UFC Fight Night: Almeida vs. Garbrandt is this Sunday!
While most years gift us a massive PPV event over Memorial weekend, we will instead be treated to a UFC Fight Night card, but I don’t think many are complaining. This Fight Night card is stacked with explosive match ups including two very important bouts in the 135 lb division. Prospects Thomas Almeida, Cody Garbrandt, Aljamain Sterling, and Bryan Caraway will all be featured. Let’s start with the UFC Fight Night prelims:
Chris de la Rocha vs. Adam Milstead
Starting off the action on Fight Pass is a heavyweight bout that I’m sure the UFC folks are hoping ends in a slugfest en route to a knockout. And that may just happen as neither de la Rocha nor Milstead have ever gone the distance in any of their fights. De la Rocha lost his UFC debut (taken on short notice by the way) via TKO in the first round where Milstead is making his UFC debut. De la Rocha relies heavily on his grappling, but showed how susceptible he is on the feet in his debut. Milstead has some solid boxing skills and is noticeably lighter and leaner. While de la Rocha may be able to tie up with Milstead and force it into a grappling match, I think it’s more likely that Milstead will get another first round finish to add to his résumé.
Aljamain Sterling vs. Bryan Caraway
While I’m sure many were hoping this fight would make it to the main card of some bigger event, I think it’s good that the UFC is putting high profile bouts on Fight Pass to further increase the platform’s value. Aljamain Sterling is the man everyone is talking about at 135 lbs. He has the swagger and charisma to be a real star, and so far the skills have been there too. Caraway on the other hand has been at he end of jokes and teases for much of his UFC career being the boyfriend to champ Meisha Tate. Don’t let that fool you though – Caraway has nearly 30 pro bouts under his belt and is 5-2 in the UFC.
Undefeated at 13-0, Sterling has shown to be an incredible grappler and wrestler. While his striking has looked a bit stiff, he is very creative, and uses it to stifle his opponents and ultimately set up takedowns. I do want to note that Caraway has a tendency to duck into kicks/knees, so look for that to be a possible exploit by Sterling on the feet. On the mat, he is very mature with beautiful transitions and top control. Sterling possesses very good athleticism, and is willing to take risks to set up fight-ending solutions. Sterling also likes to posture up, avoid the grappling chess-match, and just smash his opponent with punches – an art that has become all too lost among grapplers.
I do think that Caraway will be his biggest test though. As much as I want Sterling to give the bantamweight division some fire and attention, this fight may very well derail him temporarily. I say this because of how gritty and tough Caraway is. With a lot of experience, he’s not afraid to make the fight dirty and uncomfortable, which could exploit Sterling’s lack of experience. Caraway is also a bit stiff on the feet, but scrappy nonetheless and willing to trade punches in the pocket. I’m hoping Sterling gets some adversity thrown his way so we can see how he handles it. All the media attention Sterling has received lately also makes me think that may it’s too much too soon for him.
I think this will be a back-and-forth bout, and hopefully we get some brilliant ground exchanges between the two, but I’m tentatively picking Caraway for the upset. We haven’t seen Sterling rebound from any adversity and Caraway is a shark on the mat. If Sterling pulls off the win it’ll be a testament to his true potential, and that’s the case then I’m all aboard the Funk Master train.
Erik Koch vs. Shane Campbell
Coming off his two year off is former contender Erik Koch. He meets Canadian kickboxer Shane Campbell who is looking to rebound from a decision loss to James Krause earlier this year at UFC Fight Night 83. It’s hard to say what kind of shape Koch will be in coming in to this UFC Fight Night prelim match up, but either way he’s going to have his hands full. Campbell is a tall and lanky kickboxer who should have the striking advantage over Koch. However, Erik has also demonstrated skilled striking in the past; most noticeably by knocking out Rafael Assuncao in 2011. While Koch hasn’t ever been known to be a grappler, I think he’s going to need a well-rounded game if he wants to get the win here. I don’t see him out-striking Campbell. The safe pick is Campbell, but I’m also not ruling out a resurgence by Koch in which Koch can utilize some takedowns en route to a decision.
Jake Collier vs. Alberto Pereira
A battle between middleweights is up next as Collier, 1-2 in the UFC, meets promotional newcomer Alberto Pereira. Carrying his undefeated record into the Octagon is Pereira with 8 of his 9 wins being finishes. Collier on the other hand has finished 7 of his 9 victories. On paper, this fight should be full of fireworks. Collier has had the luxury of fighting in the UFC, and against some solid talent in Vitor Miranda (who fights on the main card). While he was knocked out by Miranda, Collier has shown thus far that he’s a gritty fighter with pretty well-rounded skills. Pereira has shown to be a little reckless on the feet, but dangerous nonetheless. On the mat, Pereira is very skilled – especially off his back. If Collier can stay tight and technical on the feet he should be able to get the better of their exchanges, but Pereira can make it chaos and if it’s chaos – I favor Pereira.
Abel Trujillo vs. Jordan Rinaldi
Stepping in on short notice is the 12-4 lightweight set to make his UFC debut. Rinaldo is an exceptional grappler who has 7 wins by submission. He takes on Abel Trujillo who has got to be one of the most intimidating forces at 155 lbs imagineable. Trujillo is a power puncher with an underrated grappling game as shown by his most recent guillotine submission win. While Rinaldo may be a force one day, I don’t think these circumstances favor him any. Trujillo has the power to end the fight in one punch, and should be able to manuever himself out of danger on the mat. Trujillo may even seek to over-power Rinaldi and score some takedowns himself. The safe pick is Trujillo, who was training for a skilled grappler in Diego Ferreira anyways.
Sara McMann vs. Jessica Eye
Headlining the prelim action is a women’s bantamweight bout featuring two women who desperately need a victory. They’re both on two-fight losing streaks with a decision loss to Meisha Tate common between them. McMann, once feared for her Olympic-level wrestling skills, has become increasingly beatable as of late. She has fundamental striking, some good power, and wicked takedowns, but her opponents have been able to out-pace and ultimately overwhelm her. Eye fits that description as someone able to do that. Eye is very scrappy and even though she doesn’t have the technique to out-work a Meisha Tate or Julianna Pena, her striking and grappling is good enough to get a hard-fought decision win here to cap off UFC Fight Night 88 prelims.
Stay tuned for more UFC Fight Night: Almeida vs. Garbrandt coverage!
