Not a huge fan of this being a PPV, should be a freebie on ESPN
Joselyne Edwards vs. Ramona Pascual
Silvana Gomez Juarez vs. Na Liang
Going to kill 2 birds with one stone as i see them as similar matchups. Both women on the left of the marquee (Edwards and Juarez) are decent strikers, while Pascual and Liang like to work takedowns and get the fight on the mat. In the first one Edwards vs. Pascual i'm going to side with Pascual being able to get Edwards to the ground and lay and pray her way to a decision victory. Gomez Juarez vs. Liang i can't really a pick a side, but i do like the fight to end in a finish. Gomez Juarez packs some pop in her punches, but has been subbed in her last 2 fights by armbar. Liang is pretty tough and her last 2 wins were won by armbar.
Early Lean - Pascual ML (+148) SGJ & Liang End Inside Distance (-240)...... i never look at the odds until i'm done my write-up and wow i didn't think there would be that much juice on that ending inside distance, but both women rarely see the final bell so i guess that's the reason.
To remove first post, remove entire topic.
Not a huge fan of this being a PPV, should be a freebie on ESPN
Joselyne Edwards vs. Ramona Pascual
Silvana Gomez Juarez vs. Na Liang
Going to kill 2 birds with one stone as i see them as similar matchups. Both women on the left of the marquee (Edwards and Juarez) are decent strikers, while Pascual and Liang like to work takedowns and get the fight on the mat. In the first one Edwards vs. Pascual i'm going to side with Pascual being able to get Edwards to the ground and lay and pray her way to a decision victory. Gomez Juarez vs. Liang i can't really a pick a side, but i do like the fight to end in a finish. Gomez Juarez packs some pop in her punches, but has been subbed in her last 2 fights by armbar. Liang is pretty tough and her last 2 wins were won by armbar.
Early Lean - Pascual ML (+148) SGJ & Liang End Inside Distance (-240)...... i never look at the odds until i'm done my write-up and wow i didn't think there would be that much juice on that ending inside distance, but both women rarely see the final bell so i guess that's the reason.
Kyung Ho Kang is a tall and long bantamweight whose specialty is his BJJ. He likes to come forward, but doesn't exactly throw many strikes with this approach. What he tries to do is draw his opponent to throw strikes once the distance is closed, and then shoot double legs and work the takedown. If he is successful getting the fight to the mat, he is very skilled in BJJ and will look for the sub. Most strikes thrown by him on the ground are pawing blows to soften up a better path to a submission, he almost never throws heavy shots as he doesn't want to over-swing and lose leverage/position on the ground. His conditioning is pretty good for a fighter who likes to grapple, but i would say his biggest weakness is that sometimes he likes to try to test his stand-up against more talented strikes and it naturally doesn't go well for him. On top of that, if he isn't able to get the fight to the ground then he is pretty much SOL. Danaa is a very heavy handed striker who likes to pounce forward and will swing with bad intentions. He isn't afraid to "take one to give one" since he believes in his power and while he loves to stand and trade, he does have a tendency to over-extend on his punches and leave himself open to counters. His gameplan is simple: He wants to get into a boxing match and is betting his power wins out.
Early Lean - Kyung Ho Kang ML (+130) and also may look into Danaa by TKO/Ko in rounds 1 or 2 when that line gets out. Kang is a BIG bantamweight and may look like he's a few weight classes above Danaa when they meet in the cage. If this fight gets into the 3rd round i'm betting on Kang having the better cardio and out-wrestling the striker for the win
Kyung Ho Kang
vs.
Batgerel Danaa
Kyung Ho Kang is a tall and long bantamweight whose specialty is his BJJ. He likes to come forward, but doesn't exactly throw many strikes with this approach. What he tries to do is draw his opponent to throw strikes once the distance is closed, and then shoot double legs and work the takedown. If he is successful getting the fight to the mat, he is very skilled in BJJ and will look for the sub. Most strikes thrown by him on the ground are pawing blows to soften up a better path to a submission, he almost never throws heavy shots as he doesn't want to over-swing and lose leverage/position on the ground. His conditioning is pretty good for a fighter who likes to grapple, but i would say his biggest weakness is that sometimes he likes to try to test his stand-up against more talented strikes and it naturally doesn't go well for him. On top of that, if he isn't able to get the fight to the ground then he is pretty much SOL. Danaa is a very heavy handed striker who likes to pounce forward and will swing with bad intentions. He isn't afraid to "take one to give one" since he believes in his power and while he loves to stand and trade, he does have a tendency to over-extend on his punches and leave himself open to counters. His gameplan is simple: He wants to get into a boxing match and is betting his power wins out.
