In a potential fight of the night at UFC 135, Ultimate Fighter winner Nate Diaz takes on Japanese superstar Takanori Gomi in a three-round lightweight bout.
The heavily anticipated matchup will open the pay-per-view, and it might just turn out to be the best fight on the card, which features a light heavyweight title bout between Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in the main event.
Gomi brings an extensive 32-7 record with the majority of his biggest bouts coming in Pride. He debuted in the UFC in 2010 and lost to Kenny Florian. A win over Tyson Griffin and loss against Clay Guida followed.
Diaz (13-7) has fought in the 155 and 170 pound divisions, and he is coming back down to lightweight after a four fight campaign at welterweight that saw him go 2-2. He is coming off losses against Rory MacDonald and Dong Hyun Kim.
There is a significant edge given to Gomi when it comes to who packs more pop in their punches. Diaz is a volume puncher while Gomi is a one-shot knockout type of guy. Diaz, who has never been stopped in the UFC, has an iron-chin that will be required to get through any firepower Gomi brings to the cage. This might be his biggest asset to winning this fight.
Diaz has an advantage in cardio and submission grappling, but Gomi has an edge in wrestling. The question is how long can Gomi keep it standing before he gets tired? This might turn out a lot like Gomi’s 2007 bout with Nick Diaz, who submitted him with a gogoplata in the third round of their tremendous war.
Either that or it will turn out like Diaz’s fight with Melvin Guillard, who is very similar to Gomi when it comes to striking and cardio. Diaz was dropped by the power puncher but ended up submitting him in the second round.
If Diaz plans on winning, he will need to apply his volume punching early and wear down his opponent for the first two rounds before going for a takedown in the third to secure a submission victory.
Depending on how close the first two rounds are, Diaz might find himself in need of a finish. Judges’ decisions haven’t favored him in the past, and it’s something he has always had problems with against grapplers, which Gomi is not.
It’s going to be a test for Diaz, but Gomi doesn’t bring anything he hasn’t seen before.
The PPV will start at 9 p.m. ET. Other main card bouts include Jon Jones vs. Quinton Jackson, Josh Koscheck vs. Matt Hughes, Travis Browne vs. Rob Broughton and Mark Hunt vs. Ben Rothwell.
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