Lost in last night’s shenanigans of Tito pulling out of the Bellator card, and the card going from PPV to free television, comes our breakdown of the latest UK card.
Joining me to preview it are Adam Keyes and Luke Cho-Yee, our UK correspondents.
Machida Munoz
CY: The anomaly in this fight is how Machida copes with cutting down to 185lbs at this stage in his career but technically I feel it’s a bad match up for Munoz. He was devastating against Tim Boetsch but Machida is a different level of fighter who is far more fleet footed and incisive with his attacks. Munoz should look to emulate what Davis did in Machida’s last match up but I feel ‘The Dragon’ will be too agile and display a more aggressive counter style than usual. Machida
Keyes: While Munoz will hold a significant wrestling advantage over Machida, I have huge doubts over whether Munoz could actually get close enough to the fleet footed Brazilian to secure a takedown. I’m interested to see how Machida will look now that he is in a more natural weight class of 185lbs, as he never looked too big of a light-heavyweight to me. Put me down for a Machida win here, likely by KO as I see him catching Munoz coming in and putting the Filipino Wrecking Machine asleep. Machida
Sawitz: Machida looked amazing at 185; I’ve wanted him to go there for a while and he looked ridiculously jacked at the weigh in. The key to this fight will be whether or not Munoz rushes in ala Evans or Bader. If he gets impatient and barrels in we could be looking at another Machida Moment. If not … this could get ugly. Munoz
Pearson Guillard
CY: This could be a real barn burner depending on which Guillard shows up. He looked very sharp last time out but the word is he has changed camps once again and you often question where his head is at leading up to the contest. Pearson is the more consistent and determined fighter and I feel if he can survive the early exchanges he will be able to impose his will and take over in the latter half of the fight. Pearson
Keyes: Pearson seems to have got his groove back as a lightweight since his stint as a featherweight and his time spent at Alliance MMA has clearly been put to good use if his last couple of performances are anything to go by. Guillard managed to stop the rot in his last bout and he did look a little like his old self in KO’ing Mac Danzig, however I’m not fully convinced that he has turned the corner just yet. Pearson should have enough about him to keep away from Guillard’s power shots and will likely have enough striking nous to start picking apart the Young Assassin. Pearson
Sawitz: Shocking the Brits would pick their hometown boy in this fight. Me, I’m liking Melvin in this. Pearson’s wrestling has to have improved by light years to get him able to take Guillard down enough to win that way. He’ll have to land something big and capitalize that way and unfortunately I think Melvin’s hands are going to put the lights out. Guillard
Manuwa Jimmo
CY: Manuwa has been brought up slowly by the UFC but I expect Jimmo to provide an excellent test for the ‘Poster Boy’. The Canadian is the more well rounded of the two fighters and should look to mix things up by incorporating takedowns and wrestling into his Karate based stand-up game. Manuwa is less complete at this stage in his development but is an extremely powerful striker and I believe he will eventually catch up with Jimmo who will be unable to resist the barrage that comes his way. Manuwa
Keyes: Jimi Manuwa is a bad man. Manuwa possesses the kind of power that makes knees weak and girls shriek. Manuwa has looked highly impressive in his two UFC appearances so far and with victory here, should position himself for a shot at the top 10 of the division. Jimmo is a different story. He has a lot of the tools required to succeed in the sport and be quite the fan favourite, but Jimmo does tend to have the knack of sucking all the fun out of a fight by playing too safe and boring us en route to a painful decision. I do hope this is not the case this time and I doubt that it will be. For me, Manuwa will be far too savvy and aggressive for Jimmo on the feet, and should finish this one and early. Manuwa
Sawitz: This could be an epic knockout from someone or it could exceptionally dull. Jimmo is a heck of a talent but I remember watching a ton of exceptionally dull fights out of him in MFC on AXS TV. Manuwa is a great striker but so far his ground game hasn’t been testing. I like Manuwa … but not a lot. I have a feeling this is a fight that starts out super exciting each round until Jimmo fully works his counter game, after which it gets dull. Manuwa
Parke v Tuck
CY: I believe Tuck to be the better prospect but he is a long way from home and feel his chances could also be hampered by his inactivity. Parke has looked very solid since winning TUF The Smashes and has showcased good fundamentals both in his striking and grappling abilities. I expect a very competitive match-up with a lot of exciting exchanges and scrambles which will ultimately produce a debatable decision. Parke
Keyes: Parke edges this one for me. Jon Tuck looks like he has some potential but I can’t quite see him being able to take Parke here. Neither fighter are stellar strikers and it is likely that this fight will be decided on the mat, with both men preferring to enact their submission game as the clincher and for me, Parke has the slight advantage here. Parke
Sawitz: I like Parke in this; Tuck has a lot of ring rust and Parke has had a great start to his UFC career so far. Parke
Sakara v Musoke
Keyes: Sakara hasn’t exactly been on a tear recently but will still likely have the required tools to do away with the debuting Swede. From the limited footage I have seen of Musoke, it does not appear that he has a great deal of experience or background in striking and this is where the fight will likely be decided due to Sakara’s favoured, one-dimensional boxing attack. Sakara
CY: The fact Sakara has retained his place in the UFC since 2005, despite a less than stellar record and having lost his last three bouts is quite impressive in itself. The Italian appears to be favoured among the Zuffa brass and perhaps it is partly to do with his aggressive come forward style that fans can easily appreciate. Musoke is a veteran of the European circuit and is riding a five fight win streak but I fancy ‘Legionarious’ to dominate the striking exchanges and get back to winning ways. Sakara
Sawitz: Sakara isn’t a great fighter, not by any means, but he always gets into “Just Bleed” fanboys favorite type of fight: crappy brawls. It’s why he’s stuck around but he’s on a substantial losing streak. Expect it to continue as Musoke turns the lights off early. Musoke.
Harris v Lineker
Keyes: John Lineker is one of the better prospects in the UFC and a real livewire. Lineker throws wild and he throws mean with serious power for a flyweight, and if he connects, not many fighters in that weight class will last to hear the klaxon. I like Harris; he’s a good, solid fighter with very few weaknesses but at the same time, very few stand-out qualities. Lineker takes this. Lineker
CY: Harris is an experienced, submission savvy flyweight who will need to get the fight to the ground as quickly as possible. What he cannot afford to do is let Lineker set himself and get comfortable as his striking and athleticism is on another level to the Englishman. Despite being curiously named after an English footballer, Lineker is an explosive Brazilian fighter who has knocked out his last two opponents in impressive outings and could find himself in title contention with one or two more victories. Lineker
Sawitz: Lineker is making his exit from 125 because he can’t make the weight. Either somebody pay Mike Dolce to work with the guy or tell him to fight at bantamweight, where he still has ridiculous power. Lineker
