We’re counting down the hours to tonight’s UFC 137 PPV, which takes place live from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

It’s been a long road to Vegas, and overall, this could probably be described as one of UFC’s ‘cursed’ events, in which we’ve seen several significant changes to the fight card, including a reshuffling of the main event.

From Nick Diaz’s press conference disappearances, to the unfortunate training injury sustained by the champion Georges St Pierre, the event has also been marred by Tim Credeur being “forced out” of his bout with Brad Tavares for reasons that are still not clear. After Dustin Jacoby was wheeled in to replace Credeur, Tavares himself then pulled out of the fight due to injuries sustained during training, being replaced by the undefeated rookie, Clifford Starks.

In the final last minute twist, Tyson Griffin failed to make weight for his featheweight fight against Bart Palaszewski. After a change to ‘catchweight’ status and a hefty financial penalty for Griffin, the fight will, however, be going ahead tonight.

Remember to catch the first portion of the prelims for free on Facebook, including Brandon Vera vs Eliot Marshall (I’m calling Vera by submission), before switching over to SPIKE TV for Tyson Griffin vs. Bart Palaszewski (I’m calling Griffin by TKO) and Dennis Siver vs. Donald Cerrone (I’m calling The Cowboy by TKO).

Then, in the words of Bruce Buffer himself, “It’s time!”

Here’s my breakdown for tonight’s card…

Hatsu Hioki vs. George Roop
Prediction: Hatsu by submission
The Japanese Hatsu crossed the ocean tonight for his first fight in the USA. A submission specialist and former SRC Featherweight champion, Hatsu brings with him and impressive record.

In the other corner, George Roop will be looking for some of the knockout ability that took out both Gripsi and Chan-Sung in recent fights. His mixed success so far in the UFC makes this an important fight for the 29 year old.

I see Hatsu catching Roop in the third round and tapping him out.

Scott Jorgensen vs. Jeff Curran
Jorgensen by split decision
Unlike some of his WEC counterparts, Jorgensen made the transition to the UFC quite smoothly with an impressive first round knockout of Ken Stone at The Ultimate Fighter Finale back in June, and the charismatic fighter brings with him an impressive reputation from his WEC days.

Jeff Curren returns to UFC after seven successful years travelling around such organizations as PRIDE, WEC, XFO and Bellator, even mounting an unsuccessful challenge against Urijah Faber for his WEC Feathweight Championship.

Both men tend to favor submission victories if they can get them, yet the majority of their combined fights have headed to the judges. I predict the same here, with Jorgensen leading the fight and controlling the cage, but in the end, this one will go all three rounds.

Roy Nelson vs. Mirko Filipović
Prediction: Nelson by unanimousdecision
Both guys really need a convincing win at this stage. ‘Big Country’ is fresh off to major losses to Junior Dos Santos and Frank Mir, despite being able to show his impressive ability to withstand a beating, especially against JDS when his heart and stamina won over the crowd and helped him survive a three round onslaught.

Cro Cop is also coming away from losses to Mir and JDS, except both guys were able to finish Filipovic decisively with a KO and submission respectively. The fact that neither man could finish Nelson, but had little trouble putting down Cro Cop could be an indication of what we will see tonight.

Nelson could end this fight with a well placed punch and earn a ground and pound victory. Cro Cop would have to hope to wear Nelson down and go for a submission, but I personally see both fighters playing this one somewhat cautiously and heading to the judges for a Nelson victory.

Matt Mitrione vs. Cheick Kongo
Prediction: Mitrione by split decision
Kongo continues to be a somewhat unpredictable and inconsistent fighter, which makes it difficult to make clear predictions in his fights. After the crazy ‘Knockout of the Night’ victory over Pat Barry back in June (which some fans feel Kongo owed to a very lenient referee and a generous recovery time), Kongo looks to be a formidable opponent for Mitrione. However, when we look at how Kongo struggled against Travis Browne and Frank Mir in recent fights, the uncertainty returns.

The man known as “Meathead” during his Ultimate Fighter run is currently enjoying a clean 5-0 record in the UFC, but it can be argued that Kongo will be his toughest challenge to date.

I see Mitrione by decision, this one will probably go all the way. That being said, I can also see Mitrione catching Kongo for a 2nd round TKO, but I’m going with the decision win.

B.J. Penn vs. Nick Diaz
Prediction: Penn by 3rd round submission.
This one all depends on which Penn shows up tonight. The Prodigy looked out of it, and almost bored, during his two fights with Frankie Edgar that ultimately ended up in losses. After rumors began to swirl that Penn’s heart just wasn’t in the fight game anymore and he was about to call it a day, Penn returned at UFC 123 for a stunning first round knockout of Matt Hughes. The recent draw with Jon Fitch at Australia’s UFC 127 left things somewhat in the air as far as Penn’s current fighting standard. In my opinion, this is Penn’s fight to lose.

Overall, if we see the UFC 123 Penn, fired up and focused, with his conditioning in the right place, I think Diaz will be outclassed by The Prodigy.