UFC Fight Prediction Time: Carwin Vs. Dos Santos

UFC 131 took a hit in some peoples' eyes when Brock Lesnar was forced to withdraw from his bout against Junior dos Santos due to illness.

But fellow contender and mammoth heavyweight Shane Carwin stepped in quickly. Now many are wondering and making predictions about whether or not he will defeat dos Santos.

Many thought dos Santos was headed for a sure title shot but he settled for a coaching spot and a bout opposite Lesnar after working on The Ultimate Fighter TV show.

Now he has to beat Carwin who is more well-rounded and a similarly big and strong fighter. Dos Santos has the speed and precision, technical boxing to give anyone in the division trouble, however, even Carwin, who has shown some of the best boxing in the division.

Because of his frightening knockout power, Carwin's boxing has been underrated but he rocked Lesnar with a massive uppercut and dominated him on the feet as he has done to most opponents.

He ate a big shot from Gabriel Gonzaga back at UFC 96, however, showing his weakness at times in the technical aspect. But that fight also showed his excellent chin as he came right back to TKO him.

Dos Santos will be able to score points should the fight remain on the feet. He is one of the best pure boxers in the sport. Strength and size-wise he seems to improve just about every time out. His ground game is untested but supposedly sharp under the Nogueira brothers.

This one will come down to strategy. Although fights are organic and free-flowing, Carwin needs to be able to get in close and use the clinch or the takedown in this one because he is not likely to out-box dos Santos on points and landing a big shot will be difficult in an exchange because of Junior's speed.

Considering that Carwin is harder to prepare for than Lesnar because he is more versatile, taking this fight on short notice will be tough on dos Santos.

This is an incredibly hard fight to call but the prediction here for UFC 131 is that Carwin will score a takedown or two and narrowly win on points by minimizing damage in the stand-up game.