UFC 105 takes places this Saturday in Manchester, England and pits former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Randy Couture against fellow veteran Brandon Vera. While Couture has long been a fan favorite and among the most popular fighters in the UFC, "The Truth" hasn’t yet been able to crack into the upper echelon of the sport. That could change if Vera, currently ranked 45th in the MMA fighter buzz rankings, delivers an impressive win against the venerable Couture in front of a large Spike TV audience.

All in all, the four fighters in this weekend’s main and co-main events average 50th in the latest fighter buzz rankings. This compares to last weekend’s "Strikeforce: Fedor vs Rogers" card which averaged a much higher 37th for the main and co-main event fighters. Couture leads the UFC 105 group in 18th, while Mike "Quick" Swick is a surprisingly low 74th in the measure of fan interest.

The event represents an excellent opportunity for Brandon Vera to knock off a legend in the sport, and if he can do so convincingly, may enjoy a huge boost in the rankings and position himself near title contention. Similarly for British welterweight Dan Hardy, a victory over Mike Swick could propel "The Outlaw" above Michael Bisping as his country’s UFC poster boy and to a title shot against the dominant French-Canadian champion Georges St. Pierre.

From Tapology.com

http://www.tapology.com/2009/11/ufc-105-buzz-brandon-vera-breakout-opportunity/