UFC Fight Night: Makhachev vs. Dos Anjos (November 14, 2020)

[THE_LOCKSMITH]

ESPN+ 7:00 pm ET
Paul Felder vs. Rafael dos Anjos
Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Khaos Williams
Julian Marquez vs. Saparbek Safarov
Eryk Anders vs. Antonio Arroyo
Brendan Allen vs. Sean Strickland

ESPN+ 4:00 pm ET
Kay Hansen vs. Cory McKenna
Miranda Granger vs. Ashley Yoder
Alex Morono vs. Rhys McKee
Louis Smolka vs. Jose Quinonez
Randa Markos vs. Kanako Murata
Geraldo de Freitas vs. Tony Gravely
Don’Tale Mayes vs. Roque Martinez

[slikec]

-515 vs Dos Anjos??? Wtf when was he such big underdog??

[Hugo de Naranja]

Thanks for starting the threads Locky!

[THE_LOCKSMITH]

Islam Makhachev out of UFC Fight Night 182 main event vs. Rafael dos Anjos

https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/11/ufc-fight-night-islam-makhachev-out-rafael-dos-anjos-main-event-new-opponent

[frankieunits2685]

I was looking forward to that Islam/RDA fight. They’re looking for a short notice replacement. What about Michael Chandler? I would enjoy watching that right.

[hankcream]

I was looking forward to that Islam/RDA fight. They’re looking for a short notice replacement. What about Michael Chandler? I would enjoy watching that right.

dos Anjos tweeted out the same thing, Dana has to go either Chandler or Chimaev if he wants any type of ratings

[magpie878]

RDA has already asked for Chandler... I'd like to see that.

[WolfTicketDealer]

dos Anjos tweeted out the same thing, Dana has to go either Chandler or Chimaev if he wants any type of ratings

There's no way Chimaev can make 155.

[frankieunits2685]

What do you guys think about the Abdul Ahassan/Khaos Williams fight?

[DiggityDaggityDo]

Islam Makhachev out of UFC Fight Night 182 main event vs. Rafael dos Anjos

https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020/...t-new-opponent

Bummer.

Bring in Chandler or Dober.

[DiggityDaggityDo]

[JIBBBY]

I think RDA's best years are probably behind him now. He's lost 4 of his last 5 fights.. Getting a bit long in the tooth now, been in alot of wars.. May begin to start auto fading him going forward if and when he fights a top 5 fighter in the division...

https://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Rafael-dos-Anjos-11675

[DiggityDaggityDo]

Looks like Chandler won't be stepping up.

Says he has other plans.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">If you don’t take a fight because you don’t have enough time to drop weight I get it but don’t tell me you have other plans.<br><br>I became the champion of the BIGGEST organization fighting everyone they put in front of me. Shame on you.</p>&mdash; Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) <a href="https://twitter.com/RdosAnjosMMA/status/1325856697227751424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" >November 9, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[UncleChael]

Looks like Chandler won't be stepping up.

Says he has other plans.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">If you don’t take a fight because you don’t have enough time to drop weight I get it but don’t tell me you have other plans.<br><br>I became the champion of the BIGGEST organization fighting everyone they put in front of me. Shame on you.</p>&mdash; Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) <a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/RdosAnjosMMA/status/1325856697227751424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" >November 9, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

I'm a big RDA fan.

[DiggityDaggityDo]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Shit I’ll fight RDA</p>&mdash; Luis Antonio Pena (@violentbobross) <a href="https://twitter.com/violentbobross/status/1325590730849611789?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" >November 9, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[JIBBBY]

RDA is straight up shooter.. I always liked him as well. Still doesn't mean I will bet on him though going forward.. Need to see who will fight him first?

[magpie878]

Great attitude, love the callout

[DiggityDaggityDo]

Violent Bob Ross!

[Sanity Check]

RDA always fights the toughest guys no 1 wants to fight.

Lots of respect to him for doing that.





Zubaira Tukhugov fought Hakeem Dawodu injured.

Khabib fought Justin Gaethje injured.

Islam Makhachev injured. Pulls out of fight.

Combo breaker!

[Sanity Check]

Paul Felder steps in to face RDA!

Paul Felder is another guy who deserves tons of respect for fighting the toughest names no one wants to fight.

