Tag: UFC Fight Night 27

Darren Elkins Wants No Part of Hatsu Hioki’s Typical Fights, Plans to Finish Him

“It definitely wasn’t pretty” – Clay Guida.
Those were the words uttered just moments after Guida pulled off a split-decision victory over Hatsu Hioki at UFC on Fox 6 back in January.
While Guida was victorious, he became the latest fighter that …

“It definitely wasn’t pretty” – Clay Guida.

Those were the words uttered just moments after Guida pulled off a split-decision victory over Hatsu Hioki at UFC on Fox 6 back in January.

While Guida was victorious, he became the latest fighter that was stuck in a pit of quicksand fighting the Japanese born featherweight who now holds a 2-2 record in the UFC, but remains one of the toughest matchups in the division.

Hioki has fought close in all of his bouts in the UFC and has never been finished in his entire career.

Coming into his fight with Hioki, fellow UFC featherweight Darren Elkins knows he’s got a tough order ahead of him as he tries to become the first person to put him away.

Prior to his loss to Chad Mendes in April, Elkins was on a five-fight win streak as he started to make waves in the 145-pound division. The defeat was a setback, but Elkins wasn’t about to start all over again at the bottom of the ladder.

Instead, he wanted the toughest fight possible, and Hioki certainly fits the bill.

“He’s definitely a tough guy. Even guys like (Ricardo) Lamas and (Clay) Guida they had a lot of trouble, I mean yeah they won but they were pretty close decisions,” Elkins said. “Every time you see him fight someone it’s always kind of that close fight. He doesn’t get knocked out, he doesn’t get submitted. He’s lost by decision and any time he loses, it’s a close decision. You always know you’re going to be in a fight with him.”

Elkins is like most fighters because he’s gone to decision plenty of times, but no one wants it close enough that a judge or two could find a way to give the nod to an opponent.

The problem with fighting Hioki is he’s always in the fight, never goes away and he’s going to make 15 minutes in the cage with him feel like you’re stuck on an endless loop watching The English Patient.

Elkins wants no part of visualizing that scenario.

“He’s one of those guys where if it goes to the judges, you hope the judges see it your way that night,” Elkins said. “It’s such a close fight with him that it could go the other way. I want to go out there and make sure I win that fight so I want to finish him or put on the kind of performance where it’s not really even close.”

Elkins has a little extra motivation this time around, not only because he’s returning from a loss, but he’s also competing in front of his home state fans in Indiana.

Growing up in the Hoosier state, Elkins used to wrestle in high school state tournaments in the same arena where he’ll fight Hioki next week at UFC Fight Night 27. It really is a homecoming for Elkins, and he doesn’t want to let his friends and family down by putting on a lackluster performance.

“I want to win, but I also want to make this an exciting fight because sometimes when you have two guys who are evenly matched up like that it can sometimes be a lot of stalemates,” Elkins said. “I definitely want to put the pressure on him, and put on a great performance. It would mean a lot if I could do something those guys couldn’t do.”

Beating Hioki would be a great mark on his record, but finishing him would be something no other fighter has ever done.

When he came to the UFC, Hioki was touted as one of the top featherweights on the planet, and was actually offered a title shot at champion Jose Aldo, but he turned it down. So whether he’s off two losses in a row right now or not, Elkins is confident beating someone like Hioki gets him right back in the spot he was one fight ago.

“The thing about the featherweight division is it’s so wide open right now,” Elkins said. “There’s a lot of different contenders out there right now, and I’m just trying to put myself in that mix.”

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and all quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

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Martin Kampmann: ‘I’ve Got 5 Rounds, I’m Going to Get the Finish This Time’

Martin Kampmann has heard this story before.
The veteran of 16 fights in the UFC has come close on several occasions to finally stepping into a title bout, but he still hasn’t seen his name on the championship marquee.
Most recently, he was on the…

Martin Kampmann has heard this story before.

The veteran of 16 fights in the UFC has come close on several occasions to finally stepping into a title bout, but he still hasn’t seen his name on the championship marquee.

