After watching Mark Munoz throw vicious punches from top position towards Chris Leben multiple times throughout their fight at UFC 138, it became apparent that Munoz was officially someone to watch at 185 lbs.
Munoz was able to score takedowns at will against the always tough Leben. When Munoz got on top he mercilessly threw haymakers towards the former Ultimate Fighter contestant’s head, showing off some impressive ground and pound that would make Tito Ortiz and Mark Coleman jealous.
While Munoz is making tremendous strides with his stand up game, his wrestling is still his bread and butter—if he continues to blow out every opponent put in front of him, he will be fighting for a UFC title in no time.
Anderson Silva has looked nearly unstoppable for nearly six years now, but if there is any sort of blueprint to beat “The Spider,” it involves someone who can drag him to the mat and beat him down.
Chael Sonnen showed that Silva’s takedown defense is a liability when they fought at UFC 117, but despite landing over 300 punches he was unable to finish Silva and was eventually submitted in the fifth round.
If Munoz gets that position, the fight will be over within two rounds.
While Sonnen isn’t a finisher, Munoz has proven that he has some of the sickest ground and pound in UFC history, and if he started throwing bombs towards Silva’s head it would only be a matter of time before we have a new middleweight champion.
Sure, Munoz showed that he needs to tighten up his stand up and be a bit more careful on the ground, as Leben caught him with a few big shots and even scored a dominant position or two, but he would be far more careful against a fighter as technical as Silva.
Whether he gets a title shot in his next fight or has to win one more, it is only a matter of time before Munoz is standing across the Octagon from Anderson Silva—when he does, the odds are good that he will leave the arena with a UFC belt strapped around his waist.
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