In welterweight action, UFC newcomer Jake Ellenberger (21-4) will make his debut against former WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit (23-5) in a classic wrestler vs. grappler showdown that may showcase both fighters' surprising striking games. Ellenberger is coming off a four-fight win streak with stints in M-1 Challenge and Bellator. His last loss was to current UFC fighter Rick Story at Sportfight 23 in Portland back in June of last year. Condit is coming off a loss in an epic war with Martin Kampmann at UFN 18 back in April. Ellenberger is a late replacement for Chris Lytle in this bout.

Ellenberger has trained out of Team Quest in Oregon with Chael Sonnen, Dan Henderson, and Matt Lindland in the past. With that sort of pedigree of wrestlers, Ellenberger's style is pretty easy to decipher as he's mainly a ground and pound fighter. For this fight, he's been training with Scott Morten, Joe Ellenberger, Ryan Jensen, and Jason Brilz at MidAmerica Martial Arts in Omaha. Podany is a Muay Thai champion while Jake's brother, Joe, is an All-American wrestler who is 9-0 in MMA. He not only has solid wrestling coaches, but he's also surrounded himself with good striking and jiu-jitsu coaches.

Condit trains out of Arizona Combat Sports with fighters such as Ryan Bader, Jamie Varner, Aaron Simpson, C.B. Dollaway, and Gerald Harris. He has a phenomenal Brazilian jiu-jitsu background with a black belt, but he also has a very dynamic striking game that will present some real problems for Ellenberger. While Condit had problems against BJJ brown belt and kickboxer Martin Kampmann, he did show some good kicks and combinations early. His conditioning was tested, and while he did gas a little toward the end of the fight -- he did manage to put on a great performance in his debut despite the loss. 

This could truly be an explosive war on the feet. Ellenberger has been making it known that he wants to knockout Condit, and he's been improving in his stand-up game. The real problem is that Condit has proven that he's a dynamic striker, and Ellenberger seems to have gained a substantial amount of confidence following his KO win over Marcelo Alfaya at Bellator IX. That confidence could be diminished if he tries to stand with the dynamic abilities of Condit, but Ellenberger did start out in MMA with kickboxing as opposed to his wrestling base.

If Condit catches Ellenberger, be sure Ellenberger will resort to his wrestling tactics to smother Condit. Condit has, however, made a career on catching wrestlers off his back, so he should have the advantage in that respect. Overall, I think this is a great fight that most fans are looking past as any easy win for Condit. Ellenberger isn't going to be laying down easily in this one, and upset potential is there. 

I'll go with the more dynamic striking and BJJ abilities of Condit in his second battle in the UFC. He has the determination to become a legitimate threat at welterweight down the road, but Ellenberger isn't someone to look past. This should be a tough test for both fighters.