Fight Video: Franklin Vs. Hamill

Franklin was able to soften Hamill up early with kicks to his front leg and the body before winning via third-round TKO, and between that and his takedown defense being strong, most of the fight was standing.

Hamill reopened a cut that Franklin suffered in training and had taken stitches in near the right eye. The cut was deep enough that even though Franklin was controlling the fight, there was a chance he was going to lose due to it being deep.

“Rich Franklin’s a world class striker,” Hamill said. “I have to do everything I can just to keep up with him.”

Fight Preview: Franklin vs. Hamill

A UFC mainstay will look to rediscover old form in an old weight class on Saturday while one of the new guard will hope to make good on a world of promise while overcoming a wave of pressure to go along with it.

Thanks to a pair of one-sided losses at the hands of Anderson Silva, Rich “Ace” Franklin will make a return to his old light heavyweight stomping grounds at UFC 88. There he’ll meet “Ultimate Fighter” alumnus and Tito Ortiz protégé Matt “The Hammer” Hamill.

In the suddenly stacked 205-pound division, new jack and old dog alike can ill afford losses in what is one of the more intriguing bits of matchmaking on the UFC 88 ledger.

UFC 88: Rich Franklin Profile

One of the original division-jumping success stories in MMA, Franklin started out as a talented light heavyweight who was hounded by questions of how he’d fare against the rogues’ gallery of enormous contenders waiting in the wings for him.

A disastrous knockout loss to Lyoto Machida provided all the motivation needed for Franklin to make the move down to middleweight -- a change that made Franklin into one of the UFC’s biggest stars as he became both the champion and face of the middleweight division.

The glory days soon came to an end, however, thanks to the unexpected arrival of Anderson Silva. The Brazilian quickly supplanted Franklin thanks to a pair of brutally one-sided fights that closed the book on Franklin’s run as the world’s premier middleweight.

Left to deal with being the second-best middleweight in the UFC, Franklin now has to return to a division that no one was sure he could handle in the first place.

Why he’ll win: Franklin’s saving grace against bigger opponents was always his versatility and intelligence, which allowed him to find the holes in his quarry’s style and exploit them with the coldhearted efficiency of an assassin. Against Hamill, Franklin has both the striking and submissions to test “The Hammer” from bell to bell.

Why he’ll lose: Versatile as Franklin’s offense may be, his wrestling has always been lacking and Hamill has no qualms about barreling forward in search of a takedown. If Franklin can’t corral the strongest part of Hamill’s repertoire, he may find himself playing a losing defensive game.

The X factor: After spending nearly four years as a physically dominant middleweight, Franklin may no longer know how to handle being the smaller man inside the cage. Worse yet, it’s hard to predict how his body will respond to a change in fighting weight.

UFC 88: Matt Hamill Profile

Bio: Perhaps best known for being the only deaf competitor in UFC history, Hamill started out as Tito Ortiz’s own personal golden goose on the third season of “The Ultimate Fighter” before bowing out of the competition due to injuries.

Despite failing to take home the show’s grand prize, Hamill entered the UFC with a considerable cache thanks to his considerable wrestling pedigree. Ortiz was all but proclaiming him the second coming of Dan Gable, but a string of lackadaisical performances against middling competition stoked the fires of doubt amongst many an observer.

The baptism by fisticuffs proved a solid test of Hamill’s mettle, however, and he has since rebounded with a controversial split decision loss to Michael Bisping (Pictures) and a thorough undressing of the barbarous one, Tim Boetsch (Pictures).

Why he’ll win: In his short UFC tenure, Hamill has shown that he can rag doll opponents in the clinch and on the ground. That sort of meat-grinder style can wear down most anyone and Franklin, an undersized light heavyweight, never took on an opponent like Hamill in his first run as a 205-pounder.

Why he’ll lose: This is the first time Hamill has been matched with someone who can give him fits on the feet and on the ground. Throw in Franklin’s big-fight experience and Hamill has an awful lot to overcome given his unproven submission defense and raw striking.

The X factor: The pressure of the big-fight atmosphere that is part and parcel of the UFC can wear down any up-and-comer. How Hamill holds up under the weight of that pressure is anyone’s guess.