would have to be some down time and build up for the champion before a title fight/ Win or lose, it is unlikely that we will see Cerrone sit around and wait for the shot at the title. Cerrone could conceivably fight 5 times in 2014, with a nice potential bout co-headlining the December UFC and competing his trilogy against Benson Henderson. That run would leave clear Cerrone’s path.
Should Green win, he has been active as well, but he may be more of the mindset of waiting. We will see after the fight, and we will see how close the line opens, as Cerrone should open the favorite.
