Author: Around the Felt Sports
Fans focus on the best in the world, the top of the pyramid. Rightfully so, we want to see the best. What we don’t focus on nearly as much are the next generation of athletes who will eventually take their place. Every UFC champion was once a newcomer in another organization. That doesn’t mean we cannot recognize lightning in a bottle when it presents itself. Let me introduce you to Jeremiah Delgado, possibly the highest-touted prospect fighting out of Philadelphia. The 21-year-old featherweight has just two professional MMA bouts, and is already one of the hottest prospects in the sport.…
Where entertainment meets ability, a perfect storm emerges. Enter rising MMA prospect Tedrick Macklin. Boasting a 7-2 professional record, primarily in the Fury FC promotion, “T-Money” possesses all the tools and charisma to make real waves in the lightweight division of any organization. A versatile martial artist, he has attained six of his seven victories by way of finish. While he did endure a rough stretch in which he suffered back-to-back losses, he has never been finished. His last fight is a microcosm of what to expect with him: a violent finish. I say it all the time. It is…
Given the state of the UFC roster, there are increasingly fewer active legends left to cheer for. In a perpetually evolving MMA landscape, to be a long-standing constant is a rare achievement in and of itself. One fighter who can claim this honor better than nearly anybody is Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje. Gaethje has been fighting the who’s who in the division for his entire UFC career, with a resume so prestigious that he easily ranks among the best athletes to never win an undisputed title. Gaethje was not spoon-fed opponents or allowed to gain his footing like many others.…
The UFC has had its share of pros and cons, particularly during this calendar year. However, fans’ proclivity to favor recency bias would tend to indicate that the final fight card of the year has the potential to make the most impact. Unpredictability is perhaps the only constant in MMA. Cards that look like an Avengers-level threat can often be underwhelming, while tepid-looking Apex cards can look like something out of an anime. Based on what we know, though, there is every reason to be excited about the main card of UFC 323. The old guard versus the new, for…
Heavyweight contests in Mixed Martial Arts are a lot like fights in the stands at an NFL game. They don’t look like the sharpest tools in the shed, but they are certainly entertaining. It is well known that this largest division is also the least technical. Whoever lands first wins, and you won’t see too much of the laser-focused fight IQ or crispness that are observed in the lighter weight classes. Basically just two grizzlies going at it. For this reason, the Heavyweight division is rather top-heavy, comprising essentially preliminary fighters with a few truly elite gentlemen making up the…
Contrary to what Anthony Smith might believe, paper matters surprisingly little in a game of war. Styles make fights, not just rankings. While it is not on a PPV, there are few fights I am as excited about as Jean Silva versus Diego Lopes this weekend. I bring up rankings because while Lopes is currently ranked #2 at featherweight and recently fought for the title, Silva is ranked #10, with his best win being Bryce Mitchell in the division. If you’re a box score Stan, Lopes might seem to be the favorite. After all, he is higher up on the…
Predicting Khamzat Chimaev versus Dricus Du Plessis reminds me of writing a book report without reading the book. In terms of Chimaev, there is a more clearly defined fighting style. “Borz” wants to dominate his opponent with relentless pressure, utilizing his otherworldly grappling to ensnare his opponents in quicksand as quickly as possible. Dricus, by comparison, wins by… the power of friendship? It is a running joke that is not entirely unfounded. Du Plessis’s style looks as though he is reinventing the wheel in real time. Hail Mary-esque takedowns, Streetbeefs-style punches, and an uncanny ability to pull a rabbit out…
How Reinier de Ridder found success against Robert Whittaker All I can say is, if Reinier de Ridder ever fights Dricus Du Plessis, it’s going to look like a Tom & Jerry episode. RDR has an optically goofy style, but it just continues to work. The former two-division ONE world champion passed his toughest test yet in a split-decision victory over former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker last weekend. RDR was far from perfect, but this win cannot be discounted against such excellent competition. Now riding a five-fight win streak, with four coming in the UFC, de Ridder has proven…
Dustin Poirier. The Diamond. One of the only fighters who although he never won an undisputed title, is not usually seen as any less of a champion. A true fighter’s fighter, who had he been born in a different era, likely would have reached the summit. He has been an inspiration to so many through his resilience, clawing his way to the top despite setbacks. We see the theater of his life personified every time he steps into the octagon. Here, I will be performing a complete, holistic review on Poirier’s fighting style throughout his entire career, from similarities, differences,…
Max Holloway and Dustin Poirier are uniquely intertwined in each of each other’s careers. They each presented a litmus test for each other at the beginning, middle, and now end of their time (in Poirier’s case, at least). Similar to playoff teams, it is common knowledge that they both will be around come crunch time. On more than one occasion, this had led to an unavoidable clash between the two. Holloway and Poirier are not unlike childhood friends, who have seen each other grow and develop over a litany of years. As they grew, so did their skills. As the…