Kelvin Gastelum and Tyron Woodley will battle for a potential title shot this Saturday (Jan. 31, 2015) at UFC 183 inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Between these two talented wrestlers, what adjustments must be made for either man in order to claim victory? Find out how below!
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweights Kelvin Gastelum and Tyron Woodley will go to war this Saturday night (Jan. 31, 2015) at UFC 183 inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Gastelum may have surprised most fight fans at first with his success, but he's confirmed his position as a top-10 talent. With a victory over Woodley, Gastelum will try to prove that he's also a worthy title contender.
Thus far, Woodley has proven to be either incredibly dynamic or quickly nullified inside the Octagon. Still, his violent victories helped him build momentum fairly quickly, and a win over a surging fighter like Gastelum would do wonders for getting him back into title contention.
Let's take a look at the keys to victory for each fighter.
Kelvin Gastelum
Record: 9-0
Key Wins: Rick Story (UFC 171), Jake Ellenberger (UFC 180), Uriah Hall (TUF 17 Finale)
Key Losses: None
Keys to Victory: Gastelum is proving to be quite the well-rounded phenom. In addition to his strong wrestling background, Gastelum is excellent at capitalizing on submission opportunities and picking his opponent apart from the Southpaw stance.
In order to earn the most high profile bout of his career, Gastelum needs to make this a striking battle. That may sound like a dangerous proposition against his power punching opponent, but Gastelum has already showed major composure under fire.
Plus, Gastelum is the much sharper range striker, a distance which MacDonald easily stymied Woodley from. Between his kicks and even his sharp right hand jab, Gastelum has the tools necessary to frustrate his opponent.
Additionally, Gastelum knows Woodley will look for his counter right hand. Woodley throws with a ton of power, which means he commits to the strike. With that in mind, Gastelum can land punches and then duck under his opponent's return punches with a quick double leg attempt.
In short, this fight isn't all that different from his bout against Jake Ellenberger, Woodley is just a better wrestler. Therefore, Gastelum should look to replicate his success against "Juggernaut" by striking at range and then looking for the opportune moment to hit a double leg.
Tyron Woodley
Record: 14-3
Key Wins: Carlos Condit (UFC 171), Josh Koscheck (UFC 167), Dong Hyun Kim (UFC Fight Night 48)
Key Losses: Rory MacDonald (UFC 174), Jake Shields (UFC 161)
Keys to Victory: Woodley is an incredible athlete. The two-time All-American wrestler may have been a bit slow to develop his striking at first, but he's now a legitimate knockout threat to just about every fighter in the division.
Plus, he always has his smothering top game to fall back on.
Above all else, it's very important that Woodley remains active. If he gets stuck at the end of his opponent's punches and shells up, he's too far out to effectively wrestle and his punches get pretty predictable. That's far easier to do when Woodley's offense shuts down after a couple strikes.
Gastelum's defense is not perfect. Story dropped the young fighter in their wild scrap, and Ellenberger managed to land a few nice punches prior to getting choked out. Simply put, the more Woodley throws, the more likely it is that a major strike will land.
Keeping Gastelum on the defensive will have other benefits, too. If Woodley were the one pinning Gastelum to the cage with punches, it would be much easier for him to look for his own takedowns. Considering Gastelum's talent, it's very likely that Woodley will have to utilize all of his skill in order to pull off the victory.
Bottom Line: Outside of MacDonald and Hendricks -- or any fighter that beats either -- the winner of this bout is the closest to a title shot.
Gastelum has absolutely skyrocketed to the top. Less than two years ago, he was cannon fodder for Uriah Hall to spin kick into oblivion. Now, he's one the best fighters in the world, 23 years old, and on the verge of a potential title shot should he pull out the victory here.
On the other hand, a loss to Woodley would likely end up with Gastelum taking a bit of a step back in competition in order to develop his skills further. Considering how good Gastelum already is, that's a scary thought.
Meanwhile, Woodley has been given another chance to prove himself in a major bout. At 32 years old, Woodley should be in his prime and ready to capitalize on these bouts. If Woodley wants to be seen as a truly elite fighter, rather than a fighter simply near the top of his division, he needs to convincingly take this bout.
At UFC 183, Kelvin Gastelum and Tyron Woodley will battle over a position inside the top five. Which man will move closer towards the title?
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