Four Things We’ll Know For Sure Once UFC 102 Is Over

(The much-hyped mixed semi-doubles division of XARM seemed like a great idea at first. Only when Art Davie had to tell that nice blond girl's parents how she ended up in a persistent vegetative state did he realize his folly.)   

UFC 102 may not have a title fight to draw Portland residents out of their coffee shops and dive bars, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still plenty at stake this weekend.  Here are four lingering questions we can plan on getting some resolution to once this event is in the books.

1. If Randy Couture Will Ever Get One More Title Shot

Couture keeps talking about wanting another chance at UFC gold as if he isn’t in his mid-forties with only one fight left on his contract after UFC 102.  While we respect a guy with long term goals, how he performs in this fight will determine whether those goals ever come to fruition.  It probably won’t be enough just to beat Nogueira.  He needs to dominate him like he’s just another Gabriel Gonzaga with more scar tissue.  If he can’t do that the UFC will be taking a hard look at his price tag and future prospects when it comes time to talk about a new contract. 

2. If Demian Maia Can Really Threaten Anderson Silva

It’s tough to know what to make of Maia at this point.  Either he’s too one-dimensional to ever dominate top competition, or he really is so good at what he does that he doesn’t have to do anything else.  We don’t know yet, because nobody has been able to keep him standing long enough to test the rest of his game.  Nate Marquardt will.  He’s well-rounded and he’s a great athlete.  Getting him into a grappling match won’t be as easy as pulling half-guard.  If Maia can do to Marquardt what he did to Nate Quarry and Chael Sonnen, Anderson Silva will have a very good reason to come back to the middleweight division.

3. If Brandon Vera Finally Has His Shit Together

Three years ago Vera looked like the future of the UFC.  A young, explosive ass-kicker who could do it all and talk a fair amount of smack afterwards.  Somewhere along the way he got rich and a little lazy.  Suddenly his bright, shining star looked more like a passing satellite, even after a drop in weight.  Now he says he’s got his focus back, and K-Sos is the kind of fighter who can find out.  A really good fighter can still beat him, but a decent, somewhat distracted fighter can’t.  If Vera’s ever going to fulfill his promise, it’s now or never.

4. If the Pacific Northwest Will Get Another UFC Event Any Time Soon

You may not know it, but the Northwest loves them some MMA.  Sportfight has filled moderately-sized arenas for years now, and the Seattle/Tacoma area has a regular series of events and enough fighters and fans to justify it.  But unemployment and high taxes seem to be conspiring to leave the UFC with either a half-full arena or a bunch of people in discounted seats.  If that’s what happens when they bring Couture to town, don’t expect them to come back soon based solely on Chris Leben’s drawing power.