UFC Event

UFC 137 Fight Card Primer: Scott Jorgensen vs. Jeff Curran

By Fraser Coffeen@FCoffeen Oct 29, 2011, 3:30pm EDT

UFC 137 Weigh-ins at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on October 28, 2011 in Las Vegas, NV. via <a href="http://www.ufc.com/media/ufc-137-weigh-in-photo-gallery">UFC.com</a> — UFC 137 Weigh-ins at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on October 28, 2011 in Las Vegas, NV. via UFC.com

In a Bantamweight fight, Scott Jorgensen (12-4; 1-0 UFC) faces Jeff Curran (33-13-1; 0-1 UFC) at UFC 137: Penn vs. Diaz. This is the second bout of the PPV portion of the show. Jorgensen is currently ranked #6 at Bantamweight in the USA Today/BE Consensus Rankings, while Curran is unranked. The PPV begins at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.

The Bantamweight division is in a bit of a corner right now. Dominick Cruz is dangerously close to having cleaned out the division, and the UFC has not yet built any new challengers for him. This fight has earned a main card slot partly by default after the St. Pierre vs. Condit cancellation, but it is a real opportunity for both men and the division. A big, exciting fight will add some esteem to the 135 pounders, and possibly propel the winner into quick title contention.

How do these two stack up?

Jorgensen: 29 years old | 5'4" | 66" reach
Curran: 34 years old | 5'6" | 69" reach

What have these two done recently?

Jorgensen: W - Ken Stone (KO) | L - Dominick Cruz (UD) | W - Brad Pickett (UD)
Curran: W - Billy Vaughn (UD) | W - David Love (UD) | L - Bryan Goldsby (UD)

How did these two get here?

Jorgensen has the distinction of being the last man to challenge for the WEC Bantamweight title before it was absorbed into the UFC. That fight was a typical Cruz victory, with the champion doing his thing and earning a decision over Jorgensen. Although he lost to Cruz, Jorgensen is still a highly regarded BW on a 6-1 run. Over the past two years, he's really found his groove and is performing excellently every time out. The former NCAA Division I wrestler holds wins over some top fighters in the division, but the fact that he is so recently removed from the Cruz loss makes a title shot for him a tough sell.

Jeff "Big Frog" Curran is a near 14 year veteran of the sport, with roughly 50 pro fights to his name. The popular Midwest fighter has competed all over. UFC, Strikeforce, Pride, Bellator, WEC, IFL... all have played home to Curran at one time. His highest profile run came in the WEC in 2007-2009 when he challenged Urijah Faber for the Featherweight title. He dropped down to Bantamweight and dropped 4 in a row before leaving the WEC, and has gone 4-1 since. Curran is the kind of veteran that always poses a challenge, but at 34 years old and 14 years into his career, this run may be coming too late. A win over Jorgensen would be huge for him and would be his biggest win since at least 2006.

Why should you care?

Even if you don't know either man well, the Bantamweights always deliver. This is a definite front-runner for Fight of the Night, and a welcome chance to see the Bantamweights on the main card.

More UFC 137 preview coverage from Bloody Elbow after the jump.