The three things you need to know about two veritable young gunslingers duking it out on the fight club this weekend for UFN 85 in Australia.
Two young guns do the octagon tango this March 20, 2016 at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Brisbane, Australia.
The Match Up
Lightweight Jake Matthews 9-1 vs. Johnny Case 22-4
The Odds
Lightweight Jake Matthews -105 vs. Johnny Case -115
3 Things You Should Know
1. Jake Matthews is 21 and already good. He’s only stumbled on TUF, and against James Vick which is quite alright.
Matthews tried his hand on TUF and lost. But he lost to one of the better TUF products in Olivier Aubin-Mercier when he was a teenager.
He’s a very good fighter who happens to be extremely young, yet in a good position to take on higher profile fights with a potential win. He’s got his work cut out for him. Stylistically, this is a very tough bout for Matthews as Case is undefeated in the octagon.
2. His 4-0 UFC record is both representative of his talents, yet deceiving to his potential.
Sometimes you get to be 4-0 in the UFC the hard way. Other times, a little bit of matchmaking kid’s gloves helps do the trick. Obviously this is no slight on Case’s abilities. He’s beaten who the UFC has put in front of him. But Francisco Trevino, Tokudome, Perez, and Cabral aren’t the kind of names to challenge the Power MMA product. Still, there’s plenty to learn in victory just as defeat.
3. Expect a fast paced technical bout with the potential to be ruined by a judges’ technical delinquency.
Matthews, even at his young age, displays an incredible amount of poise on the feet. His movement could use some work, but he moves within his means; as in, he steps in confidently for a well chambered right hand, and generally knows how to reset after a pressure combination. With a stifling right front kick, and very opportunistic grappling, he has the foundation for a threatening presence to his fellow lightweights.
Case is kind of what Matthews will look like five years if he only worked on his footwork. This doesn’t make him better (even now), but his sedated yet calculated base allows him to shift from stance to stance (depending on if he wants to take it to the ground) without sacrificing rhythm. He maintains a steady pace not just with his jab, right kick to the body, and straight right down the middle, but with the kind of movement that threatens an opponent just by sheer presence. Sometimes being in position to counter or pressure is enough to force a mistake.
Prediction
This fight will entirely depend on coaching, scouting, and how Matthews’ development is helixed within these elements. On the surface, his punch entries should be able to threaten Case, who hasn’t dealt much with someone that can land heavy strikes and force him backwards. But Case has the kind of movement that tend to confound younger fighters. When a young fighter concedes space, this generally has a domino effect on the outcome of everything else. Plus Matthews’ habit of backing straight up could be an easy route towards getting takedowns. For at least a round and a half, this should be a solid kickboxing tete-a-tete But I think Case takes over the critical round 3 with just enough technical proficiency to earn another. Johnny Case by Split Decision.