[Thor4140]

Paul Felder steps in to face RDA!

Paul Felder is another guy who deserves tons of respect for fighting the toughest names no one wants to fight.

This has to be at a catch weight. Fielder is a big 155er

[hankcream]

What do you guys think about the Abdul Ahassan/Khaos Williams fight?

Under 1 round

[unlearn]

All I know is I'm fading Eryk Anders bigly

[Hugo de Naranja]

This has to be at a catch weight. Fielder is a big 155er

I believe it's still scheduled for 155.

[unlearn]

Seriously Eryk Anders blows

[Hugo de Naranja]

Seriously Eryk Anders blows

Bro, didn't you know he played football at Alabama?? That factoid almost never gets mentioned. Also, playing football automatically makes you a good MMA fighter. Everyone knows that.

[THE_LOCKSMITH]

^

[hankcream]

Sean Strickland was off for over 2 year, now he's coming off a 3 round decision 2weeks ago and is still a favorite over Brendan Allen

[DiggityDaggityDo]

Didn't see a thread for the DWCS so I'll just copy/past my plays from my thread here:

1.1u Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz +105


1.1u Nikolas Motta -170


1.1u Luana Pinheiro -260


1.1u Shaheen Santana -122



Holding off on betting Moore right now.

Moore opened at +250 earlier today and has already jumped to +390. Let's see how high he will climb.

OK, I finally pulled the trigger:

1.1u Taylor Moore +453

[hankcream]

GL Diggity on the DWCS plays

1 early play for Saturday :
2 units Rhys McKee + 158
I think he's undervalued because of the Chimaev beatdown, but McKee took the fight on 6 days notice. He's jacked up to reprove himself and from what I've seen from his Cage Warrios film, he's more skilled than Morono. Even Dana said he was a stud when he was talking about Chimaev.

[Hugo de Naranja]

All I know is I'm fading Eryk Anders bigly

I think the central flaw in Anders' game is that he is all left sided attacks (Straight Left, Overhand Left, Left Body Kick) with no setups. He has some natural power but his offense is mostly telegraphed so his opponents see it coming.

[JIBBBY]

Write ups..




135 lbs.: Jose Quinonez vs. Louis Smolka

While he failed to defeat Alejandro Perez in The Ultimate Fighter (TUF): “Latin America” finals, Jose Quinonez (8-4) put together a four-fight win streak to secure himself a foothold in the crowded UFC Bantamweight division. “El Teco” has since lost two of three, defeating Carlos Huachin, but falling to top prospects Nathaniel Wood and Sean O’Malley.
He will have a slight reach advantage over Louis Smolka (16-7) despite standing an inch shorter.
A three-fight stoppage streak brought “Da Last Samurai” back to the Octagon after a four-fight skid prompted his exit, and he started his second run strong with an armbar finish of Sumudaerji. He’s enjoyed more mixed success in his last three, sandwiching a knockout of Ryan MacDonald between submission losses to Matt Schnell and Casey Kenney.
His 14 professional stoppages are split evenly between knockouts and submissions.
This is, in a strange way, sort of uncharted territory for Quinonez. Since that Perez loss in 2015, he’s beaten five sub-UFC caliber opponents and been dominated by two fringe contenders. We’ve yet to really see him against a middle-of-the-pack opponent like Smolka, so it remains unclear where exactly “El Teco” stands in the division.
My guess? Somewhere above Smolka.
Along with being a natural Bantamweight fighting a man whose best work came at 125 pounds, Quinonez looks to have the edge in wrestling and boxing. While Smolka only really needs one window of top control to get the submission finish, he’s unlikely to get it without getting battered, and his durability doesn’t look as impressive as it used to be. So long as he doesn’t decide to try his luck against Smolka’s guard game, Quinonez out-strikes him to an entertaining decision win.
Prediction: Quinonez via unanimous decision
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Bad Mother Felder