Early Lean - Kyung Ho Kang ML (+130) and also may look into Danaa by TKO/Ko in rounds 1 or 2 when that line gets out. Kang is a BIG bantamweight and may look like he's a few weight classes above Danaa when they meet in the cage. If this fight gets into the 3rd round i'm betting on Kang having the better cardio and out-wrestling the striker for the win
I already covered Andre Fialho last month when he fought vs. VanCamp. Fialho is a lot like the bantamweight Danaa Batgerel in that he likes to press forward and throw his hands and doesn't mind taking one to give one, he believes his power will win out. Jake Matthews is a well-rounded fighter, but not really great in any area. He has decent stand-up, nothing flashy, but utilizes solid footwork and technical strikes. He's not ever a KO threat, but also never over-extends himself and doesn't drain his gas tank loading up. Matthews was on a 6-1 roll before being dominated by Sean Brady on UFC 259 last year. Both fighters are only 27 (born 12 days apart) and this is a pretty tough fight to predict.
Early Lean - Jake Matthews by decision (+235).... i see it going either 2 ways: Matthews uses his footwork and picks his spots in the striking while working in TD's.....or Fialho KO's him and Matthews chin, while only being KO/TKO'd once in his career, is a little suspect. He got caught a few times last year against Brady, who isn't known for his striking, and was wobbled...he gets caught by Fialho enough times and he's getting finished. Big fight for each guy in their respective careers.
Jake Matthews
vs.
Andre Fialho
I already covered Andre Fialho last month when he fought vs. VanCamp. Fialho is a lot like the bantamweight Danaa Batgerel in that he likes to press forward and throw his hands and doesn't mind taking one to give one, he believes his power will win out. Jake Matthews is a well-rounded fighter, but not really great in any area. He has decent stand-up, nothing flashy, but utilizes solid footwork and technical strikes. He's not ever a KO threat, but also never over-extends himself and doesn't drain his gas tank loading up. Matthews was on a 6-1 roll before being dominated by Sean Brady on UFC 259 last year. Both fighters are only 27 (born 12 days apart) and this is a pretty tough fight to predict.
Early Lean - Jake Matthews by decision (+235).... i see it going either 2 ways: Matthews uses his footwork and picks his spots in the striking while working in TD's.....or Fialho KO's him and Matthews chin, while only being KO/TKO'd once in his career, is a little suspect. He got caught a few times last year against Brady, who isn't known for his striking, and was wobbled...he gets caught by Fialho enough times and he's getting finished. Big fight for each guy in their respective careers.
This could be a really good one. Maheshate made his USA debut on the Contender Series back in November and not many people had ever heard of him and he was a sizable underdog in that fight. He came out of a crazy fight with a UD and a UFC contract. His contender series fight is all i really have to go off and in that he showed incredible toughness and resilience weathering a first round storm in which he ate a lot of big punches. As his opponent wore down, Maheshate got stronger and utilized some flying knees to turn the fight around. I'm not sure about his grappling, but he looked pretty strong in the clinch. He's 6-1 officially, but i've never seen his 6 fights he had in China and all of those were against fighter with either only a handful of fights under their belt...or guys who had below .500 records. We will learn more about him on saturday. Steve Garcia is another DWCS winner, although since he missed weight on that show he had to go back to LFA before Dana White brought him back up. Garcia is long and rangy striker who can be a bit of wildman himself. For a fighter as long as he is, he really does most of his damage in close by throwing nasty elbows. He likes to overwhelm with punches to the body and head and then sneak in elbows to break the guard of his opponent.
Early Lean - No Lean....Garcia is a slight favorite which i totally get, Maheshate is still too much of a mystery. Could see this being a fight where these guys beat the hell out of each other, but it somehow sees the final bell (+175)
Maheshate
vs.