Most recently, he was on the verge of a chance to face champion Georges St-Pierre when he headed into a matchup against Johny Hendricks at UFC 154. At the time, Kampmann was on a three-fight win streak that included a submission win over Thiago Alves and a knockout over Jake Ellenberger.

Everything went awry with one punch from Hendricks straight down the middle that planted Kampmann on his back just 46 seconds into the first round.

It wasn’t supposed to go that way for Kampmann, who has consistently sat in the top 10 of the division for the better part of the last four years. To get back in the race, the Danish fighter will have to go back to the beginning of his welterweight run to start over again.

Back in 2009 when he was one fight into his career at 170 pounds after starting out in the UFC as a middleweight, he was matched up with the last-ever WEC welterweight champion—a tall, lanky striker named Carlos Condit.

The two fighters engaged in a back-and-forth battle over the course of 15 minutes, but when it was over, Kampmann had his hand raised in victory by split decision. Following that fight, Condit didn’t taste defeat again until he had already captured the UFC interim welterweight title, and even after two consecutive losses, he still remains the No. 2 welterweight in the world.

So now Kampmann will go back to the well and face Condit again at UFC Fight Night 27 next Wednesday, when he attempts to get back on track for the title. Getting a rematch against a fighter he’s already beaten isn’t the ideal situation, but with Condit‘s championship credentials and Top Three ranking in the division, Kampmann had no problem accepting the rematch.

“I know Condit wanted to fight me again because he wanted to avenge that loss,” Kampmann said about the upcoming bout. “He’s a competitor, so I was actually asking to fight him or fight (Nick) Diaz. They’re both lanky, they’re both in the top 10, I want to fight guys that are ranked high. I want to get back in the hunt for the title.”

“I need to beat guys that are ranked high, and right now Carlos Condit is ranked top in the world, top three, and he’ll put me back in that spot where I want to be.”

Since it’s been four years since their last fight, both Kampmann and Condit have evolved in many ways, but sometimes the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Condit is still a tall, lanky striker with knockout power in both hands, his knees and his kicks. Kampmann knows that the New Mexico native isn’t going to reinvent the wheel to get ready for their rematch.

“Of course he’s changed, he’s gotten better, but he still has the same strengths he had back then,” he said. “He’s got explosive, dangerous stand-up, and dangerous submissions. I’m sure he’s improved and gotten a lot better, but so have I.”

Kampmann understands that in the world of MMA you only get so many second chances.

He’s come close to a title shot so many times he might get a trophy for world’s best runner-up, but he has no desire to ever be second place.

There are no blue ribbons for the next best fighter or the one who almost got to a championship.

Kampmann knows that he can’t come in second to Condit this time around and expect to get any closer to championship glory. As a matter of fact, he needs to put a stamp on this performance to erase the memory of his last fight against Hendricks. He has to send a notice to the rest of the division that he’s the one guy they need to worry about.

He beat Condit once already, so this time he’s got to make an example out of him.

“I can predict it’s not going to go the distance,” he said about his fight with Condit. “I’ve got five rounds, I’m going to get the finish this time—that’s going to be the only difference.”

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, and all quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

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UFC 164 and Fight Night 27: 5 Best Fights for Upcoming Cards

In a rare move, the UFC puts on two events next week. There will be UFC Fight Night 27, which takes place in Indianapolis, IN, as well as UFC 164 in Milwaukee, WI.
Both midwest cards feature some top talent. While Fight Night 27 hosts a rematch between…

In a rare move, the UFC puts on two events next week. There will be UFC Fight Night 27, which takes place in Indianapolis, IN, as well as UFC 164 in Milwaukee, WI.

Both midwest cards feature some top talent. While Fight Night 27 hosts a rematch between Martin Kampmann and Carlos Condit that could push a top contender into the welterweight spotlight, 164 possesses a lightweight title rematch stemming from the WEC days between Anthony Pettis and Benson Henderson.

Here are the best five fights from those cards that we will see next week.

Begin Slideshow

UFC Fight Night 27: Martin Kampmann: Slowest Starter in MMA?

