Jakro's MMA Musings

Joseph Benavidez vs. Deiveson Figueiredo My initial response to this fight was that no way Benavidez wins this, especially considering Figueiredo missed weight. Yes, most people might think he is depleted, I just think he just is huge cause he looked ripped. So he is bigger, packs a ton of punch and has three inches of reach over Benavidez. It is too simplistic way to see it. Obviously Benavidez can do what Formiga did and just ride the storm out with Figueiredo - control the distance, grapple at times, etc. simply stay out of danger. Problem is Figueiredo, although not the most intelligent fighter generally speaking, probably has learned something since that Formiga fight. That being said, he did not look great in that Tim Elliot fight, but who looks good against him? Deiveson still finished him in first round. Still, it would be hard to pick him against the overall better fighter that is Benavidez. Benavidez has only ever been knocked out once, by DJ. So definitely not straight...

Some pretty clear picks here, but also lot of 50/50 fights. Let's get into it. Main Event: Paul Felder vs. Dan Hooker Exciting fight for the main event. I wrote on a Funny MMA comment that MMA Math would dictate that Felder has it, since he had back-and-forth war with Barboza, whereas Barboza absolutely massacred Hooker. Of course, realistically speaking it is not that simple. By that logic you could point at Hooker KOing James Vick, whereas it took Felder until decision to beat Vick. So in the end, I see this as a very close fight. They will both damage each others legs with kicks and Felder has some good counter game, but he will likely absorb lot of shots to the lead leg. Felder is also better at pressuring than Al Iaquinta is. Still, his style plays into Hooker's hands. Hooker will keep stepping backwards, angling and sniping those sharp counters.  In clinch, these guys are pretty even and if Felder goes takedown happy, Hooker has lot of crafty submission attemp...

What a weird card we had. I hate to admit it, I was largely bored. I usually aren't bored of the fights, but at least some blame lays with the fact I literally sat through 20 matches before the event to get the previews done, so by the time the actual event was near end, I was completely burnt out. Slightly losing night, but let's talk about the matches. Main Card Main Event was question of Jan's counters versus Corey's pressure and wrestling. The counters won, obviously. I don't see Jan bombing Jon Jones like that, but anything is possible when big guys fight. Still if I was Jon I would much rather jump on the chance to fight Jan than entertain rematch with Reyes. Jones needs a convincing win to build momentum for a HW money fight. In the Co-Main Michel Pereira lodged himself more firmly as the guy who has lost me more money than anyone. He was already the top dog in that regard before the fight, and now I have lost two sizeable bets on the same guy. Anyway, h...

Nussi mua niin m' nussin sua Main Event: Corey Anderson vs. Jan Blachowicz Both guys have ways to win as usual, but Anderson is definitely the better fighter on paper here, especially based on what we saw from Jan in his last fight. Jan really did not beat Jacare. Don't get me wrong, I am not out here to dispute the decision, but it wasn't a fight anyone really won. He was not able to stop Jacare from clinching him up all the time, and that is what I think will be his demise against Anderson. Corey puts a fast pace, showed he has good pace as well, has much more reach than Jacare had to land shots and to grab hold of his opponent. That's why you gotta feel Jan is going on his ass a few times in this fight. Obviously Jan has decent takedown defence and good power, so there is a chance he stuffs shots enough to find the perfect counter that puts Anderson out. Corey has been knocked out before, so it definitely can happen. Longer if goes on though, the more it ...

I have been a bit sick and very busy this week, that's why the post-fight analysis for the last weekend's fight is a bit late. It's good though to give a little time for the emotions to cool down after a night of controversial decisions. Main Card I did not see Jones vs. Reyes live due to a blackout. Having seen it play out as it did, I am glad I get to watch it now with emotionally calm mind and with a neutral viewpoint. First things first, the fight went pretty much exactly as I predicted it, with Jones having close striking bout with Reyes but having his clinchwork to fallback on when things got dicey. Still, Reyes managed to almost completely nullify Jones' grappling and the decision in the end was razor-thin - I can see how this ended up controversial cause I can't really make up my mind who won that. First and third round, for the way I see it, were clearly rounds for Reyes. Fifth round was all Jones. 2nd and 4th could have gone either way. Reyes was aggr...

This weekend's fight card lacks a little depth and as the title fights on the card feature dominant champions, its not on the paper most exciting one. The question is, do the large underdog challengers have any chance? Main Event: Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes So I rewatched Jones v Santos and... I think Santos legit won that fight. I mean if I score that as a fight, Santos was definitely more compromised in the end, but if I actually score it round by round, Santos had it 3-2. There were couple of really tight rounds though. At the same time though, Jones never really seemed to get out of 2nd gear. Which just perfectly demonstrates that while he is human, he is so tough to beat even if he never seems to really get going. That's just down to the tricky combination of extreme athleticism, ridiculous reach and great grappling. In the outside range, you are in a desperate reach disadvantage. If you get inside, Jones will slice you with elbows or grab hold of you and clinchfuck...