Vera vs Jones

Alessio Sakara vs James Irvin:
I am not a big fan of unnecessary muscular mass. You may get big and intimidating but, in general, you'll get winded after a little action because all that muscle needs oxygen and that's when your fit, well conditioned opponent will smile. In the Sandman's case, his muscles actually make him one of the strongest punches in the Light Heavy Weight division. I can only imagine what he would be able to do if he were able to recover well from the cut to 186lbs. Unfortunately I don't think that will be the case. He is already not really known for his endurance, after cutting 20 extra pounds, he is in for a rough night against Sakara who is a seasoned boxer and is very unlikely to repeat the mistake he made against Chris Leben. The Legionary will pick him apart and finish Irvin by the end of the second or beginning of the third round. Sakara by TKO.

Paul Buentello vs Cheick Congo:
I am not sure what Congo accomplishes with this fight. It seems to me that the UFC is throwing him a bone here. If he wins, all it does is that it keeps him from losing 3 in a row because as far as moving up the ladder in the Heavy Weight division, beating the Head Hunter won't really do it. On the other hand, If Buentello comes out on top on this one, people will start paying attention to him and he'll be eligible for a bigger fight, maybe Yvel or Cro Cop. Here is the deal, the UFC is throwing Congo a bone here but this bone may be poisoned. On paper, Congo should get a decision but Buentello does have the 1 punch KO power on his side and because of that, is a very dangerous opponent. Not totally confident but I will say Congo via decision.

Junior "Cigano" dos Santos vs Gabriel "Napão" Gonzaga:
Unfortunately, for Napão, all fights start standing. While I like Gonzaga, I don't think he has the boxing skills to survive Cigano enough time to be able to go for a take down. Even if he does so, is he going to be successful at the take down attempt? If he is, do we really think that Cigano would try to grapple with him? The fact is that Cigano is Minotauro's pupil and definitely knows how to stall and / or get up. When Cigano gets up, Gabe is in deep trouble again, one punch away from La La Land. I do not see this going any other way, even if  the Napão who fought Couture shows up, the result will be Cigano by KO first round.

Vera vs Jones:
It is true that Jones has not fought a striker of Vera's caliber, therefore I don't think he will be as free as he's been in his last fights. One might say "what about Bonnar. Doesn't he have a golden glove under his belt?" Yes, I don't discard Stephan Bonnar (not even after the Coleman fiasco). He is a good striker and I think the only reason he got hit with those spinning elbows was that they were unexpected. People, and especially Vera, have wised up to them. Can Bones land some pretty tricks? Of course, but will they be enough to win? Definitely no. This is why I think this is going to come down to wrestling and that is an area where we have no doubt about who's got the edge.  Bones will ground and pound from either side control or half guard and get a stoppage. Bones 2nd round TKO.