Fighter on Fighter: Breaking down UFC Fight Night 110’s Mark Hunt

MMAmania.com resident fighter analyst — and aspiring professional fighter — Andrew Richardson breaks down the mixed martial arts (MMA) game of UFC Fight Night 110’s Mark Hunt, who will look to return to the win column this Saturday (June 10, 2017) inside Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.

K-1 Kickboxing Grand Prix winner, Mark Hunt, will throw down with the powerful “Black Beast,” Derrick Lewis, this Saturday (June 10, 2017) at UFC Fight Night 110 inside Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.

It’s been an eventful year for Mark Hunt, but unfortunately it’s a negative string of news. He lost to Brock Lesnar in their scrap at UFC 200, but the WWE superstar failed a drug test for PEDs, causing Hunt to sue Dana White and the UFC in a lawsuit that is still pending. Even while suing his bosses, Hunt remains active. He came up short in a back-and-forth battle with Alistair Overeem a few months back, but Hunt is already set to return to the cage in a main event and throw down with a knockout artist.

Let’s take a closer look at his skill set:

Striking

Hunt grew to be a star and success in K-1 on the strengths of his brick chin, ferocious power and deceptive speed. All of those attributes still remain — don’t take the number of knockout losses on his record at face value, Hunt can take a shot — but much of Hunt’s success in UFC comes from his transition to a counter puncher. I’ll still talk a bit about the benefits of this change in the article, but this week’s technique highlight focuses on some of the specific ways Hunt finds a home for his counter punches!

One of the main advantages of his counter punching approach is that Hunt’s shorter reach is less of an issue. It is difficult to overcome a reach advantage, but forcing the longer man to over-extend. Plus, counter striking allows Hunt to stay tight defensively, both in terms of avoiding the takedown and his opponent’s punches. Even against a long, rangy foe like Alistair Overeem, Hunt managed to work his way inside by slipping his foe’s straight shots and countering.

Much of the time Hunt is looking to counter, he’s stalking his opponent and standing within his boxing range. Once his opponent commits to a strike, Hunt will slip or parry the blow and return his left hand. It’s an aggressive form of counter punching, and it helps ensure that Hunt isn’t forced to trade jabs with a longer opponent.

Hunt may look to counter often, but it’s not like the New Zealand-native is afraid to lead. In fact, Hunt likes to lead with his left hook as well. If his opponent is backing away or there’s simply a fair amount of distance between them, Hunt makes good use of the lunging hook (GIF).

It’s now taken a back seat to his left hook, but Hunt still attacks with his long right hand pretty commonly. Every once in a while, Hunt will charge his opponent with a big right hand, but he usually mixes it into combinations well or attempts to counter his opponent’s jab with the strike. In his a relatively recent bout, Hunt did a nice job of herding Antonio Silva into his right hand, as “Bigfoot” had prior experience with Hunt’s left hook and was looking to avoid it again.

It still didn’t work out for him (GIF).

Most of Hunt’s combinations are a mix of left hooks and right hands. Since the left hook goes around his opponent’s guard while his right hand — usually thrown as a straight or overhand — goes straight through his opponent’s defenses, it’s difficult to properly defend against both strikes. If his opponent’s defense is poorly timed or he adjusts too much to either strike, he’ll be left wide open to absorb a powerful shot (GIF).

Hunt has been using his kicks a bit more often as well. Hunt has some nasty low kicks and will even occasionally mix in a kick to the body. Either way, Hunt’s kicks can be very effective, and he should consider relying on them more.

Thanks to his improved takedown defense, Hunt has been able to punish his opponents for trying to drag him to the mat. If his opponent takes a shot from far out or repeatedly ducks down, Hunt will shovel an uppercut straight into his jaw (GIF).

Defensively, Hunt is no longer lunging forward, so he’s much safer overall. Basically, he’s not likely to run straight into a knockout punch like the one Melvin Manhoef delivered many years ago. However, Hunt does have a problem absorbing low kicks, as his more boxing-focused stance is not great for checking/avoiding the kick.

Wrestling

Hunt has become a very solid wrestler, greatly aided by his physical strength and low center of gravity. Most Heavyweights simply aren’t slick enough to get in on his hips consistently, with Stipe Miocic being the only modern exception.

