Thread: Franklin vs Kampmann in Ireland

Franklin to Headline versus Kampmann in June

The next chapter in Rich Franklin's (Pictures) quest to regain the UFC middleweight crown will unfold on June 16 Sherdog.com has learned, when "Ace" faces Martin Kampmann (Pictures) in the main event of UFC's first foray into Ireland.

In his return to the Octagon after losing the belt to Anderson Silva, the 32-year-old Franklin easily stopped Jason MacDonald (Pictures) in early March. On that same card Kampmann, 24, endured Drew McFedries' power before winning by arm-triangle choke.

Having won each of his three UFC contests, the Dane (15-2-0) gets a chance to prove he belongs among the best at 185 when he steps in against Franklin (21-2-0, 1 NC; 8-1 in the UFC).

It's expected Zuffa will officially announce the fight during Thursday's UFC Fight Night telecast from Las Vegas on SpikeTV.

Also, a fight between Forrest Griffin (Pictures) and Hector Ramirez (Pictures) is being discussed.



Since they have already said they are setting up Franklin-Silva II, this is probably the toughest fight they can give Franklin where he has little chance of losing. I expect this to go to a decision as Kampmann has never been stopped and has a solid chin. Should be a good fight.

On a side note, Griffin-Ramirez should be a good fight too if it happens. Griffin would be a rightfuly favorite, but Ramirez has solid striking with heavy hands. It's a shame to see them already planning a step down for Griffin when his fight with Machida has not happened yet.

Source: Sherdog.com
Franklin to Headline versus Kampmann in June

The next chapter in Rich Franklin's (Pictures) quest to regain the UFC middleweight crown will unfold on June 16 Sherdog.com has learned, when "Ace" faces Martin Kampmann (Pictures) in the main event of UFC's first foray into Ireland.

*Edit-Mods please delete. RockemSockem was the faster man tonight.

Darn you, RockemSockem. You beat me to it by a minute.

Originally Posted by Pitbull

Darn you, RockemSockem. You beat me to it by a minute.

Somebody has to keep you on your toes. =P

Originally Posted by The-Iceman-Chuck-Liddell

Ya he is a up and comer but i think this is more of a louisieu type fight. Franklin is to good to be the gate keeper like ortiz. He should be fighting other contenders like the winner out of swick and okami. Theres an idea i swear that should be it the winner of swick and okami gets franklin. the winner of that gets the winner of marquardt and silva

I personally think everyone should get a rematch when they want if they have held the title, therefore I dont think Franklin should be gate keeper yet. If he trains right and goes into the fight with Anderson Silva fit, I think he could win

This should be a great fight! I'm very excited to see this happen. I've been very impressed by Kampmann, but I think his is actually a little too light for 185.

As for the Swick/Okami ideas, remember Dana's mantra... we need contenders. For every #1 vs #2/#3 contender fight, it eliminates a contender. That's not the name of the game. Dana attempts to build fighters up to have legitimate title fights, albeit at the expense of contenders fighting cans. Thankfully, Kampmann is far from a can.

Rumor has it that the winner gets Silva, but the loser has to eat Hagus.

I think Kampman is a good fighter but I see this fight going the same way as Franklin/McDonald. Rich will win in the first 2 round via GNP. I would've swore Rich's second fight back would've been a title rematch. So who will Silva fight next? Hendo?

I think Rich will still meet the winner of Silva-Marquardt. If the fight is tentatively sceduled for June, and Silva-Marquardt is sceduled for July, sounds like the timing is right to me. No need for Rich to take another long layoff when it's not necessary. And it helps to put some legitimacy behind the rematch.

Should Kampmann lose, I'd love to see Kampmann/McDonald. (Although I do think it is a possibility that Kampmann could pull off a victory.)