UFC LIVE

Doomsday draws nearer for UFC debutant Roberts

ESPN staff

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John Howard is targeting Anthony Johnson © UFC

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UFC LIVE comes to Broomfield Colorado on March 21, for a fight card that is headlined by the light-heavyweight collision of Brandon Vera v Jon Jones. Below, ESPN.co.uk previews the preliminary card.

John Howard v Daniel Roberts
John Howard had been expecting to get his hands on long-term enemy Anthony Johnson at UFC LIVE, but a knee injury put paid to Johnson's participation in the welterweight grudge match. As a result, Daniel Roberts steps in to make his UFC debut after amassing a 9-0 record in outside organisations.

Roberts has been training with some significant names ahead of this fight, developing his ground game alongside top level grapplers Jake Shields, Gilbert Melendez and the Diaz brothers. Fighting with a wrestling base, Roberts has won seven of his fights via submission, admitting: "I think if I just wrestled then I would probably want to punch more, but I know jiu-jitsu very well. I'm looking to end the fight. Punching, you can end it as well, but with a good submission locked up, it's guaranteed."

And Roberts insists Howard is cherry-picked for him: "I have to say that if I were to pick my opponent for the UFC, it probably would be him. I checked him out, I saw what he has, and I definitely feel like my grappling is way ahead of his, as far as my wrestling. He does have some power, but my stand-up is pretty good as well, so we match up well."

Howard's undoubted advantage is his striking, which levelled Dennis Hallman with just five seconds remaining in his previous bout. Coming from a wrestling background, "Doomsday" loves to stuff takedowns and trade blows, and if Roberts finds himself in this territory he is in big trouble.

Howard has been known to get lazy against grapplers in the past, but his sheer power makes him as equally adept at exploding back to his feet as he is in the transitions. And with the prize of a future meeting with Johnson on the horizon, it is unlikely he will allow upstart Roberts to ruin his undefeated 3-0 UFC record.

Eliot Marshall v Vladimir Matyushenko
If he needed any reminders, Eliot Marshall will finally realise he has made it in MMA when he faces the experienced Vladimir Matyushenko, a man who has fought Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Tito Ortiz and Andrei Arlovski in the past.

Now 39, Matyushenko finally returned to the UFC in 2009 - six years on from that Arlovski fight, and he is about to engage in an intriguing clash of styles with a member of the TUF Alumni. Matyushenko brings a powerful wrestling base to the contest, while Marshall boasts superb submissions defence and a tactical striking game.

Marshall won his last two fights by keeping range and squeezing out a decision victory, while his performance against Vinicius Magalhaes at UFC 97, in which he displayed excellent defence, was a testament to his black belt credentials in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

However, Marshall was defeated on TUF 8 by the wrestling base of Ryan Bader, and Matyushenko has warned there is little place to hide inside the Octagon come March 21. "The cage is not that big, so it is hard to move around me," said the veteran. "He has to bring the fight to me, I think. He has more to prove, so I think he's going to come pretty hard."

Mike Pierce v Julio Paulino
The very fact that Mike Pierce gave welterweight powerhouse Jon Fitch a tough time at UFC 107 says everything about how this particular bout will go. Julio Paulino is stepping in for his UFC debut after Rob Kimmons pulled out through injury, but he could not have wished for a tougher welcome.

Mike Pierce is one of the few fighters to have sat Jon Fitch on his backside © Getty Images

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Pierce's low centre of gravity and almost square frame make him about as penetrable as a brick inside the Octagon, as Brock Larson found out in a shock upset on Pierce's UFC debut. Boasting strong wrestling and striking power that buckled Fitch at the end of their three-round war, this is a fight that will get Pierce moving in the right direction once again.

That's not to say that Paulinho is a dud - far from it. Like Pierce, "The Dominican Demon" will want to take things to the mat, where his major advantage comes into play in the form of submissions. Paulinho looks to force the stoppage either by raining down strikes or reaching for the choke, which makes this fight extremely interesting when it goes horizontal.

Neither man has been stopped, but Pierce's striking should give him the edge.

Duane Ludwig v Darren Elkins
Darrens Elkins deserves plenty of respect for taking this lightweight fight on short notice, but it is very hard to imagine how he will beat the heavy hands of Duane Ludwig come the weekend.

Muay Thai specialist Ludwig has fought a who's who of the MMA world, including BJ Penn, Paul Daley, Takanori Gomi and Tyson Griffin. However, his defining career moment was the KO victory over former UFC champion Jens Pulver, which came courtesy of a single punch. Ludwig only needs to connect once to turn an opponent's lights off, as he displayed with his unofficial four-second knockout of Jonathan Goulet at Ultimate Fight Night 3.

Elkins steps in for the injured Spencer Fisher after he impressed the UFC with a decision victory over Gideon Ray, but he will find himself way out of his depth when the fight is vertical against Ludwig. The clinch could also be dangerous so Elkins will likely try to pick the right moment to shoot for the takedown, where the possibility of a submission victory is very real with Ludwig having tapped out five times in the past.

Brendan Schaub v Chase Gormley
Two fighters coming off of losses in their previous fights, the future could look extremely bleak for the loser of Brendan Schaub v Chase Gormley. Schaub was desperately slow in his last outing in the TUF 10 finale against Roy Nelson, but he holds a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and has improved his stand-up beyond all recognition under Greg Jackson.

Gormley will need to overpower his foe via sheer strength in the takedown, and if he does so we are likely to witness three rounds of ground and pound. However, Schaub's sprawl is decent and he should bounce back from his defeat to Nelson.

Eric Schafer v Jason Brilz
For the MMA purists who love a ground battle, Eric Schafer v Jason Brilz could prove to be the most satisfying of all the preliminary card battles. Brilz, who lost to Eliot Marshall last time out, brings heavy hands and a desire for ground and pound to the Octagon. Schafer counters with an iron chin and slick ground transitions.

Fighting a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, Brilz would be ill-advised to attempt a takedown in this fight, but he may not be able to resist the temptation after seeing Michael Bisping and Stephen Bonnar pound Schafer out in the past. However, as seen in his loss to Ryan Bader at UFC 104, Schafer can take an almighty amount of punishment whilst still looking for sweeps and locks from his back, and there should be disappointment if we do not witness a sweet submission victory in this match-up.