Nate Marquardt road to the title starts at UFN 22

Though Nate “The Great” Marquardt (29-9-2, 8-3 UFC) lost to Chael Sonnen in his last fight at UFC 109, he is still one of the best Middleweight fighters in the sport.  Marquardt is scheduled to face Rousimar Palhares at UFC Fight Night 22 on September 15th, 20101, and while a win would put him right back in the title hunt, it won’t guarantee him a title shot.  So what does Marquardt need to do to earn himself another shot at UFC Gold?

First and most importantly, he needs to defeat a very tough opponent in Palhares at UFC Fight Night 22 on September 15th.  A second straight loss for Marquardt would make his climb back up the mountain extremely difficult.  A win, however, puts him one step closer to his dream of becoming a world champion.

Assuming that Marquardt wins this fight, he will probably need to get a minimum of one more high-profile victory before he gets another shot at a title.  It is also possible that this fight would be against the loser of the Anderson Silva-Chael Sonnen matchup rumored for Super Bowl weekend.  The winner of the main event of UFC 122 Vitor Belfor vs Yushi Okami will get the next title shot against the rematch between Sonnen and Silva so that means there is a good chance that Marquardt will have the opportunity to avenge a loss on his way back to the top.

Most importantly, Marquardt needs to get back to his winning ways if he is going to get another chance to become a champion.  With a few solid wins against the elite in the division, Marquardt will once again prove that he deserves to be considered the best in the world.  His road to redemption starts and UFC Fight Night 22 and will go from there.

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This article can also be found at The MMA Corner

Tags: Anderson Silva, Chael Sonnen, MMA, Nate Marquardt, Rousimar Palhares, UFC, UFN 22, Ultimate Fighter, Vitor Belfort, Yushin Okami

Category: Exclusive, MMA, UFC