All that changes, now that Lombard makes his way to the UFC. Instead
of facing UFC castoffs like Jay Silva and Joe Doerksen, the 34-year old
American Top Team fighter will face UFC regulars. It’s a completely
different vantage point. Lombard’s new assignment is to
covert guys into UFC castoffs rather than feast on what’s left of their good names.
Here’s a quick look at five guys who would make for mean welcoming parties for “Shango.”
Brian StannBack when
Jorge Santiago
had built up a new head of stream in Sengoku, he became a popular dark
horse pick against Brian Stann at UFC 130. What did Stann do? He punched
the daylights out of him. And wouldn’t you know that just as Lombard
brings his 25-fight unbeaten streak into the UFC, Stann is coming off a
big victory over
Alessio Sakara and needs an upgrade in opponent, just as all the bigger names are occupied?
Enter Hector Lombard. The great thing about this fight is both guys
like to bang on the feet. Lombard is a precision striker who carries a
lot of power. He likes to fight guys that get right up in his wheelhouse
and tempt him into uncoiling. That’s Stann, who makes it his duty to
oblige brawlers. (And just as often, shut them down).
Jake ShieldsShields has bounced back and forth between 170 and 185 pounds, and
after a fairly subpar run in the UFC’s welterweight division, it looks
like he’ll bulk back up. Bottom line is, he wasn't losing to slouches,
either --
Georges St. Pierre and
Jake Ellenberger (under trying circumstances, dealing with the passing of his father) never looked like easy outs.
But the last time we saw Shields as a middleweight he looked ... if not great, then totally resilient. He beat up
Jason Miller for five rounds, and then improbably defended the Strikeforce belt against
Dan Henderson
in a fight he had his wits scrambled in the first round. Not to name
drop, but Shields was the last guy to defeat Henderson, who is now set
to fight
Jon Jones
for the 205-pound title. Think he wouldn’t like to punch some holes in
Lombard’s lore? And for those desperate for storylines or loose
patriotism, it’d be the battle of the Americas -- American Jiu-Jitsu
versus American Top Team.
Luke RockholdHey, while we’re restocking the UFC’s middleweight division with
valuable intrigues, why not bring Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke
Rockhold into the UFC fold to face Lombard? It’s not the
likeliest
scenario, but Rockhold has just come into his own at a time when
Strikeforce has become a weekend skeleton crew. Think he likes the idea
of challenges named
Keith Jardine or, maybe at some point, Bristol Marunde?
It’s fun to imagine a Rockhold/Lombard scrap. You’ve got two guys
who aren’t afraid to fight in the pocket, each with a durable chin and
sadistic intentions. It has “back-and-forth war” written all over it, a
great UFC debut for both ... but it looks like Rockhold will get that
long-awaited battle with Stikeforce contender
Tim Kennedy,
thus rendering this flight of fancy moot. Truth be told, we’re merely
throwing Rockhold’s name out there in the off chance that matchmakers
Sean Shelby and Joe Silva are combing the Internet for suggestions.
Ronaldo SouzaAgain, we’re dealing in Strikeforce property (read: ultimately
Zuffa’s), but Souza hates the pace of fighting once every six to eight
months. And if the promotion
does make Kennedy versus Rockhold,
that means Jacare is going to be fighting some unmentionable. If the
UFC brought Souza over to face Lombard, you’ve got the strutting
fisticuffs that languished in Bellator for too long against the
tall-grass predator with the aggressive, limb snatching jiu-jitsu. What
better?
And how would that be for a red carpet rollout for both guys into the Octagon?
Ed HermanYou laugh. I can see you laughing. But let me put Herman’s name into
perspective. For one thing, he has been completely rejuvenated since
coming back from his knee injury and setbacks, having won three fights
in a row. For another, “Short Fuse” is a finisher just like Lombard. In
every one of those fights he dusted his hands of the opponent, beginning
with
Tim Credeur (whom he TKO’d in 48 seconds) and ending with
Clifford Starks (second round rear-naked choke).
The guy he beat in-between? Why that was
Kyle Noke
(via first round heel hook), the same guy who took Lombard to a draw
back in 2007. Herman is creeping up on the pack in the middleweight
class, and Lombard is a big step up in opposition. Here’s the rub,
though: So is Herman a big step up in competition for Lombard. Either
Lombard could treat Herman as an appetizer to the main course, or he
could, for the first time ever, find himself with a nostril full of
smelling salts.
Hola Amigos 
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