Steve Garcia
This could be a really good one. Maheshate made his USA debut on the Contender Series back in November and not many people had ever heard of him and he was a sizable underdog in that fight. He came out of a crazy fight with a UD and a UFC contract. His contender series fight is all i really have to go off and in that he showed incredible toughness and resilience weathering a first round storm in which he ate a lot of big punches. As his opponent wore down, Maheshate got stronger and utilized some flying knees to turn the fight around. I'm not sure about his grappling, but he looked pretty strong in the clinch. He's 6-1 officially, but i've never seen his 6 fights he had in China and all of those were against fighter with either only a handful of fights under their belt...or guys who had below .500 records. We will learn more about him on saturday. Steve Garcia is another DWCS winner, although since he missed weight on that show he had to go back to LFA before Dana White brought him back up. Garcia is long and rangy striker who can be a bit of wildman himself. For a fighter as long as he is, he really does most of his damage in close by throwing nasty elbows. He likes to overwhelm with punches to the body and head and then sneak in elbows to break the guard of his opponent.
Early Lean - No Lean....Garcia is a slight favorite which i totally get, Maheshate is still too much of a mystery. Could see this being a fight where these guys beat the hell out of each other, but it somehow sees the final bell (+175)
Culibao is a freestyle striker with a decent reach. He likes to stay on the outside and poke away with a jab and leg kicks while waiting for the chance to throw a big overhand right. Most of his strikes are thrown to score points as he doesn't like to get too close to his opponent and i believe it's due to him not wanting to be taken down. His weakness has been in the grappling and wrestling, he never looks comfortable there and once his opponent has gained even marginal position, he has trouble wiggling out of their grasp. I'm not sure he will have to worry about Seung Woo Choi shooting his legs. Choi is also a striker with solid reach in arms and legs. He differs from Culibao in that he throws many more kicking attacks aimed at the head and body and Culibao is mostly a puncher and really only chops at the legs with his kicks. The other difference in the striking is that Choi is much more technical and powerful and is capable of ending a fight in one punch, whereas Culibao likes to overwhelm with pace and output. I don't expect either side to engage with much grappling, but anything can happen.
Early Lean - Seung Woo Choi ML.....i figured Choi would be the favorite, but not quite -235. I still think he's the better and stronger fighter by a lot though and i would give him the slight advantage in any grappling exchanges. Might use Choi in a parlay
Joshua Culibao
vs.
Seung Woo Choi
Culibao is a freestyle striker with a decent reach. He likes to stay on the outside and poke away with a jab and leg kicks while waiting for the chance to throw a big overhand right. Most of his strikes are thrown to score points as he doesn't like to get too close to his opponent and i believe it's due to him not wanting to be taken down. His weakness has been in the grappling and wrestling, he never looks comfortable there and once his opponent has gained even marginal position, he has trouble wiggling out of their grasp. I'm not sure he will have to worry about Seung Woo Choi shooting his legs. Choi is also a striker with solid reach in arms and legs. He differs from Culibao in that he throws many more kicking attacks aimed at the head and body and Culibao is mostly a puncher and really only chops at the legs with his kicks. The other difference in the striking is that Choi is much more technical and powerful and is capable of ending a fight in one punch, whereas Culibao likes to overwhelm with pace and output. I don't expect either side to engage with much grappling, but anything can happen.
Early Lean - Seung Woo Choi ML.....i figured Choi would be the favorite, but not quite -235. I still think he's the better and stronger fighter by a lot though and i would give him the slight advantage in any grappling exchanges. Might use Choi in a parlay
Brendan Allen has been an active fighter since signing with the UFC in the fall of 2019, and has faced a good level of competition so far. He came in as a strong grappler who liked to get the fight to the mat and then search for submissions since his BJJ skills are very strong. Somewhere along the way he became convinced that his striking was the best pathway to victory and that has produced mixed results. His output and skills in the stand-up are fine, but his problem has been defending himself from return fire. He almost never moves his head and leaves his chin right in the open and he tends to get clipped by more skilled strikers. Jacob Malkoun is not what i would call a "skilled striker". Malkoun's domain is his wrestling and he likes to use punches to gain entry and shoot for the legs. He is not much of a submission artist, but likes to maul and wear down his opponent with heavy punches and elbows.
Early Lean - Brendan Allen by stoppage...... The knock on Allen has been his "fight IQ" and that he should be grappling against fighters where he has a clear advantage, instead of trying to test his stand-up skills. Thing is, in this fight i rate him much higher than Malkoun in both the stand-up and grappling. Allen is coming off a fight vs. Sam Alvey where he almost got stopped and that would have been a really bad loss. He needs to go back to what he does best as he enters the prime of his career and really dominate this one. Allen to win inside the distance is even money
Brendan Allen
vs.