115 lbs.: Randa Markos vs. Kanako Murata

From 2014 to 2019, Randa Markos (10-9-1) alternated losses and wins with clockwork regularity. The trend finally ended this year, though not in the way she’d have liked, as she dropped decisions to the fast-rising Amanda Ribas and Mackenzie Dern.
“Quiet Storm” steps in for Livinha Souza on little more than one week’s notice.
Kanako Murata (11-1) — a former amateur wrestling ace who once defeated Olympic gold medalist Helen Maroulis on the mat — has not tasted defeat since falling to UFC veteran Rin Nakai in her fifth pro fight, subsequently amassing wins in Pancrase, DEEP and Rizin. She successfully choked out Liana Pirosin in her Invicta debut before narrowly edging out Emily Ducote to claim the promotion’s Strawweight title last November.
Her four submission wins include two by Von Flue choke.
To be frank, Murata is the biggest UFC Strawweight signing in a long time. While the Ducote fight showed that she’s still not a finished product, she’s already extremely impressive and boasts the strongest wrestling pedigree in the division with the possible exception of Tatiana Suarez. I expect her to make an immediate impact at 115 pounds, starting with finishing off Markos’ winning record.
Though the better striker of the two, “Quiet Storm” has struggled with lesser takedown artists than Murata and isn’t likely to overwhelm the latter’s strong submission defense from her back. A relentless series of well-timed takedowns carry Murata to a successful debut.
Prediction: Murata via unanimous decision
Related
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135 lbs.: Tony Gravely vs. Geraldo de Freitas

Tony Gravely (19-6) entered “Contender Series” in the midst of a 10-1 run, the sole loss coming to Bellator standout Patchy Mix, and upped it to 11-1 with a contract-winning finish of Ray Rodriguez. This led to an entertaining but unsuccessful January debut opposite contender Brett Johns, which ended up earning both men “Fight of the Night” bonuses.
He is the shorter man by two inches and surrenders 2.5 inches of reach.
Geraldo de Freitas (12-5) — who hadn’t lost since 2015 — extended his win streak to seven with a UFC debut victory over Felipe Colares last year. He just barely failed to do the same to Chris Guteirrez six months later, losing a split decision that the majority of the mixed martial arts (MMA) media had him winning.
This will be his first fight in 15 months because of COVID-19 scrapping a March bout with Jack Shore.
He may have ultimately lost, but Gravely held his own against a top 15-ranked fighter in his first Octagon appearance, which bodes well for his future in the promotion. He has a more favorable matchup in de Freitas, whom he outclasses in the wrestling and seemingly has the skills to outclass on the feet.
While Gravely’s five submission losses should give de Freitas some confidence, he has to actually get Gravely to the mat first, and I don’t see him doing so without a massive miscalculation on the American’s part. Gravely sprawls-and-brawls with a dash of top control to claim his first Octagon win.
265 lbs.: Don’Tale Mayes vs. Roque Martinez

Don’Tale Mayes (7-4) finally secured a UFC contract last year with a first-round knockout of Ricardo Prasel in his third “Contender Series” appearance. He’s yet to taste victory in the Octagon itself, as both Ciryl Gane and Rodrigo Nascimento forced him to submit in successive efforts.
“King Kong” stands eight inches taller than Roque Martinez (15-6-2) and has almost 10 inches of reach on him.
Guam’s Martinez followed up his brutal war with Jake Heun by defending his DEEP Openweight title with a knockout of Seigo Mizuguchi, then beat down Hideki “Shrek” Sekine in his return. Then came Alexander Romanov, who manhandled Martinez in the latter’s short-notice Octagon debut this past September.
He has knocked out eight professional opponents and submitted another three.
Limited as he is, I’ll be surprised if Mayes contrives to lose this one. Martinez isn’t going to out-technique him on the feet or exploit his lacking grappling the way Gane and Nascimento did. On the contrary, he’s here for a slugfest against a much bigger and more powerful brawler, and his edge in punching technique can’t make up the massive gap in horsepower.
Neither of these men have many winning match ups in UFC’s Heavyweight division, but unfortunately for Martinez, he’s on Mayes’ list. In the end, Mayes clobbers him with haymakers sometime in the first round.
Prediction: Mayes via first-round technical knockout



