Phil Davis and Ryan Bader will battle in a high profile light heavyweight match up this Saturday (Jan. 24, 2015) at UFC on FOX 14 inside the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. Between these very talented wrestlers, what adjustments must be made for either man in order to claim victory? Find out how below!
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweights Phil Davis and Ryan Bader will collide this Saturday (Jan. 24, 2015) at UFC on FOX 14 inside the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.
Coming off a big win over Glover Teixeira, Davis is looking to continue building momentum. Outside of the main event winner, few fighters have a better case for a title shot should Davis win this bout.
Bader has a fair amount of momentum himself. He's currently on a three fight win streak, including a unanimous decision victory over upstart Ovince St. Preux. Still, a victory over Davis would be the biggest of his career.
Let's take a look at the keys to victory for each man.
Phil Davis
Record: 13-2 (1)
Key Wins: Glover Teixeira (UFC 179), Lyoto Machida (UFC 163), Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (UFC Fight Night 24)
Key Losses: Anthony Johnson (UFC 172), Rashad Evans (UFC on FOX 2)
Keys to Victory: Davis is a tremendous wrestler, an NCAA champion and four time All-American. This has translated into a dominant top game with dangerous submission skills, resulting in four tapout victories.
Though his kickboxing could easily be classified as clunky, Davis is becoming more effective with his stand up. Considering his opponent's impressive wrestling background -- in addition to the sturdy defense of the division's elite -- that may be important here.
Davis is obviously going to look to take his opponent to the mat. In order to make that happen, Davis needs to continue developing his ability to blend his takedowns with his boxing.
Between such talented wrestlers, it's unlikely that either man will be able to finish their first shot. Instead, Davis needs to replicate his success against Teixeira, in which he chained together takedown attempts. Each time he shot, Davis would transition into different positions and constantly apply pressure.
Eventually, he wore through his opponent's defenses and dragged him to the mat.
Plus, Davis is likely the better conditioned of the two. If he forces a high number of grueling wrestling exchanges, the fight should get easier for him as it goes on.
Ryan Bader
Record: 18-4
Key Wins: Ovince St. Preux (UFC Fight Night 47), Rafael Cavalcante (UFC 174), Quinton Jackson (UFC 144)
Key Losses: Glover Teixeira (UFC Fight Night 28), Lyoto Machida (UFC on FOX 4)
Keys to Victory: Bader has yet to make a sudden jump in technical prowess as some fans were hoping, his steady improvement has resulted in a legitimate top ten fighter. His wrestling has been pretty strong for some time, but his overall boxing technique has grown quite a bit.
It's no accident that "Darth" has finished six of his foes via knockout.
Bader is going to have to rely on his boxing in this battle. In order to defeat Davis, he'll have to replicate Anthony Johnson's game plan. Basically, Bader needs to put Davis on the defensive with power punches and defend any takedown attempts.
On the feet, Bader is the more fluid and more powerful striker. So long as he does not over-commit to his punches, he should be able to defend Davis' takedowns, as Bader historically been a tough man to drag to the mat.
In addition, Bader should look to copy "Rumble's" success with the uppercut. Davis often shoots takedowns with little setup when he's flustered, meaning that it shouldn't be too difficult for Bader to time the blow.
Finally, Bader needs to punish Davis for each of his takedown attempts. In addition to the uppercuts, Bader should be very active with punches and elbows during any grappling exchanges. If Bader can take away Davis' motivation to wrestle, it's his fight to lose.
Bottom Line: Though this fight will not make either man an instant title challenger -- that honor goes to the main event winner -- it will put the victor second in line.
Both men have been grinding away at the light heavyweight division for some time. They're also coming into their primes, meaning that the time to strike is now. Both men have championship goals, and a victory is mandatory to move forward.
Though a loss ruins immediate title plans, there aren't a lot of other contenders or up-and-comers in the light heavyweight division. Simply put, there isn't a lot of room for either man to fall, so they'll still be in the proverbial mix. However, they also have a reputation of failing when they step up in competition, and a loss here would not help with that.
At UFC on FOX 14, Phil Davis and Ryan Bader will go to war in a battle of wrestle-boxers. Which man will leave the cage with a victory?
No comments:
Post a Comment