(You see, kids, this is why we don’t break the fourth rule of Project Mayhem. Photo via Complex)

By Jason Moles

As is customary, nay tradition, around these parts, we’re hitting the eggnog early and often this week — thus, the obligatory Top 10 list to close out another year in the world of mixed martial arts. It’s not all fluff, though: Last year we predicted a champion would test positive for a banned substance and Brock Lesnar would retire. Not bad, huh? So grab a seat while we break out the crystal ball and see what 2013 has in store for us.

1.) Showtime stays in the MMA biz, will announce deal with Invicta FC and others.

MMA is just too popular to completely wash your hands of. Showtime may finally be done with Strikeforce, but that only means they’re now free to partner up with the likes of all-female Invicta FC or the World Series of Fighting, both of which could be looking for more permanent homes after their early success in 2012. Don’t let the Invicta PPV news fool you; they can’t win that battle. No matter who inks the deal, expect Showtime to counter-program at least one UFC event.

2.) A Ronda Rousey loss brings about the swift execution of women’s MMA in the UFC.

(Sorry Roy, casting for Tucker and Dale vs. Evil 2 is down the street.)

Leading into his UFC 137 bout with Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic, former IFL heavyweight champ Roy “Big Country” Nelson has enlisted the help of former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir to prepare him for the Croatian legend. Mir, who defeated Nelson by unanimous decision at UFC 130 back in May, also holds a knockout victory over Cro Cop from their headlining bout at UFC 119. Nelson explained his decision to bring in Mir during a recent interview with NBC Sports:

 
(Not yet………………………………..getting warmer…….)

UFC 137 is just around the bend, and since the lineup has made more changes than a MTV awards show host, we figured we’d lay out the current odds before something else horrible happens. So, courtesy of BestFightOdds.com, check out the sweetest lines available, along with our time tested advice below.

PPV Main Card
B.J. Penn (-115) vs. Nick Diaz (-105)
Matt Mitrione (-135) vs. Cheick Kongo (+115)
Roy Nelson (-290) vs. Mirko Filipovic (+245)
Hatsu Hioki (-330) vs. George Roop (+270)
There is no line yet available for the recently bumped up Tavares/Jacoby fight.

Spike TV Prelims
Donald Cerrone (-225) vs. Dennis Siver (+185)
Tyson Griffin (-290) vs. Bart Palaszewski (+245)

The undercard odds have yet to be released as well, but we only bet big here, so forgeddaboutit!

The Main Event:

We may have missed it at the live show, but home viewers who kept HDNet on after Ryan Schultz’s shocking defeat of Chris Horodecki at the IFL’s World Grand Prix witnessed the pre-recorded heavyweight championship match, where the charmingly chubby Roy “Big Country” Nelson became the IFL’s first 265-pound title-holder with a stunning knockout victory over Antoine Jaoude. We were wondering how the last two weeks have been treating Nelson and how things are looking for 2008, so we called him up, and found ourselves in a discussion about Taco Bell, Ken Shamrock, Celine Dion and what life is really like for an IFL fighter. (Spoiler: It’s maybe not as glamorous as it looks.)

CagePotato: We know you’re a great grappler, but you had a monster K.O. to win the belt. Is striking something you’ve been concentrating on more lately?
Roy Nelson: Yeah, I’ve just tried to keep improving it. It’s always been the weak part of my offense, but overall, I try to improve everything from my wrestling, to my grappling, and now I’m trying to implement my striking. Kind of like the old Chuck Liddell, where you knew he could wrestle, but it’s a lot easier and a lot faster to get the ref to stop it, or stop it with your hands.

We’ve seen you joke about gunning for sponsorships from Taco Bell and Burger King. Do you really live off of Extra Value Meals when you’re training?
I pretty much just eat clean food — you can go to fast food places and eat kinda’ clean, depending on what you’re eating. But normally, I cook my own food. I live life, and I’m glad I’m not a lightweight where I can’t enjoy myself.

There’s been a lot of talk about the IFL’s financial struggles as of late. What’s the inside scoop?
I’m just as lost as you are. Every time we ask anything, you know, like, “What’s going on?” or “What are we gonna do?”, we kinda’ get put in the dark. You know, finding out about how the new matches are going to be, the new team format and all that good stuff — I actually heard from the press, not from them telling us.

The IFL announced a while back that their business plan involved sharing profits with the fighters, as well as providing salaries and health benefits to train and fight. Has this been the case?
Yes and no. What I mean is, if you complained enough they would help with the medical stuff but you’d have to be all over them.

Are you on salary?
The 2007 season, a lot of people were on salary. But now they’re trying to go backwards and just pay for fights.

We assume since the IFL is not turning profits, there has not been much by way of profit sharing, correct?
Correct. I think they used that method how a pimp does with his girl. Holding that carrot out at the end of the rainbow.