Jacob Malkoun
Brendan Allen has been an active fighter since signing with the UFC in the fall of 2019, and has faced a good level of competition so far. He came in as a strong grappler who liked to get the fight to the mat and then search for submissions since his BJJ skills are very strong. Somewhere along the way he became convinced that his striking was the best pathway to victory and that has produced mixed results. His output and skills in the stand-up are fine, but his problem has been defending himself from return fire. He almost never moves his head and leaves his chin right in the open and he tends to get clipped by more skilled strikers. Jacob Malkoun is not what i would call a "skilled striker". Malkoun's domain is his wrestling and he likes to use punches to gain entry and shoot for the legs. He is not much of a submission artist, but likes to maul and wear down his opponent with heavy punches and elbows.
Early Lean - Brendan Allen by stoppage...... The knock on Allen has been his "fight IQ" and that he should be grappling against fighters where he has a clear advantage, instead of trying to test his stand-up skills. Thing is, in this fight i rate him much higher than Malkoun in both the stand-up and grappling. Allen is coming off a fight vs. Sam Alvey where he almost got stopped and that would have been a really bad loss. He needs to go back to what he does best as he enters the prime of his career and really dominate this one. Allen to win inside the distance is even money
Main Card time and this opener should be a close fight. Della Maddalena is a crisp boxer who earned a contract on DWCS last September. He made his debut at UFC 270 in January and KO'd a late replacement who was way out of his league. JDM gets a real big test this time around. JDM is well built and likes to use his left jab as a range finder to keep his distance and uses his feet well to move away from oncoming damage. He is very adept at switching stances and is arguably more effective fighting southpaw and carries a bit of power when he jabs with his right hand. He has been labeled as a 'slow starter' and it's true that he usually spends the 1st round exhibiting lots of feints to gauge a reaction from his opponent and then will turn up the heat with about a minute left to try and win the round. So far, this style has worked for him and he becomes much more proactive as the fight wears on. I haven't seen JDM initiate many takedown's, but his takedown defense is pretty solid. If the fight does get to the ground, he has great transitions and sweeps to gain control and get the fight back to the feet. Ramazan Emeev will give JDM all he can handle with attempted TD's. Emeev is yet another Dagestani wrestler in the UFC. Emeev's bread and butter is going for the TD and he sets it up by either blitzing towards his opponent with wild punches or sometimes will load up with his right hand and throw a big overhand and then immediately shoot the legs. The thing with him is that even though he has the 'Dagestani wrestler' pedigree, i've never really been impressed with his grappling. The bar is set high for him of course, due to where he is from, but his entries are very sloppy and even when he has success dragging his man to the mat, he has a lot of trouble gaining more of an advantage or even just holding his opponent down.
It's a tough fight to predict because against a guy like Emeev, the thought process is usually to take the center of the cage and not allow him to push you up against the fence. Make him fight on his back foot, and not allow him to pressure....easier said than done. JDM kind of has this retreating style and fights behind his jab and stands very tall almost begging to be tackled. Early Lean - Jack Della Maddalena ML (-160) if Emeev showed more dominance on the mat then i'd be inclined to pick him, but i think even if he gets some TD's, it won't be long before they are back on the feet due to JDM's solid defense. Very interesting fight though and not one i feel real strongly about betting wise
Jack Della Maddalena
vs.
Ramazan Emeev
Main Card time and this opener should be a close fight. Della Maddalena is a crisp boxer who earned a contract on DWCS last September. He made his debut at UFC 270 in January and KO'd a late replacement who was way out of his league. JDM gets a real big test this time around. JDM is well built and likes to use his left jab as a range finder to keep his distance and uses his feet well to move away from oncoming damage. He is very adept at switching stances and is arguably more effective fighting southpaw and carries a bit of power when he jabs with his right hand. He has been labeled as a 'slow starter' and it's true that he usually spends the 1st round exhibiting lots of feints to gauge a reaction from his opponent and then will turn up the heat with about a minute left to try and win the round. So far, this style has worked for him and he becomes much more proactive as the fight wears on. I haven't seen JDM initiate many takedown's, but his takedown defense is pretty solid. If the fight does get to the ground, he has great transitions and sweeps to gain control and get the fight back to the feet. Ramazan Emeev will give JDM all he can handle with attempted TD's. Emeev is yet another Dagestani wrestler in the UFC. Emeev's bread and butter is going for the TD and he sets it up by either blitzing towards his opponent with wild punches or sometimes will load up with his right hand and throw a big overhand and then immediately shoot the legs. The thing with him is that even though he has the 'Dagestani wrestler' pedigree, i've never really been impressed with his grappling. The bar is set high for him of course, due to where he is from, but his entries are very sloppy and even when he has success dragging his man to the mat, he has a lot of trouble gaining more of an advantage or even just holding his opponent down.
