Ian Machado Garry was the one who was aiming to top the welterweight rankings. Now he finds himself guarding his place against one of the hottest fighters in the division.
Carlos Prates won four consecutive fights, recorded four straight knockouts and five straight $50,000 bonuses. It’s a step up for Prato, who has emerged from the highlight reel victory over veterans Neil Manny and Lee Jinlian.
The talk of the top of their division now revolves around champion Beral Muhammad, defending Jack Della Madalena at UFC 315 on May 10th, with Muhammad’s best friend UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev potentially moving to 170 pounds. That possibility confuses the picture of the candidates, not to mention the presence of other viable challengers, such as Sean Brady and Shavkat Rakmonov (now on the sidelines with injuries), as well as the winner of the announced main event of UFC Atlanta between former champions Kamal Usman and Joaquin Buckley.
One thing is for sure, anyone who was impressed with Saturday’s headlining isn’t too far from the title shot, regardless of how the rest of the division is shaking for the next few months.
In other main card actions, one-time light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Smith takes a final walk in the octagon as he wins Changmin Yang, and Jigachikaze protects the featherweight tenuous hold from David Onama.
what: UFC Kansas City
where: T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri
when: Saturday, April 26th. The eight-match spare cards begin at 6pm ET on ESPN+, followed by six-match main cards on ESPN2 and ESPN+ at 9pm.
(The numbers in parentheses indicate that they are standing MMA is fighting against global rankings))
Ian Machado Garry (6) vs. Carlos Prates
It may not be the sexiest aspect of combat sports, but Saturday’s main event is about distance control.
Ian Machado Garry fantasized himself as an elite technical striker, and he certainly backed up it. He’s good at avoiding damage. This is somewhat important when dealing with the Carlos Awards. Plates has as much left hand as the fighter jets I remember these days, so it doesn’t take much to put Garry.
So you fall into garry, mix things up and enjoy as little time as possible in your pocket. Not only can Plates score from range, he’s also good at setting up his power strike by sliding shots inside (did I mention his left hand?). Garry can definitely win an impressive battle, but plays on fire every minute with his feet.
Garry needs to go to his grappling when the opening presents itself. This was a five-round battle, and he should have an advantage in aerobic exercise, and he was intense for 25 minutes in his career. Plates has no experience fighting in three rounds.
In the war of attrition (assuming Garry avoids Big Kibosh early), Garry wears the star and submits him fourth.
choose: Garry
Anthony Smith vs. Chang Mingyan
Anthony Smith, no matter what happens next, we will pay our tribute to you.
The spread of imagination never led to beaters or blue chip prospects around the world. Not only did Smith establish himself as a light heavyweight candidate for the UFC, but he was also moral difficulties from fighting for the title and taking the title from John Jones with disqualification. Smith was 27 fights in his professional career when he moved out of Strike Force when he began his second UFC run, which had been running for nearly a decade.
Full disclosure, I always love Smith because it was the first interview Smith has ever done as part of the MMA Fighting team. He was still middleweight and barely blips on casual fan radar, so it was a joy to see him bloom into the headline fighter jets and the mainstay of UFC broadcasts. I pay my respects to you, “Lion Heart.”
I’m also choosing for you.
Win and lose, Smith is out on his own terms and we should all respect that. I’m just making obvious choices in the younger, less fighting Zhang. Smith’s victory shocks no one as Zhang faced much less competition. I speculate that his raw ability will pass through him and lead to his first knockout.
choose: Chan
Gia Free (14) vs. David waits
The biggest question you have about this match is, “Is Giga Chikadze still ranked?”
Yes, it’s been a while since Chiccadeze looked really worthy of the top 15 rankings (his Edson Barboza knockout? August 2021?), but there’s no shame in it, as his only UFC loss is in Arnold Aenn and Calvin Kattal. I may be wrong, but that’s my opinion.
Anyway, the truth will become known tonight as he fights the dangerous David. We’re still waiting for Ontama to put it all together, but he’s beginning to understand who he is: a fast fighter who improves boxing and quality takedown defense. He has to work hard to spend the more seasoned blows of Chikaze. Fortunately, for Onama, the output is not an issue, he himself presents many issues to Chikadze.
I’ll go with Ontama by decision, but I hope this will be something close.
choose: Approval
Michel Pereira (15) vs. Abs Magomedov
I got the better idea of Michelle Pereira’s ceiling being defeated by Anthony Hernandez. As Pereira was not known for his outstanding aerobic exercise, it became clear that “Fluffy” was his kryptonite and that Pereira might not be built for the MMA marathon.
That flaw can raise an ugly head against Abs Magomedov, who is comfortable to distance himself in order to win the battle. He has many defensive weaknesses Pereira can take advantage of, so if you want to avoid being on the wrong end of the highlights here, Magomedov needs to be at his conservative best.
As for Magomedov, he’s just like the opponent Pereira was built to style. It’s not a threat to push stand-up pace, hitable, and a step slower. I like Pereira to deliver vintage performances here, snatching victory and keeping his dimly lit title alive.
choose: Pereira
Randy Brown vs Nicholas Dalby
This battle for the veteran welterweights describes a split city.
It’s not often that Randy Brown and Nicholas Dalby separate. The two veterans have seen it all and are models of modern MMA fighters. Is it impressive? They do that. wrestling? They do that. Grappling? They do that. Aerobic exercise? They have it. This is an excellent matchmaking. Don’t expect sparks to be guaranteed. Both fighters are very balanced and suppress attempts to pull the scorecard apart every turn.
Brown’s creativity and size are enough to put him on the top in this matchup, but Dalby does everything he can to make the fight uncomfortable. Brown looks for a step ahead of the three rounds, scoring enough points to get a few judges and return to the winning track.
choose: brown
Ikram Alisters vs. Andre Muniz
Our main card opener should end with a finish like Ikram Alicekarov showing off his knockout abilities and breaking his incredible grappling game. On the other hand, this could be a real middleweight.
Imagine a scenario in which Alice Kerov stands out because of her fear of a takedown, and a scenario in which Muniz endlessly feints and changes the levels in fear of Alice Kerovko’s blows. You can see that, right? Isn’t it great?
I’ll go with Alice Kerov to put my hands (and kicks and knees) on Muniz so that that jinx doesn’t get in the way. Alicekarov moves surprisingly well for the 185er, and he generates power quickly. As far as I’m tired of pointing out this, Muniz hasn’t fought over 500 days and turned 35 this February.
Alice Karov was knocked out in the first round.
choose: Alicekolov
spare
Matt Schnell def. Jimmy Frick
Evan Elder Def. Young Gauge
Chris Gutierrez def. John Castaneda
da’mon blackstheel df. Alatengheili
Malcolm Well Maker Def. Cameron Siryman
Jaqueline Amorim def. Polyana Viana
Timmy Quambadef. Roberto Romero
Joselyne Edwards def. Chelsea Chandler