While Hunt usually doesn’t look to take down his opponent, he’s proven to be opportunistic when his opponent forces the issue. For example, Hunt hit a very slick foot sweep on Stefan Struve when the lanky Dutchman kept trying to force his way into the clinch (GIF). Additionally, Hunt used underhooks to gain top position against both Fabricio Werdum and Ben Rothwell when the two repeatedly shoot for long range double legs with little set up.

That’s actually the technique I analyzed earlier for his opponent!

The most important example of Hunt’s offensive wrestling came in his first fight with “Bigfoot,” as Hunt was getting battered on his feet for the first two rounds. First, he caught one of Silva’s low kicks and blasted him off his feet with a tackle. Next, Hunt shot for a double against the fence. When “Bigfoot” stepped out of the double, Hunt reshot from an angle, which knocked Silva onto his back. While the techniques may not have been pure wrestling, speed and power — along with perhaps a touch of desperation — will always go a long way in finishing the shot.

Opponents that shoot straight in on Hunt with simple single or double legs are in for a rough night. His low center of gravity and balanced kickboxing simply make it very difficult to get in on his hips. Plus, Hunt is usually ready to sprawl or jam an uppercut up the middle at any moment, which makes shooting a really unpleasant idea.

Hunt is also a difficult man to wrestle with inside the clinch. Now that he really knows how to wrestle, Hunt is able to effectively fight for underhooks and circle off the fence pretty easily. This was first noticeable in his bout with Cheick Kongo. When the Parisian attempted to employ his standard game plan of holding his opponent against the fence and kneeing his opponent’s thigh/groin, Hunt easily circled Kongo around and pushed him away.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Hunt may have been submitted a fairly shocking six times, but it’s not solely because of poor technique. Though a lack of grappling experience certainly didn’t help, Hunt has always been a risk taker on the ground. While it’s allowed him to find unexpected success now, it was costly earlier in his career.

The kickboxer’s general fearlessness in the ring nearly carried him to one of the strangest upsets of all time. After miraculously rolling out of Fedor Emelianenko’s arm bar, Hunt landed on top and in side control. Almost immediately, Hunt attacked with an Americana, deciding to trade submissions with the Combat Sambo master just two years into his professional career.

It didn’t work out for him, but Hunt legitimately threatened “Last Emperor” with the shoulder lock.

A bit more recently, Hunt attempted to take Ben Rothwell’s arm home with him. After Rothwell gassed terribly, Hunt found himself in the mount. When Rothwell raised his arms up to defend from strikes, Hunt moved into the technical mount. From that position, he laced up his opponent’s arm and fell back. Time ran out before Hunt could break his opponent’s grip, but he likely would’ve finished the hold. Yes, “The Super Samoan” almost arm-barred the fighter who handed Josh Barnett his sole submission loss (GIF).

I’ll say it for the second time this week: Heavyweight jiu-jitsu is weird.

In another dangerous moment, Hunt choose to dive into Werdum’s guard after defending a takedown. That’s a risky proposition for any Heavyweight, but Hunt kept himself safe by keeping good head position and driving his opponent into the fence. Before Werdum could really open up or get anything going, Hunt then returned to his feet.

Despite all that improvement, Hunt’s bottom game is fairly weak. He simply doesn’t have the body type to play any type of guard, and that’s a very difficult strategy for most Heavyweights. He still hasn’t been submitted in a few years, but Miocic had little trouble wrecking Hunt’s face with ground strikes.

On the bright side, Hunt learning how to keep his elbow tucked in guard should prevent him from giving away an easy submission like what happened in the Sean McCorkle fight.

Conclusion

Hunt’s position in UFC is unclear. He’s one of the Top 10 Heavyweights in the world, and that seems unlikely to change simply because there are not many new faces. If he wants to keep competing at a high level, he definitely can, but there’s also a chance each bout is the 43 year old’s last. The real bottom line here is that it’s a solid challenge for both men, but that we should appreciate Hunt’s continued presence inside the Octagon while it lasts.

*****

Andrew Richardson, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt, is an amateur fighter who trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, California. In addition to learning alongside world-class talent, Andrew has scouted opponents and developed winning strategies for several of the sport’s most elite fighters.