It's a tough fight to predict because against a guy like Emeev, the thought process is usually to take the center of the cage and not allow him to push you up against the fence. Make him fight on his back foot, and not allow him to pressure....easier said than done. JDM kind of has this retreating style and fights behind his jab and stands very tall almost begging to be tackled. Early Lean - Jack Della Maddalena ML (-160) if Emeev showed more dominance on the mat then i'd be inclined to pick him, but i think even if he gets some TD's, it won't be long before they are back on the feet due to JDM's solid defense. Very interesting fight though and not one i feel real strongly about betting wise
Anyone who hasn't seen their 1st fight should go watch it, In my opinion it's the greatest women's MMA fight of all time. I bet Joanna in that one as a slight dog, but thought Zhang won 48-47. Joanna is one of the greatest strikers in WMMA, just a total technician who has great timing and combinations. She hasn't been champion for about 5 years now, but she is still a championship level fighter. Perhaps the most underrated aspect of Joanna game is her clinch work and TDD. She has been in the cage with many grapplers who have some success, but Joanna is able to stay off the mat and defend the TD's well in the later rounds. She looks tiny and frail, but she is pretty strong. Her striking is second to none, uses calf kicks at range and a sharp jab at distance with fantastic footwork to avoid damage. Her opponent, Weili Zhang arguably should be the UFC strawweight champ after her close fight with Thug Rose last November. Zhang is a very well-rounded fighter with some real pop in her hands. As great a striker as Joanna is, she doesn't have Zhang's power.
At this point i might as well stop and just put it this way: Joanna has the technical advantage in striking, but Zhang has the clear advantage in power. Zhang is the more willing and stronger grappler, but Joanna is very underrated in that area. In the first fight, Joanna had lots of success in the striking exchanges, but sometimes stayed in the pocket too long and felt Zhang's power and when Zhang connects, it's a greater effect visually....if that makes any sense.
Early Lean - Weili Zhang ML (- 155)....... the odds are closer than they were the last time and honestly i feel like this can go either way again. Zhang has lost her last 2 fights after winning 21 in a row and i think she may use more grappling to at least slow Joanna down this time. It's going to be very tough to live up to that first fight.
Weili Zhang
vs.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Part 2
Anyone who hasn't seen their 1st fight should go watch it, In my opinion it's the greatest women's MMA fight of all time. I bet Joanna in that one as a slight dog, but thought Zhang won 48-47. Joanna is one of the greatest strikers in WMMA, just a total technician who has great timing and combinations. She hasn't been champion for about 5 years now, but she is still a championship level fighter. Perhaps the most underrated aspect of Joanna game is her clinch work and TDD. She has been in the cage with many grapplers who have some success, but Joanna is able to stay off the mat and defend the TD's well in the later rounds. She looks tiny and frail, but she is pretty strong. Her striking is second to none, uses calf kicks at range and a sharp jab at distance with fantastic footwork to avoid damage. Her opponent, Weili Zhang arguably should be the UFC strawweight champ after her close fight with Thug Rose last November. Zhang is a very well-rounded fighter with some real pop in her hands. As great a striker as Joanna is, she doesn't have Zhang's power.
At this point i might as well stop and just put it this way: Joanna has the technical advantage in striking, but Zhang has the clear advantage in power. Zhang is the more willing and stronger grappler, but Joanna is very underrated in that area. In the first fight, Joanna had lots of success in the striking exchanges, but sometimes stayed in the pocket too long and felt Zhang's power and when Zhang connects, it's a greater effect visually....if that makes any sense.
