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The first official UFC fight card under the new Fox broadcast deal arrives this Friday night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. These fights will be on one of network’s most popular affiliate stations, FX.

For the UFC’s maiden voyage, they have provided a four fight main card over the two-hour time slot. Headlining is a lightweight bout between Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller. This is an interesting choice because they both work towards the finish and therefore are very entertaining to watch, but both are coming off losing performances in their last fights.

Jim Miller is coming off of a good performance against Ben Henderson last August. However, Miller dropped a unanimous decision to Henderson after providing back and forth action throughout. Melvin Guillard is also coming off of a losing performance but of a different nature. Guillard was knocked down and submitted by Joe Lauzon in less than fifty seconds in the first round last October. Both fighters are looking to get back into title contention with an impressive victory on Friday night. Before their receptive losses, both men were riding an impressive multiple fight win streak. A five-fight win streak for Guillard and a seven-fight win streak for Miller. This is very impressive due to the amount of talent within the UFC’s lightweight division. I anticipate both fighters will look to end their opponent’s night very quickly and decisively.

Ways to Win…
For Miller to win he will have to eventually take the striker off of his feet. The longer the fight stays in the standard striking position the more of an advantage Guillard will have. Miller could win by ground and pound as well submission; he has the means to do both. However he decides to end the fight, it will most likely be from the ground. He will have to be cautious about Guillards’ body punches; they have been known to finish fights alone.

For Guillard to win he will need to avoid the takedowns and the pressure from against the cage. As we have seen in the past, Guillard only needs one or two clean shots to the head or body to turn the fight into his favor. Guillard spoke with UFC.com in a recent interview and said that he learned a new strategy to avoid Miller’s takedown attempts from the Featherweight Champion, Jose Aldo at UFC 142 this past weekend. It will be interesting to see if he can implement a new strategy this late in the camp.

Prediction…
I believe that Miller will come away with the victory via a rear naked choke in the late minutes of the second round. Miller will use his striking to set up takedowns, but he will need to make several attempts to finally crack through. Guillard has good takedown defense and striking of his own. However, Miller is the better wrestler for MMA and I think he will eventually find a way to bring his opponent down.

There will be approximately six hours of UFC programming spanning on several Fox affiliate stations surrounding the start time of the FX card. Check your local listings on FX and FUEL TV for the prelim fights, pre-fight and post-fight coverage. Do not forget that this card is on Friday, January 20.

Jim Miller Melvin Guillard Nashville UFC on FX