MMAmania.com resident fighter analyst — and aspiring professional fighter — Andrew Richardson breaks down the mixed martial arts (MMA) game of UFC Fight Night 110’s Mark Hunt, who will look to return to the win column this Saturday (June 10, 2017) inside Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.

K-1 Kickboxing Grand Prix winner, Mark Hunt, will throw down with the powerful “Black Beast,” Derrick Lewis, this Saturday (June 10, 2017) at UFC Fight Night 110 inside Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.

It’s been an eventful year for Mark Hunt, but unfortunately it’s a negative string of news. He lost to Brock Lesnar in their scrap at UFC 200, but the WWE superstar failed a drug test for PEDs, causing Hunt to sue Dana White and the UFC in a lawsuit that is still pending. Even while suing his bosses, Hunt remains active. He came up short in a back-and-forth battle with Alistair Overeem a few months back, but Hunt is already set to return to the cage in a main event and throw down with a knockout artist.

Let’s take a closer look at his skill set:

Striking

Hunt grew to be a star and success in K-1 on the strengths of his brick chin, ferocious power and deceptive speed. All of those attributes still remain — don’t take the number of knockout losses on his record at face value, Hunt can take a shot — but much of Hunt’s success in UFC comes from his transition to a counter puncher. I’ll still talk a bit about the benefits of this change in the article, but this week’s technique highlight focuses on some of the specific ways Hunt finds a home for his counter punches!

One of the main advantages of his counter punching approach is that Hunt’s shorter reach is less of an issue. It is difficult to overcome a reach advantage, but forcing the longer man to over-extend. Plus, counter striking allows Hunt to stay tight defensively, both in terms of avoiding the takedown and his opponent’s punches. Even against a long, rangy foe like Alistair Overeem, Hunt managed to work his way inside by slipping his foe’s straight shots and countering.

Much of the time Hunt is looking to counter, he’s stalking his opponent and standing within his boxing range. Once his opponent commits to a strike, Hunt will slip or parry the blow and return his left hand. It’s an aggressive form of counter punching, and it helps ensure that Hunt isn’t forced to trade jabs with a longer opponent.

Hunt may look to counter often, but it’s not like the New Zealand-native is afraid to lead. In fact, Hunt likes to lead with his left hook as well. If his opponent is backing away or there’s simply a fair amount of distance between them, Hunt makes good use of the lunging hook (GIF).

It’s now taken a back seat to his left hook, but Hunt still attacks with his long right hand pretty commonly. Every once in a while, Hunt will charge his opponent with a big right hand, but he usually mixes it into combinations well or attempts to counter his opponent’s jab with the strike. In his a relatively recent bout, Hunt did a nice job of herding Antonio Silva into his right hand, as “Bigfoot” had prior experience with Hunt’s left hook and was looking to avoid it again.

It still didn’t work out for him (GIF).

Most of Hunt’s combinations are a mix of left hooks and right hands. Since the left hook goes around his opponent’s guard while his right hand — usually thrown as a straight or overhand — goes straight through his opponent’s defenses, it’s difficult to properly defend against both strikes. If his opponent’s defense is poorly timed or he adjusts too much to either strike, he’ll be left wide open to absorb a powerful shot (GIF).

Hunt has been using his kicks a bit more often as well. Hunt has some nasty low kicks and will even occasionally mix in a kick to the body. Either way, Hunt’s kicks can be very effective, and he should consider relying on them more.


Thanks to his improved takedown defense, Hunt has been able to punish his opponents for trying to drag him to the mat. If his opponent takes a shot from far out or repeatedly ducks down, Hunt will shovel an uppercut straight into his jaw (GIF).

Defensively, Hunt is no longer lunging forward, so he’s much safer overall. Basically, he’s not likely to run straight into a knockout punch like the one Melvin Manhoef delivered many years ago. However, Hunt does have a problem absorbing low kicks, as his more boxing-focused stance is not great for checking/avoiding the kick.

Wrestling

Hunt has become a very solid wrestler, greatly aided by his physical strength and low center of gravity. Most Heavyweights simply aren’t slick enough to get in on his hips consistently, with Stipe Miocic being the only modern exception.