Early Lean - Weili Zhang ML (- 155)....... the odds are closer than they were the last time and honestly i feel like this can go either way again. Zhang has lost her last 2 fights after winning 21 in a row and i think she may use more grappling to at least slow Joanna down this time. It's going to be very tough to live up to that first fight.
Valentina Shevchenko has been the best women's fighter in mma, aside from Amanda Nunes, for about 5 years now. Nobody has come close to taking away her flyweight belt. She is a classic Muay Thai striker with excellent boxing and elite counter-punching. Valentina displays excellent footwork, always in position to avoid damage and counter strike with a great check left hook and counter cross. She has very heavy kicks and loves roundhouse and spinning kicks to the body to set up kicks to the head....Never a better example of that than her Head Kick KO victory over Jessica Eye a few years ago which knocked Eye unconscious for several minutes. Opponents try to avoid taking damage by grappling, but i'd argue that Valentina is even better in the clinch/grappling. She is very strong and uses a number of trips to get her opponent down and is capable of submissions and/or mauling with ground n pound. Taila Santos comes in with a record of 19-1 and 4-1 in the UFC and also fights from the classic Muay thai stance. Santos has great length and uses solid heavy legs kicks in the stand-up, but where she really excels is with her clinch striking. She has been dominant when she gets that collar tie and launches knees into the ribs and face and sharp elbows. She likes to use those knees in the clinch to soften up and then look for takedowns and eventually get her opponents back. So far, she has been pretty dominant in the grappling and wrestling exchanges and has solid BJJ.....Valentina is unlike anything she has ever faced however.
Early Lean - Valentina Shevchenko......Valentina is my pick, but i'm not laying the -600 to back her. This is a giant step up in competition for Santos and maybe i'll take a shot on a prop.
Women's Flyweight Championship
Valentina Shevchenko
vs.
Taila Santos
Valentina Shevchenko has been the best women's fighter in mma, aside from Amanda Nunes, for about 5 years now. Nobody has come close to taking away her flyweight belt. She is a classic Muay Thai striker with excellent boxing and elite counter-punching. Valentina displays excellent footwork, always in position to avoid damage and counter strike with a great check left hook and counter cross. She has very heavy kicks and loves roundhouse and spinning kicks to the body to set up kicks to the head....Never a better example of that than her Head Kick KO victory over Jessica Eye a few years ago which knocked Eye unconscious for several minutes. Opponents try to avoid taking damage by grappling, but i'd argue that Valentina is even better in the clinch/grappling. She is very strong and uses a number of trips to get her opponent down and is capable of submissions and/or mauling with ground n pound. Taila Santos comes in with a record of 19-1 and 4-1 in the UFC and also fights from the classic Muay thai stance. Santos has great length and uses solid heavy legs kicks in the stand-up, but where she really excels is with her clinch striking. She has been dominant when she gets that collar tie and launches knees into the ribs and face and sharp elbows. She likes to use those knees in the clinch to soften up and then look for takedowns and eventually get her opponents back. So far, she has been pretty dominant in the grappling and wrestling exchanges and has solid BJJ.....Valentina is unlike anything she has ever faced however.
Early Lean - Valentina Shevchenko......Valentina is my pick, but i'm not laying the -600 to back her. This is a giant step up in competition for Santos and maybe i'll take a shot on a prop.
Glover Teixeira is the champion at 42 years of age which is amazing in itself. Glover has this sort of plodding ' walk-you-down' style and doesn't mind brawling. He's not very technical with his boxing, and throws these elongated overhands and uppercuts and he has power behind all those punches. He sort of lunges with his head down to throw them, not exactly what you're taught, but he's champ at 42 so who the hell am i to argue. Teixeira has been KO'd before, but it's a testament to his chin that it hasn't happened more since he usually takes plenty of clean punches. Much of Glover's gameplan is to get into the 2nd half of a fight after his opponent has worn down a bit and then grapple and maul his opponent on the ground. He is a BJJ master and is dominant on the mat, especially since he tends to get stronger as the fight gets longer....no better example of this then his fight about 2 years ago vs. Anthony Smith where Smith rocked his chin numerous times in the opening 1.5 rounds and Glover just ate them and began to batter an exhausted Smith for the next 3 rounds until it was finally stopped in the 5th. Jiri Prochazka is like a minor villain in a Jason Bourne movie, one of those guys who gets into an all-out war fighting Bourne in the middle of the movie. Prochazka is wildest of wildman fighters, throwing strikes from all kinds of angles with relentless pressure. Even when you think he's out of range and you're safe, he is looking to crack you and can do it. He bounces around with his hands low, pretty much baiting you to attack so he can side-step and throw counters. Jiri doesn't mind taking one to give one either, he believes his chin will hold up and he carries plenty of power in his hands. The major weakness with Prochazka is in the grappling as he can defend takedowns and transitions for awhile, but it's clear it is NOT where he wants to be.
