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David and Phil talk about old school and new school flyweight violence coming together to potentially crown a new champion in the UFC’s most unfairly maligned division.
Joseph Benavidez vs. Deiveson Figueiredo for the flyweight championship this February 29, 2020 at the Chartway Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.
One sentence summary
Phil: The man marked to be flyweight’s first champ tries to fulfill that expectation years later, and maybe keep the division alive at the same time
David: The Thrillotine
Stats
Record: Joseph Benavidez 25-5 | Deiveson Figueiredo 17-1
Odds: Joseph Benavidez -140 | Deiveson Figueiredo +120
History / Introduction to the fighters
David: Benavidez is MMA’s Dan Marino. So far. That silly comparison will probably stick, especially if he’s able to embarrass himself in a Jim Carey movie, but only because he’s fought in some of the absolute toughest divisions. If Benavidez is gearing up for another run, he’s making a strong case. He’s 9-1 over his past ten fights, spanning six years. That’s kind of insane. But where does he go from here? There’s possibly a Cinderella story in the works for Joe if he keeps trucking, but no matter how great, it won’t beat the actual Cinderella story that happened in hockey when a 42 year old Zamboni driver beat a professional sports team (subsequently displacing the sanity of their fans).
Phil: Joe B has displayed simply unfathomable durability over his time in the UFC (and the WEC for that matter). It is difficult to hold on to a belt in this sport, but what Joseph Benavidez has done is approximately analogous to defending one without any of the actual benefits like… money, or a belt. At every turn he’s had nothing to gain and everything to lose. At some point, that generally wears on any competitor. Apart from Joe B, for some baffling reason. If he had a preservative, naturally long-lived style that might make sense, but he’s a high-risk power grappler and blitzing puncher.
David: Where Benavidez has been a muskrat of stability and endurance, his opponent has been the opposite. And no, I’m not here to knock Figueiredo’s previous jobs because I’m damn proud of my dad, who is a machinist. Although being a former hairdresser, you’d think Figs could manage a better dye job. No, I’m talking about Figueiredo’s style. He’s an interesting fighter who probably doesn’t a deserve a fight this high profile, but for which I won’t complain. Despite his age, he’s a relative newbie, which means this fight will indicate one of two things: a) he’s a late bloomer or b) he hit his ceiling years ago. Figuratively of course.
Phil: I think you mean “Figueiratively.” With respect to his somewhat accelerated development, there are a few things to bear in mind: the division has been ravaged. I think it may just about be at 15 fighters now, with the benefit of a new signing. If it was possible to get a title shot with a few consecutive wins back in the DJ days (see: Cariaso, C), then that is doubly true now. Secondly, like his middleweight analogue, Yoel Romero, Figueiredo is fairly old for a flyweight at 32. Regardless, he’s tremendous violent fun, and I’m happy to see him get this opportunity (even if he has already messed it up in a typically Romero-esque fashion).
What’s at stake?
David: I don’t know. Cejudo wants to act a fool on Twitter, get a tune up fight, and hop multiple divisions and genders like a…a…what do we call people who fail at being serious because it’s too much effort to believe a thing sincerely? Oh yea; edgelord. Which is fine for Cejudo. I’m jealous of his lush hair, which means I’m no doubt speaking sarcastically from a position of envy. But Dana’s never had a grip on reality when it comes to the lower weights, so all I’m saying is that I’ll expect Cejudo versus Shevshenshivlli (or whatever awkward way Cejudo pronounces Shevchenko’s name) before I’d expect a proper, hierarchy-directed flyweight fight.
Phil: What with Figueiredo missing weight, we have a particularly diabolical setup. Only Joe B can win the belt. If Deiveson wins then God only knows what happens.
Where do they want it?
David: Benavidez is the rare instance of a fighter changing styles dramatically in extremely subtle ways. The overall template is there: the classic Alpha Male scramble madness, switch haymakers, the insane workrate, etc. But in the past — as in, #WECNeverDie — Benavidez would keep his combination striking in the pocket, moving forward. Yea, he was always still a squirrel, but nowadays his strikes are used more for setups to other punch entries, takedown attempts, or body kicks. His offense is built more on going wide now then going straight. He’s still dangerous, and still has great instincts. His body kick is still fantastic, and his wide angle hooks are dangerous. The fact that he avoided getting his back taken by RNC master, Jussier Formiga, is a testament to the fact that his grappling is still top notch. But he’s still extremely hittable. He hasn’t been punished much in recent fights, but he hasn’t faced a ton of heavy hitters recently either. Which is what makes this bout a fun change of pace.
