WEC 40 Aftermath

Takeya Mizugaki – was much better than anyone expected agains Torres. he avoided the ground at all costs. Mizugaki continually moved forward and threw punches, but not many combinations. Did not seem to have big time power, he hit Torres plenty but never rocked him. Good defensive, limited offense means all his fights should be close.

Miguel Torres – what can you say, he’s one of the best fighters in the world. commanded every aspect of the fight, realized his opponent was dangerous and didn’t fool around.

Joseph Benavidez – outworked curran for 3 rounds. he effectively avoided currans punching and bjj game, escaping several submission attempts. his offense is still limited, but his defense is sound. did not completely control curran from the top, but was very active.

jeff curran – did not push the action and settled into Benavidez gameplan. no combinations and had trouble sweeping. was unable to secure several submission attempts. was soundly beaten.

Ben Henderson – got a slow start, escaped a good guillotine attempt and immediately took control of the fight with strong striking. Henderson has proven to be a solid all round fighter. He is still a little sloppy and could have trouble with a wrestler that can keep the pressure on, Roller nearly did it. Good win though.

Shane Roller – Not as physical as I previously thought. Couldnt seal the deal and then got caught. Maybe he learns a lesson, maybe he’s not that good. Not really sure.

Rafael Assuncao – Much better striking than i thought. He’s a powerful little dude with a great mma body. Moved well and overcame a reach disadvantage. Should be a tough opponent for anyone in his division. Looks like a solid choice against lesser fighters.

Jameel Massouh – has a long way to go. his striking is very sloppy, crisp/technical puncher will tear him up. probably struggles against any physical wrestlers too, not good enough striking to keep those guys off him.

Bart Palaszewski – tried to fight smart with a couple takedowns, but he’s become strictly a stand-up fighter. his biggest problem is that he allows his opponents to become comfortable, because he’s not applying pressure. younger, quicker guys are give him fits.

Anthony Njokuani – Bart’s not an easy KO. NJ escaped a couple takedowns, showing he’s improving. he’s dangerous against anyone who cant get him down quickly. Mir said guys in his gym dont like to spar with him cuz his kicks come so fast.

Adrenaline MMA 1 notes

Mike Russow- learning nothing about Russow.  he came in and did what he was suppose to do

Jason Guida- showed up to fight, he was competitive.  lacks the tools to effectively keep a big fighter from pressuring him.  probably better against smaller guys that he can control a little better.

Terry Martin- Looked like a boxer, his head movement was great.  His punches were not very accurate and he never really landed any clean shots.  Good enough to handle inferior fighters but not enough to threaten quality opponents.

Diaju Takase- not sure what his strategy was, maybe the drunken fighter technique.  he is awkward and does not want to engage in striking.  any good striker with decent takedown defence can handle him.  Can’t play him in any situation.

Forrest Petz- got caught with a huge bomb in the first round, which stops 99% of all fighters.  he recovered enough to win the 2nd and 3rd rounds.  Very impressive.  Petz will be one the top fighters in his weight class at Adrenaline.  His standup is decent and his wrestling is very good.  Should be a safe favorite and a live underdog, particularly against guys without great striking.

Brian Gassaway-  he fought a very competitive fight.  he’s dangerous early when he’s got a lot of energy.  not enough ground game to stop a good wrestler like petz, who simply controlled the 2nd and 3rd rounds once he got Gassaway down.

Jeff Cox- is a reasonable underdog play.  He jumped on bartimus early and outstruck him until he got caught by a couple of good shots in the second.  Cox also showed a pretty good sprawl.  He should improve off a tough loss to the veteran.

Bart Palaszewski- another close fight for bartimus, who fights to his opponents level too often.  another slow stop and then he turns it on to get a win.  love his well rounded game, hate his slow start.  shaky as a big favorite.

Rory Markham- nothing new. very good if he can make it to ring.

Jay Ellis- cant play in any situation.

Joe Jordan and Ryan Williams both fought hard, but can’t recommend playing either guy in the future.

Clay French- was the most impressive fighter on the card.  he’s got the build of someone that can have a lot of success.  above average striking (not sure how good Massouh’s defense is) and his ground game is very good. saw him pass, mount and gnp all with ease.  French should roll through opponents until he gets to the top guys.

Jameel Massouh- overmatched physically and could never get much going.

saw them all…