Takanori Gomi vs. Diego Sanchez: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

UFC on Fuel TV 8: Sanchez vs. Gomi

UFC on Fuel TV 8: Five fast fact's you should know for Gomi vs. Sanchez

1: When/Where? Takanori Gomi will challenge UFC Veteran Diego Sanchez this Saturday, March 3rd, at UFC on Fuel TV 8. Gomi will also have the pleasure of having  fighting in front of his fellow Japanese, as the event will take place from the Saitama Super Arena. The main cards starts at 10 pm.

2: Where has Diego Sanchez been? Diego Sanchez will be returning from a year long layoff. "The Nightmare" has not fought since his loss to Jake Ellenberger at UFC on Fuel T V1 back in February of 2012, when he competed as a welterweight. After the bout it was revealed that Sanchez would be on the shelf with an injury. This will actually mark the second time Sanchez will be returning after a lengthy time away from the cage, as before the Ellenburger bout, he had not competed since March 2011 when he defeated Martin Kampmann. In fact this will be only his 3rd fight in the last 3 years.

3: Fight of the Night? The fight could turn into a barn burner. Sanchez currently has a 3 fight streak in which he has won Fight of the Night honors, and has 5 total. With his feverish pace, we have often seen Sanchez drag other fighters into his frenzy, enabling them to compete at the same rate. On the other side, Gomi has been looking more like his Pride version as of late,  is also a recipient of the Fight of the Night bonus,  which he received when he last defeated Mac Danzig in a Split decision at UFC on Fuel TV 6.

4: Gomi fights at home "The Fireball Kid" will be fighting from his home turf. It's easy to forget just how good Takanori Gomi once was. Before entering the UFC, he  collected 30 victories in Japan. Then at UFC 144 he defetaed Eiji Mitsuoka by TKO to bring that number to 31 victories. And while he has collected other wins in other countires, it's a proven fact that Gomi fights better from his native country.  It is there that he dominated Pride's lightweight division and Shooto's welterweight division for years. While in Japan, Gomi became known as one of the best on the planet, using his boxing and ground and pound better than any of the lighter fighters in the sport.

5: Expect 15 minutes of battle It's damn near impossible to knockout Diego Sanchez. In his 28 fights, Sanchez has only been KO'd once. Even B.J. Penn, who pummeled  Sanchez for 5 rounds, could not knock him out, as the fight was called due to a cut. We've seen Sanchez withstand pretty much every type of brawl, shootout, and melee for years. However, he's fighting Takanori Gomi (who has never been knocked out himself), and they don't call him "The Fireball Kid" for nothing. 13 of his wins have come by knockout, with 2 of his 3 UFC victories being finishes.