Check out UFC Fight Pass this Saturday!
The UFC will bring its fans a night full of action on the big network Fox this weekend headlined by a pivotal light heavyweight contest. However, be sure to catch the prelims which will give us a total of nine fights leading up to the highly anticipated Fox main card. Of these nine prelims, six will be on Fox Sports 1 and three will be on the UFC streaming service UFC Fight Pass. I’m going to go ahead and take a look at these UFC Fight Pass match ups which will be starting at 12:30 PST/ 3:30 EST.
Matt Dwyer vs. Randy Brown
Starting off with the ]first fight of the night, we will be getting a rather intriguing bout bewteen Matt Dwyer and RandyBrown. Matt Dwyer, while he’s only 1-2 in the UFC, holds a KO win over William Macario as well wins outside the promotion over DaMarques Johnson and Shonie Carter. He’s a very talented striker, and his height and reach can present some problems for anybody. Dwyer is 6’4″, which is very tall for the welterweight division; to put that into perspective, Carlos Condit – a man who is rather tall and uses his length well – is only 6’2″. Dwyer, for being a potent striker, is rather hittable on the feet though. He throws a diverse array of attacks, and mixes things up very well as to constantly keep his opponent guessing, but sometimes he doesn’t move his feet as much as he should and gets tagged.
It’ll be interesting to see who wins the stand up exchanges between him and Randy Brown. Brown is a very athletic guy who hits hard, and knows he hits hard. You’ll see Brown loading up and exploading with pretty much ever shot he throws, but that could have some really good effects. The smart pick here is Dwyer because he’s more tested and will win long term fight, but I’m going with the undefeated prospect who is undefeated and has finished all six of his opponents. I’ll take Brown by TKO in the second round in what should be a very entertaining, back-and-forth slugfest.
Tony Martin vs. Felipe Olivieri
Making his UFC debut, Olivieri holds a record of 14-4 and really seems to have a lot of promise being that he’s a product of Nova Uniao. He’s rather experienced, and has finished all but one of his wins. Oliviei looks for the knockout and is definitely an aggressive go-getter who mixes up his muay thai attack very well. Martin on the other hand is an American Top Team product, so this is a really interesting battle between two young promising up-and-comers from two very well-respected gyms. While Olivieri quite the “pedal to the metal” type of guy, Martin is very calculated and sometimes this has worked against him. Martin is a savage on the ground as he can snag submissions (primarily chokes) from many different positions. However, Martin has been susceptible to being overpowered. Overall, Martin just seems like the type of guy who breaks whenever he’s dealt pressure, and you can count on Olivieri brings pressure – lots of it. I’ll take Olivieri by a quick TKO as he overwhelms Martin and smashes him with his aggressive muay thai onslaught.
Levan Makashvili vs. Damon Jackson
Capping off the UFC Fight Pass exclusive prelims is a chance to see a rising prospect in Levan Makashvili his UFC chips to 3-1. Makashvili is powerhouse fighter who has showed great skill and athleticism in grinding down two of his three UFC opponents. His one loss was to Hacran Dias, and was by split decision. On the opposite side is Damon Jackson, a guy who has yet to taste UFC victory. Unfortunately for “The Leech”, I don’t think UFC victory will be there for him Saturday because Levan Makashvili just seems to be too strong, too skilled, and will most likely have Jackson outmatched in every area. While Jackson is a sneaky submission specialist, he leaves himself far too exposed in the process, and those types of mistakes will be key moments for Makashvili to maintain control and dominate the pace of the fight. Look for Makashvili to test his stand up against Jackson, but also be inclined to take Jackson down whenever he feels necessary. I predict a one sided decision victory for Levan Makashvili.
That’s all for the UFC Fight Pass prelims. After these fights, be sure to switch over to Fox Sports 1 to catch their preliminary match ups as the action gets even better over there.