Every fighter has flaws. Some are more prominent than others, and some fighters succeed despite their flaws, which seem to outweigh their skills.
Martin Kampmann is one of my favourite fighters in MMA because of his well-rounded game and finishing inst…

Every fighter has flaws. Some are more prominent than others, and some fighters succeed despite their flaws, which seem to outweigh their skills.

Martin Kampmann is one of my favourite fighters in MMA because of his well-rounded game and finishing instincts—which every up-and-coming fighter should be focused on emulating instead of hoping smack talk will earn them big fights.

Kampmann has, however, a reputation for great comebacks, and you don’t get to be known for that and for having great defense at the same time.

Here I will be discussing the flaws in his game, and on Monday, I’ll talk about all the things I love watching him do better than anyone else.

In the days of Joe Frazier’s success at the top levels of boxing’s heavyweight division, one sentiment about him was repeated fight after fight.

“Joe Frazier has never won a first round in his life.”

This is tongue in cheek and obviously untrue, as Frazier has several first-round knockouts on his record, but it’s not a meaningless joke. Like many big punchers, he was always a painfully slow starter. 

There has always been a group of men who only really “wake up” when they have taken a few good punches to the face or even been knocked down. Kampmann is perhaps the best example of a slow starter hanging around the upper echelons of MMA competition.

Just look at his last three performances. He was caught cold in each one, twice in the first round. Certainly, he was not fighting slouches, but touted as a skilled technical striker, he was still getting caught by the wild broadsides of Jake Ellenberger.

Ellenberger beat him from pillar to post in the opening round, but after the break, Kampmann found his rhythm almost immediately as he connected a sharp counter right hand that put his opponent on wobbly legs.

Kampmann‘s great redeeming feature is that he is one of the finest opportunists in the division (along with his upcoming opponent at UFC Fight Night 27 on Wednesday, Carlos Condit). If he has an opportunity to finish, he almost always will.

Ellenberger got caught, and Kampmann inevitably put him away, but there were few moments in that bout where you could say the Danish fighter had an edge. 

One of the biggest flaws in his game, and one that allows mediocre strikers to put gloves on him, is his awful cage awareness. His movement is smooth as you like as he glides around the cage, but in response to an attack, he backs straight up against the fence. 

Against the fence is just a miserable place to be. A fighter can no longer move backward, and his feet are forced close together as his opponent barrels in, which removes all the advantages that being in a stance brings. He is easier to hit and can’t return fire with any power.

The example I always use to demonstrate the effect of being against the cage or ropes is Bas Rutten. He is a beloved fighter but was never a great technician like Maurice Smith. Yet he landed good shots on Smith and many others by push kicking them onto the ropes and diving in with punches as their legs were under them and they were rebounding back at him.

If ever you see a fighter swinging with his back to the fence or ropes, remember that nobody hits as hard with his back to the wall and his feet straight underneath him.

Kampmann and Stefan Struve have to be the worst offenders in the UFC for backing up to the cage, but if anything, Kampmann is worse because he has the skill in his footwork to avoid hitting the fence—just not the cage awareness.

Diego Sanchez, Jake Ellenberger, Thiago Alves and Rick Story each backed Kampmann onto the fence, started swinging and connected cleanly on him. In his most recent bout, as soon as Johny Hendricks lunged toward Kampmann, he ran back against the fence.

His most recent bout demonstrates his slow starting ability. From the start of the fight, he was bouncing on the balls of his feet. Every time he bounced, he came clear up off the mat and sacrificed his ability to move fast in any direction.

Whether he thought he could fight Hendricks like this or, more likely, was trying to wake his legs up and get them working in coordination with his will, I do not know. But the important point to note is that Kampmann was knocked out in that fight because he was bouncing.

Check out this gif to see what I’m talking about.

Kampmann was so far clear off the mat that as he bounced forward he gave himself no time or ability to react as Hendricks lunged in. In competition karate, a competitor learns to time his lunges as his opponent bounces forward, as most karateka bounce in a forward-back rhythm.

Hendricks could have timed Kampmann‘s bounce. More likely, he just lunged when he wanted to, and Kampmann‘s own choice to bounce prevented him from reacting. 