Early Lean - Glover Teixeira ML (+175) I think Jiri Prochazka is going to be a public darling based off his highlight reel KO's and overall mystique. Glover would be crazy to try and stand-up with Jiri, and i think he would dominate Prochazka on the mat. I kind of expect Jiri to be hopping in and out of the striking exchanges so Glover can't get ahold of him, but Glover is a different breed. It will be interesting to see where this fight goes if it gets to the 3rd round.
Good luck to everyone tomorrow, should be an interesting show!
Light Heavyweight Championship
Glover Teixeira
vs.
Jiri Prochazka
Glover Teixeira is the champion at 42 years of age which is amazing in itself. Glover has this sort of plodding ' walk-you-down' style and doesn't mind brawling. He's not very technical with his boxing, and throws these elongated overhands and uppercuts and he has power behind all those punches. He sort of lunges with his head down to throw them, not exactly what you're taught, but he's champ at 42 so who the hell am i to argue. Teixeira has been KO'd before, but it's a testament to his chin that it hasn't happened more since he usually takes plenty of clean punches. Much of Glover's gameplan is to get into the 2nd half of a fight after his opponent has worn down a bit and then grapple and maul his opponent on the ground. He is a BJJ master and is dominant on the mat, especially since he tends to get stronger as the fight gets longer....no better example of this then his fight about 2 years ago vs. Anthony Smith where Smith rocked his chin numerous times in the opening 1.5 rounds and Glover just ate them and began to batter an exhausted Smith for the next 3 rounds until it was finally stopped in the 5th. Jiri Prochazka is like a minor villain in a Jason Bourne movie, one of those guys who gets into an all-out war fighting Bourne in the middle of the movie. Prochazka is wildest of wildman fighters, throwing strikes from all kinds of angles with relentless pressure. Even when you think he's out of range and you're safe, he is looking to crack you and can do it. He bounces around with his hands low, pretty much baiting you to attack so he can side-step and throw counters. Jiri doesn't mind taking one to give one either, he believes his chin will hold up and he carries plenty of power in his hands. The major weakness with Prochazka is in the grappling as he can defend takedowns and transitions for awhile, but it's clear it is NOT where he wants to be.
Early Lean - Glover Teixeira ML (+175) I think Jiri Prochazka is going to be a public darling based off his highlight reel KO's and overall mystique. Glover would be crazy to try and stand-up with Jiri, and i think he would dominate Prochazka on the mat. I kind of expect Jiri to be hopping in and out of the striking exchanges so Glover can't get ahold of him, but Glover is a different breed. It will be interesting to see where this fight goes if it gets to the 3rd round.
Good luck to everyone tomorrow, should be an interesting show!
Funny you bring up loopy, she had like 3 fights in a six week period last year and lost her final one. Many think it was because she was taking too many fights so the same could happen to fialho. Different styles between fialho and loopy though
Best of lock tonight
@royboymiami
Funny you bring up loopy, she had like 3 fights in a six week period last year and lost her final one. Many think it was because she was taking too many fights so the same could happen to fialho. Different styles between fialho and loopy though
You should have this Pascual fight after the 2nd round. Edwards not knocking her out. She is so slow. Wrong fighter favored from everything I’ve seen thru two.
You should have this Pascual fight after the 2nd round. Edwards not knocking her out. She is so slow. Wrong fighter favored from everything I’ve seen thru two.
But she lost the first two rounds. The first especially. 30-27. LMAO. 139 strikes by Edwards? Those countless insignificant half-ass, half-defensive kicks most of the fight were considered “strikes”?? I feel you were badly robbed and were on the right side.
@BigMick87
But she lost the first two rounds. The first especially. 30-27. LMAO. 139 strikes by Edwards? Those countless insignificant half-ass, half-defensive kicks most of the fight were considered “strikes”?? I feel you were badly robbed and were on the right side.
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