Phil: Carlos Condit was a lanky welter, and a weird analogue for the stocky Benavidez, but one I’ll take anyway, damn the consequences. The build-out-of-the-box rushes and strange punching form translate across weight classes and basic physical builds, as do the absurd durability and cardio. Like Condit, Benavidez can be clocked leaping through space, but like Condit, most fighters don’t have time to savor that victory before a bunch more strikes are hurtling through space at various parts of their body. A somewhat funky puncher, he nonetheless packs enough power that it takes an icy-cold counter puncher to deal with the threat. What really makes his game work is that grappling. Offensively he has several takedown series (the head outside trip, double leg) or just bails into Edgar-esque clinch offense, and on the mat he has thus been functionally impossible to outscramble, even from checkmate positions like Jussier Formiga’s back mount.
David: Figueiredo’s game is pretty simple. Throw heavy leather, and lock in that guillotine. Yes, there’s more to it than that, but his fighting style amounts to a self-help book: follow these simple rules, and reality will become what you make of it. Again, there’s some nuance, but it’s mostly just window dressing. His stance switching? Window dressing. Southpaw lateral movement? Window dressing. Forward feinting? Window dressing. Extremely powerful jab? Window dressing (Joseph Morales might disagree). Maybe this makes Figueiredo sound bad, but that’s not true. Not all weapons are tangible. A lot of Figueiredo “extraneous” movements get him into a rhythm, regardless of its meager influence. No matter what he’s doing, his power is undeniable. He generates a lot of power angling punches in, particularly from his strongside, but he has a cutting inside hook to maintain pressure from afar (as he did against Brooks), or in close (as he did against Moraga).
Phil: Figueiredo is a man who does the things that he wants. Things which are not necessarily aligned with what many people would consider “classically good” MMA. Almost any strike he throws can run the gamut from remarkably clean and functional (the piston jab he hit Alexandre Pantoja with) to the brawls of a madman. His most recent fight showcased an odd similarity to Henry Cejudo’s evolution from brawler to legitimate striker- Figueiredo lengthened his stance, kept his eye on the opponent, and stepped backwards to deliver a big right hand. In general it is hard to parse him: his defensive grappling can look solid at times, and like it’s just a Derrick Lewis-esque collection of simple tools and explosive power at others. He can look like an absolute mess on the back foot, but he can also pivot and draw the opponent onto strikes.
Insight from past fights
David: I’m taking the easy road here and going back to the Formiga fights. Against Formiga, Benavidez was able to effectively attrition him, building on offense, maintaining pressure, and keep Formiga from turning the fights into a grappling war. For Figueiredo, the opposite happened. Formiga turned the fight into a grappling war of attrition, and Figueiredo had no answer except aggression. Figueiredo is strong, and he’ll be able to fend off some takedowns, but I see no reason why Benavidez can essentially do the same thing. While his level of technical control isn’t on par with Formiga, he’s got enough short king strength to just sort of horsepower his way into control. Sure, Figueiredo has a sick guillotine, but so does Benavidez, and he’s never been submitted.
Phil: I think there are two things which make this fight potentially scarier for Benavidez. Firstly is the fact that Formiga is a slightly longer (and longer fighting) man who has more of a tendency to stay over his own feet when striking. This meant that Figueiredo was pulled into striking exchanges, which in turn opened up Formiga’s double legs. While the basic pieces of striking and wrestling are common between Formiga and Benavidez, I’m not sure if he has such a cleanly defined wrestle-boxing approach at this point in his career. For this in action, I refer to Formiga and Benavidez’ common fights against Sergio Pettis. Pettis was able to let the Benavidez blitz pass harmlessly by, or intercept it with a counter. Meanwhile, Formiga walked him down with far more functional, tight pressure.
X-Factors
David: Head clashes? Both guys have that unique red bull flyweight energy: an energy that can be stupid and violent by accident.
Phil: I guess it’s now: how much did Figueiredo try to cut down to the flyweight limit. This being a title shot, I would expect that he tried fairly hard, but then again it wasn’t a particularly close miss. His team probably decided that it made more sense for him to be functional than to strip all chance of him winning by having him try to hit 125.5. In general, weight missers have tended to perform fairly well of late.
Prognostication
David: As much as I like Figueiredo’s game, and as much as I like his puncher’s chance, there’s not enough punching for me to think he puts Joe’s lights out. I do think this fight is closer in its parts versus the sum. Figueiredo doesn’t necessarily have counter ability, but he’s quick enough on the draw that even a single reset can end up being devastating. And Joe doesn’t exactly have the best head movement. But what Benavidez lacks in head movement, he makes up for in head action. He’ll have a gameplan. Figueiredo won’t. Joseph Benavidez by Decision.
Phil: Benavidez is the better, craftier fighter, and more skilled in almost every area apart from range kickboxing. He’s also 35 years old and has been fighting at an elite level forever. He can’t keep it up indefinitely, and well, I just have that feeling that this sport is just enough of a bastard that it’ll take him out just as he makes it to the top. Deiveson Figueiredo by TKO, round 1.