115 lbs.: Kay Hansen vs. Cory McKenna

The 21-year-old Kay Hansen (7-3) enjoyed mixed success under the Invicta banner, but managed to win her last two bouts in the promotion before jumping ship to UFC. Her June debut pitted her against former Atomweight champ Jinh Yu Frey, whom Hansen submitted in the third round to claim “Performance of the Night.”
She’ll have a 4.5-inch reach advantage over “The Hobbit.”
McKenna (5-1) went undefeated (7-0) as an amateur before joining Cage Warriors, where she scored three finishes in four victories. Her efforts led to an August “Contender Series” bout, wherein she out-grappled Vanessa Demopoulos in a contract-winning effort.
She’s knocked out two professional opponents and submitted one other.
I really, really like this matchmaking. Both women look perfectly equipped to exploit the other’s weaknesses. In particular, Hansen has poor striking and a tendency to end up in bad positions, but is an overpowering wrestler. Meanwhile, McKenna’s wrestling is largely unproven, but she’s a slick striker with excellent opportunistic submissions. This looks like a perfect learning opportunity for two very promising young women.
Hansen’s takedowns look like the deciding factor. That’s because she’s a strong enough top control specialist to shut down McKenna’s grappling attack as long as she plays it smart and doesn’t try anything fancy. McKenna’s still likely to put her in submission danger at least once, but expect Hansen’s control time to carry her to an entertaining decision.
Prediction: Hansen via unanimous decision
Related
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115 lbs.: Ashley Yoder vs. Miranda Granger

Ashley Yoder (7-6) — who won her first bout on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 23 before falling to Kate Jackson — snapped a three-fight losing streak with consecutive decisions over Amanda Cooper and Syuri Kondo. “The Spider Monkey” has since lost two straight, dropping competitive decisions to Randa Markos and Livinha Souza.
All four of her professional submission wins have come by armbar.
A 41-second guillotine choke of Heloisa Azevedo earned Miranda Granger (7-1) the CFFC Strawweight title, her sixth consecutive finish, and a spot in the Octagon, where she defeated Hannah Goldy in her promotional debut. She couldn’t do the same to Amanda Lemos, however, tapping to a rear naked choke four months later.
She’ll enjoy a 1.5-inch reach advantage.
Yoder’s Octagon record doesn’t accurately reflect her abilities; she gave Markos, Souza, MacKenzie Dern and Angela Hill everything they could handle in defeat, and I’ve got her beating Granger. “Danger’s” recent loss to Lemos showed that she’s vulnerable to strong grapplers, and Yoder is more than skilled and relentless enough to exploit that shortcoming in similar fashion.
That said, Yoder isn’t the most potent offensive wrestler in the world, so Granger could win this if she maintains range and picks her off. Still, I favor Yoder to wrangle her to the mat for either a submission finish or comfortable decision.
Prediction: Yoder via first-round submission
Related
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170 lbs.: Alex Morono vs. Rhys McKee

Alex Morono (17-6) put a 1-2 skid behind him to win three straight, among them a “Fight of the Night” decision over Song Kenan and a first-round technical knockout of Zak Ottow. The streak cemented him as a massive favorite against Khaos Williams in February, only for “The Great White” to suffer a 27-second knockout loss.
He gives up three inches of height and half a foot of reach to Rhys McKee (10-3-1).
“Skeletor” avenged a knockout loss to Tim Barnett to claim the BAMMA Lightweight title in 2018, and though he lost the belt to Terry Brazier in his first defense, he bounced back with three consecutive finishes. He then had the misfortune of debuting against Khamzat Chimaev, who smashed him into submission halfway through the first round.
Each of his 10 wins has come inside the distance, seven of them by form of knockout.
Unless McKee has put on some much-needed mass and actually figured out how to use his ridiculous reach, he’s in for a bad time. Morono, while nobody’s idea of a striking technician, packs enough heat in those wild swings to hurt the defensively inept “Skeletor” and could find success with his ground game as well. McKee’s superior offensive boxing isn’t sufficient to overcome the disparity in strength and stopping power.
I’m just not convinced McKee can make his game work against capable Welterweights. Without the firepower to budge Morono, expect him to spend 15 minutes or less on the wrong end of a slugfest.
Prediction: Morono via unanimous decision

[JIBBBY]