While Hunt usually doesn’t look to take down his opponent, he’s proven to be opportunistic when his opponent forces the issue. For example, Hunt hit a very slick foot sweep on Stefan Struve when the lanky Dutchman kept trying to force his way into the clinch (GIF). Additionally, Hunt used underhooks to gain top position against both Fabricio Werdum and Ben Rothwell when the two repeatedly shoot for long range double legs with little set up.

That’s actually the technique I analyzed earlier for his opponent!

The most important example of Hunt’s offensive wrestling came in his first fight with “Bigfoot,” as Hunt was getting battered on his feet for the first two rounds. First, he caught one of Silva’s low kicks and blasted him off his feet with a tackle. Next, Hunt shot for a double against the fence. When “Bigfoot” stepped out of the double, Hunt reshot from an angle, which knocked Silva onto his back. While the techniques may not have been pure wrestling, speed and power — along with perhaps a touch of desperation — will always go a long way in finishing the shot.

Opponents that shoot straight in on Hunt with simple single or double legs are in for a rough night. His low center of gravity and balanced kickboxing simply make it very difficult to get in on his hips. Plus, Hunt is usually ready to sprawl or jam an uppercut up the middle at any moment, which makes shooting a really unpleasant idea.

Hunt is also a difficult man to wrestle with inside the clinch. Now that he really knows how to wrestle, Hunt is able to effectively fight for underhooks and circle off the fence pretty easily. This was first noticeable in his bout with Cheick Kongo. When the Parisian attempted to employ his standard game plan of holding his opponent against the fence and kneeing his opponent’s thigh/groin, Hunt easily circled Kongo around and pushed him away.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Hunt may have been submitted a fairly shocking six times, but it’s not solely because of poor technique. Though a lack of grappling experience certainly didn’t help, Hunt has always been a risk taker on the ground. While it’s allowed him to find unexpected success now, it was costly earlier in his career.

The kickboxer’s general fearlessness in the ring nearly carried him to one of the strangest upsets of all time. After miraculously rolling out of Fedor Emelianenko’s arm bar, Hunt landed on top and in side control. Almost immediately, Hunt attacked with an Americana, deciding to trade submissions with the Combat Sambo master just two years into his professional career.

It didn’t work out for him, but Hunt legitimately threatened “Last Emperor” with the shoulder lock.

A bit more recently, Hunt attempted to take Ben Rothwell’s arm home with him. After Rothwell gassed terribly, Hunt found himself in the mount. When Rothwell raised his arms up to defend from strikes, Hunt moved into the technical mount. From that position, he laced up his opponent’s arm and fell back. Time ran out before Hunt could break his opponent’s grip, but he likely would’ve finished the hold. Yes, “The Super Samoan” almost arm-barred the fighter who handed Josh Barnett his sole submission loss (GIF).

I’ll say it for the second time this week: Heavyweight jiu-jitsu is weird.

In another dangerous moment, Hunt choose to dive into Werdum’s guard after defending a takedown. That’s a risky proposition for any Heavyweight, but Hunt kept himself safe by keeping good head position and driving his opponent into the fence. Before Werdum could really open up or get anything going, Hunt then returned to his feet.

Despite all that improvement, Hunt’s bottom game is fairly weak. He simply doesn’t have the body type to play any type of guard, and that’s a very difficult strategy for most Heavyweights. He still hasn’t been submitted in a few years, but Miocic had little trouble wrecking Hunt’s face with ground strikes.

On the bright side, Hunt learning how to keep his elbow tucked in guard should prevent him from giving away an easy submission like what happened in the Sean McCorkle fight.

Conclusion

Hunt’s position in UFC is unclear. He’s one of the Top 10 Heavyweights in the world, and that seems unlikely to change simply because there are not many new faces. If he wants to keep competing at a high level, he definitely can, but there’s also a chance each bout is the 43 year old’s last. The real bottom line here is that it’s a solid challenge for both men, but that we should appreciate Hunt’s continued presence inside the Octagon while it lasts.

*****

Andrew Richardson, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt, is an amateur fighter who trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, California. In addition to learning alongside world-class talent, Andrew has scouted opponents and developed winning strategies for several of the sport’s most elite fighters.