Kampmann‘s catch-and-pitch counter game is marvelous. He has a solid jab that is combined with a bounce in (which is rare outside of traditional boxing), and he uses his front kick brilliantly as a counter to aggression.

I will analyze all of these elements in a more positive article next week. His front kick on the jaw of Alves was almost identical to the one that Travis Browne landed on Alistair Overeem at UFC Fight Night 26, which I examined in detail.

All of those positive elements are the reverse side of the coin on a fighter who is so talented but often defeats himself with his own technical and psychological flaws.

Kampmann might be able to light up some of the most technical fighters in the UFC on the feet, but he will still struggle with wild brawlers unless he sorts out his cage awareness and defense. He needs to come up with some kind of strategy to avoid punishment while he slowly gets himself into a fight.

 

Pick up Jack’s eBooks Advanced Striking and Elementary Striking from his blog, Fights Gone By.

Jack can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.

 

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UFC Fight Night 27: Brad Tavares on a Mission for Respect

In the mixed martial arts game, respect is earned not given, and Brad Tavares is on a quest to make his mark in the sport.
The 25-year-old Hawaiian born striker has emerged as one of the middleweight division’s hottest prospects, as he’s gone from a pa…

In the mixed martial arts game, respect is earned not given, and Brad Tavares is on a quest to make his mark in the sport.

The 25-year-old Hawaiian born striker has emerged as one of the middleweight division’s hottest prospects, as he’s gone from a participant on the 11th season of The Ultimate Fighter to finding success in five of his six showings inside the Octagon.

The Ray Sefo protege’s most recent showing resulted in a victory over gritty Japanese grappler Riki Fukuda at UFC on Fuel TV 8 in March, and following the victory, Tavares immediately set his sights on much bigger fish in the 185-pound division.

While his efforts to court a matchup with MMA legend Wanderlei Silva fell on deaf ears, the truth remains that the Xtreme Couture product is barreling toward the next tier of the division. He’s knocking on the door of bigger things, and he knows with each step he takes, the respect he’s after will come with every rung up the ladder he climbs.

“The UFC knows I’m a tough fighter, but at the end of the day, it’s a business,” Tavares told Bleacher Report. “Fighters have to win and do it in impressive fashion to get noticed. I try to do that and put on good fights, and my goal in this fight is to get that finish. I’m going to push hard to get it. You see guys come in and get a few good finishes and boom, they are getting a title shot. That goes to show the fashion in which you finish fights and how you get the victory does matter. That is what I have to do. The gave me three tough S.O.B.s back-to-back-to-back and I beat them.

“My goal is to break into the top 10 and I’m on my way there. I have to keep winning and I believe I will achieve that goal. At the end of the day, this is also my career, and I need these fights regardless of who they are against. I need these fights to support my family and keep living. This is my life and I’m not going to be detoured. Sooner or later I’m going to be there and I think a finish over Bubba will make it four in a row. I’m climbing that ladder.”

Where the biggest challenges of the division remain over the hill and are still out of sight, the top 10 of the 185-weight class is a destination that is materializing on the horizon ahead. That being said, Tavares understands he is still a few steps away from solidifying himself in that particular collection, but is willing to do whatever it takes to get there.

This means there will be no room for error on the journey and his bout against Bubba McDaniel at UFC Fight Night 27 becomes all the more important. His fellow TUF alum may not carry the biggest name in the sport, but he’s still a challenge Tavares needs to conquer to in order to continue his run.

“I’m looking at this fight the same as every other,” Tavares said. “There is going to be a guy standing across the cage looking to hurt me and I need to put him away before he gets the chance. While he’s not the opponent I asked for or preferred, this is the fight game and it’s a business. They put somebody in front of me and it’s my job to go in there and take them out. I’ve trained hard and I’m taking this guy very seriously. 

“It’s a big opportunity to be fighting on the main card in front of millions of fans on Fox Sports 1. I’m looking forward to putting on an entertaining fight and hopefully a win here will get me one of the bigger names for my next fight. I feel like they are giving me the stage to prove myself and that is what I have to do.”

