One would expect to find the consensus No.2-ranked welterweight in the world near the top of a UFC pay-per-view. But at UFC 141, Jon Fitch finds himself being in the featured fight of the evening.
Fitch is set to square off against Johny Hendricks, and it will be Fitch’s first fight back from a shoulder injury.
While Fitch was sitting on the shelf, Hendricks has won his last two bouts with his KO of TJ Waldburger being knockout of the night.
Hendricks sports an impressive 11-1 record and has great amateur wrestling credentials.
Fitch, to his credit, is considered to be the second-best welterweight in the world behind Georges St-Pierre.
The match should be exciting as the two’s wrestling talents could negate each other which could lead to a standup battle between the two foes.
But that’s not the problem for Fitch in this fight.
It’s the fact that Fitch isn’t fighting someone on his same talent level. Like my piece about his teammate Josh Koscheck, Fitch deserves better than Hendricks.
Fans know Fitch is in Dana White‘s doghouse, and that likely has a lot to do with his opponent. The timing of Fitch’s return also presents a problem as many of the top names are either injured or booked.
Besides facing lesser competition, Fitch stands to gain very little should he emerge victorious.
Hendricks doesn’t have a big enough name to help Fitch gain any ground in the title hunt, and when you look at the list of Fitch’s last few opponents, names like BJ Penn and Thiago Alves, Hendricks means very little.
Should Fitch lose, he will almost certainly be buried in the welterweight division. He doesn’t have an exciting fighting style, little fan support or support from his boss.
He’s in a no-win scenario as he should beat Hendricks, but it won’t do anything for his career and if he loses his career goes down the drain quickly.
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