Welterweight: Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Khaos Williams

Best Win for Alhassan? Niko Price For Williams? Alex Morono
Current Streak: Alhassan came up short last time out, while Williams enters off a successful UFC debut
X-Factor: Has Alhassan learned anything from his last fight?
How these two match up: Violence!
Alhassan is nicknamed “Judo Thunder,” which sounds super cool, but the emphasis is definitely on the second word. Alhassan throws tremendously powerful punches, looking to end his opponent inside the opening couple minutes ... but if the fight goes late, things tend to get hairy.
Williams is something of a slugger himself. He’s not quite an overwhelming knockout artist like his foe, but “The Oxfighter” — another awesome nickname! — but Williams nevertheless likes to trade hooks. He’ll also dig low kicks and wrestle occasionally, but only power shots were needed to knock out Morono in 27 seconds.
There is a very established path to success against Alhassan, which involves surviving the opening five minutes and capitalizing on his fatigue later in the fight. Williams is tough and has yet to be finished, but otherwise, there’s really nothing about his game that fits with the path.
In terms of pure power, Williams is outgunned (though a flash knockout the other way is, of course, always possible). Technically, Williams might have an advantage, but not one so large that if offsets the power. The “better” fighter can still lose if fatigued, but even then, Williams tends to slow down in the second round too.
As for wrestling, I also tend to lean towards Alhassan as the more likely man to get on top.
Prediction: Alhassan via knockout
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Middleweight: Julian Marquez vs. Saparbek Safarov

Best Win for Marquez? Darren Stewart For Safarov? Rodney Wallace
Current Streak: Both athletes lost their most recent fight
X-Factor: Marquez’s 28-month layoff
How these two match up: This should also be a scrap!
Marquez made a real name for himself as an early “Contender Series” product to watch. A really physical Middleweight with a rugged dirty boxing style, Marquez seemed prime to do big things ... until a split-decision loss sent him to the sidelines for over two years!
Safarov is an absolute wild man. He goes hard from the first bell, throwing winging punches until he’s gassed then continuing to throwing wide hooks! Sloppy stuff, but he has finished six foes via knockout. Supposedly, Safarov is a master of sports in both Combat Sambo and Freestyle Wrestling, but that has yet to be evident in his UFC bouts.
Truly, this appears to be booked as a rebound fight for Marquez. Safarov is tough and dangerous, but he fatigues quickly, and there’s nothing complicated about his style.
“The Cuban Missile Crisis” is comfortable in a brawl. He should be able to handle taking a few shots in the early going. Yet as Safarov starts to fade, Marquez should be in prime position to turn up the heat and force a finish.
Prediction: Marquez via knockout
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Middleweight: Eryk Anders vs. Antonio Arroyo

Best Win for Anders? Brendan Allen For Arroyo? Henrique da Silva
Current Streak: Both men enter following a single loss
X-Factor: will Anders opt to strike or try to force his takedowns?
How these two match up: This one might end up a classically slow Middleweight bout, but it also could be a brawl!
Anders is a frustrating fighter, and I say that as a fan. He has major athletic ability, but he’s arguably regressed? He’s no longer the aggressive Southpaw slugger that stormed into the UFC to flatten Rafael Natal. He’s trying to improve his technique and become more well-rounded, but some times that equates to not throwing enough punches and shooting for bad takedowns.
Arroyo is a well-rounded and physical talent himself, but his UFC debut saw him pretty soundly out-grappled when his gas tank began to fail. Still, he kicks plenty hard, and the Brazilian finishes opponents more often than not.
At this stage in the game, Anders’ overall game is an x-factor. Will he spam takedowns? Refuse to throw punches? Hang on the outside and get kicked? There’s precedents for all of that.
At the same time, Anders is not an easy man to beat. He’s largely proven impossible to take down, is incredibly tough, and hits like a truck. Assuming Anders is fighting well, it takes a certain level of finesse or expertise to really handle “Ya Boi,” and I’m not sure Arroyo is that guy.
I expect a close, somewhat ugly bout that moves between distance striking, clinch leaning, and perhaps an occasional takedown of little consequence. The judges will be left to name a winner, and Anders’ left hand will prove the most memorable factor of the fight.
Prediction: Anders via decision

[frankieunits2685]

Marquez fight off

[Juventuz]

GL Diggity on the DWCS plays

1 early play for Saturday :
2 units Rhys McKee + 158
I think he's undervalued because of the Chimaev beatdown, but McKee took the fight on 6 days notice. He's jacked up to reprove himself and from what I've seen from his Cage Warrios film, he's more skilled than Morono. Even Dana said he was a stud when he was talking about Chimaev.

Thinking about tailing but would be happy to hear what other folks here think about this fight? Hugo?