In the matchup with McDaniel, the versatile striker will face an opponent who is starting out on a familiar path. The Jackson’s MMA-trained fighter was a member of Team Jones on the 17th season of TUF, and while he was successful in his bout against Gilbert Smith at the finale in April, his bout with Tavares will be his first time facing an established opponent on the UFC roster.

That being said, even though Tavares is the more experienced veteran inside the Octagon, McDaniel has been double the fight experience of the young Hawaiian. Tavares doesn’t see that being an issue in Indianapolis and is looking forward to bringing the scrap to McDaniel.

“[McDaniel] has more submission victories than I do fights and that is something you really have to respect about this guy,” Tavares said. “But at the same time, the caliber of opponents he’s faced haven’t been the same as what I’ve competed against. He’s never faced a fighter like me. I don’t think he’s faced anyone as well-rounded and wants it as bad as I do. I’ll never give up in there and I’ll never stop. I don’t care how tired, bruised, battered…it doesn’t matter. I take that warrior’s heart in there with me and will win this fight. 

“He’s been talking on Twitter that this is going to be a good fight and I hope he really means it. If he’s coming in there to do the one, two, clinch game then it is going to be tough. I’m not saying he needs to abandon his game and keep it striking, but I hope it’s not one of those situations I end up in like when I fought Aaron Simpson. He just held me against the cage. That being said, that is the way guys are going to try to beat me and I’ve been working on it since that Simpson fight and it’s not going to happen again.”

With a hot winning streak and a bright future ahead, Tavares is keeping stride with a rapidly growing sport. He still has several years before his athletic prime materializes and his rise through the middleweight ranks is coming just as the UFC begins the next chapter with Fox Sports 1. These circumstances have Tavares excited for what is to come for both him and the sport he loves. 

“It’s a great time for MMA,” Tavares said. “It feels good to be on the rise along with the sport and we are reaching so many more homes now. Before, it was only the die-hard fans who followed the sport and knew when the fights were, but now it’s on everyday television. You can have basic cable and watch fights for free. It’s amazing to see how far our sport has come and I’m excited to see where it is going to go from here. I’m definitely happy to be a part of that and be one of the many fighters who are helping the sport grow.”

 

Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.

 

 

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Flyweights Dustin Ortiz, Justin Scoggins Added to UFC Fight Night 27

The signing of flyweights finally continues, as MMAjunkie.com reports UFC has scooped up two 125ers before next weeks UFC Fight Night 27 in Indianapolis, Ind.
The UFC has inked Dustin Ortiz and Justin Scoggins, who will battle it out on the Facebook po…

The signing of flyweights finally continues, as MMAjunkie.com reports UFC has scooped up two 125ers before next weeks UFC Fight Night 27 in Indianapolis, Ind.

The UFC has inked Dustin Ortiz and Justin Scoggins, who will battle it out on the Facebook portion of the prelims next Wednesday. The card, of course, is headlined by a welterweight rematch between Martin Kampmann and Carlos Condit.

Nicknamed “Tank,” Scoggins is a 21-year-old fighter with an unblemished 5-0 record. Scoggins also went 1-0-1 as an amateur.

Ortiz is a Roufusport team member that finds himself on a three-fight surge. The 11-2 Ortiz boasts an afro, as well as wins over the likes of Josh Rave, Mike French and Aaron Ely. Of his two losses, one came at the hand of current contender Ian McCall back in 2011 under the Tachi Palace Fights banner.

In looking at this fight on paper, the matchup is extremely even. Ortiz has never been finished, and owns eight finishes in 11 wins (four knockouts, four submissions). Scoggins, obviously unblemished record-wise, has shown great knockout power in using punches, kicks and knees to win fights, but also has an armbar submission win to his name.

Flyweights are always in the running for Fight of the Night. Not only that, they are going to be the “pace car” of the event, as they will likely be the opener of the entire card.

With the flyweight division still having around just 20 fighters, an impressive win from either man could definitely put them in the title picture. Given how impressive both men’s resumes are could be an indication that we have a couple of future mainstays with exciting arsenals.

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