MMA is a ruthless business, yet I am still surprised at how certain names are not yet in the UFC or, at the very least, the Contender Series. Christian Natividad is one such name. “The Hawaiian Punch” (amazing nickname, by the way) has a perfect professional record of nine wins with no losses, going undefeated in amateur as well. Still under thirty years of age, he has time to continue to build his resume and hone his already razor sharp skills. Born in Hawaii and now fighting out of Arizona, Natividad has fought his entire professional career under the LFA, a major feeder organization for the UFC. To win nine straight fights under their banner is noteworthy for a man not yet in the UFC. Interestingly, Natividad shares some similarities with the fighter who was the subject of last week’s article, Phumi Nkuta. Both these gentlemen have unblemished records at flyweight, but have had the majority of their wins come by decision. Natividad is an incredible fighter, but he found himself going several years without a finish. To the average viewer, this might signal that he is not a draw, a statement with which I strongly disagree.
I will reiterate what I said last week. It is far from enough to just look at a fight result; you have to actually watch the fight. To any MMA media or UFC brass that happens to stumble across this article, Natividad is a phenomenally polished and entertaining fighter. In a sport where it is impossible not to make mistakes, Natividad still makes very few. He exhibits a high fight IQ and remains intelligent without turning the bout into a snooze fest. I, for one, love his ringcraft and boxing when watching his fights. He absolutely lights opponents up on the feet so much so that it looks like he is hitting a heavy bag. He alters targets and strings together punches effortlessly, all while integrating proper defense. Let’s tighten the lens on how he does this.
Every standup affair should prioritize a jab, and Natividad, with a sizable reach for his weight class, makes good use of it. He has footwork Rex Ryan would be proud of, and uses it to either pivot or evade incoming offense. From his early LFA days to now, his jab and footwork remain apparent. For example, he uses this to cover distance. Natividad will flash a jab or two, step inside his opponent’s legs as they retreat, and time an overhand right to catch them on the back foot.
As referenced, Natividad is rarely caught out of position, he is typically the one who forces his opponent to slip up. His boxing fundamentals are finely tuned, and his hands are usually higher around his head. He is great at parrying and blocking, but even better with his head movement. Upon ducking/slipping a punch, he puts himself in prime position to either counter himself or time a takedown. For example, against Jostin Quilca, Quilca’s spinning elbow attempt allowed Natividad an opening to bring the fight to the ground right into side control.
Expanding on that vein, Natividad does not use head movement solely for defense. In every fight of his that I have seen, he appears a virtuoso in pull counters. The jab is used to mitigate distance, while in exchanges, his defensive maneuvers keep him safe. Hit, pull, hit again. Remaining fast and tight with his standup (pause), Natividad will often slip, rip the body, then go upstairs to the head. You cannot put yourself in a treacherous position at all when fighting Natividad. Against Jose Sandoval, Natividad heavily punished knees by throwing huge hooks to the body. Instead of jabbing, Natividad will also throw his left hook from long range, curving around the opponent’s raised guard. While the finish sometimes eludes him, I have watched him toy with dangerous fighters time and again.
I am sure everyone reading this is familiar with Ilia Topuria (if not, why would you read an article like this?). One topic Topuria has stated that stuck with me was that many pugilists do not extend their combinations in MMA. He is right; unless their opponent is severely compromised, fighters are wary of the dangers headed back in their direction, and thus are rightfully hesitant to throw for too long. However, an athlete with the reflexes of Natividad need not worry so much. When watching him, he does not just jab on the outside or attempt power shots one at a time. He has lengthier combinations that pepper and confuse the other man. When considering the speed many flyweights have (particularly Natividad), he can enter range with his jab, slip oncoming traffic, attack the head and body, then pivot out and exit before his opponent can react appropriately.
While I have been glossing over his boxing, I have also loved what I have seen from his ground game. Natividad likes his double leg takedowns, again, often using them once the other guy puts himself out of position. I find that he has mammoth top pressure, and either crushes or moves around frames well. Again, this is not a man who will stall. Even while in his opponent’s guard, he is always trying to rain ground and pound, not just hold the man down.
Anyone complaining about decision wins can kick rocks. The only decision I care about is getting this man into the UFC. Natividad is the complete package. Entertaining and precise boxing paired with constant activity and top tier fight IQ. If you watch Natividid fight, skill for skill, he can absolutely hang with the talent in the UFC. You know what they say. Keep knocking on the door, and eventually it will open. I just hope it doesn’t take another nine LFA wins for the UFC to see the potential that is so clearly evident.
