I think islam walks through volk tbh, volk proves a little elusive at first, maybe stings him a few times but eventually islam gets the TDs and goes to work
if volk wins this hes gonna have GOAT hype but I just don't really see the pathways, even if he is piecing islam up, he doesn't really have much power
If Volk were to win that would be one of the most impressive feats in MMA history. While Islam has not yet earned the P4P #1 ranking, I do believe he is currently the best fighter in the world p4p. I'm sure I'd favor Volk against some of the top LWs and even Oliveira vs Volk would be interesting. However, I see this particular fight as a massive mismatch. I'm sure that Volk will surprise me and look better than I expect. He's a great competitor, but I'd still ride with Islam even at -400. But yeah, if Volk were to pull off a (non-fluke) win, that would be pretty ****ing awesome.
Volk put together an incredible performance and still struggled to win rounds in front of a home crowd. He swept round 5 when the fight was all but over. That being said, Volk's wrestling performance was awesome. I think he might have exposed Islam a bit there and given others hope that it is possible to hold your own in the wrestling department vs top dagestani fighters.
The UFC rankings are pretty bad/stupid and probably none worse than their pound for pound rankings, but regardless, I wouldn't move Islam above Volk in the rankings based on that performance. A bigger fighter beating a smaller fighter does not mean they should be considered better pound for pound.
any thoughts on mcgregor/chandler, even if even happens
line is -110 both sides, i gotta lean chandler there just based on activity alone.....he has been fighting top guys the last 3 years while mcgregor got beatup a few rds vs poirier and that is about it
just seems like no way conor can still fight relatively elite competition after basically 3 years off and barely fighting since the floyd fight really
I would bet infinite on chandler at even money. Top of the world Conor won the lightweight championship 6.5 years ago. Then he took years off before being absolutely smashed by Khabib, beating Cowboy Cerrone who was in the midst of going 0-6-1 to end his career, smashed by Poirer, and smashed again by Poirer. He also has done acres of cocaine and done a billion stupid things outside the octagon. Doubtful his mental state is even close to where it was back when he was champ.
Chandler has a bunch of miles on him as well, but at least he has been competitive since coming to UFC. Beating hooker, taking Gaethje to decision, outstruck Poirer and had multiple takedowns (though he eventually got subbed).
Conor's chance lies in that he is two years younger and is more of a counter puncher. Chandler is super aggressive and comes right at you, and that is a good style for Conor. But Conor has just been such garbage actually in fights I think that counterpuncher from 2016 is long gone.
Chandler is a very good stylistic matchup for McGregor which is why I predicted this would be Conor's next fight over a year ago. Even so, I'd say Chandler is the clear favorite here. Not a huge favorite, but definitely the favorite.
If McGregor beats Chandler, I expect him to receive a serious reality check if he fights a top WW in his next fight, even if it's a striker like Leon Edwards or journeyman Jorge Masvidal. (I'm assuming he'll avoid the top wrestlers unless one has the belt).
Wonder if Gane hand injury is real the way the line has steamed to Jones side
I don't really like Jones chances in this fight, the grappling/wrestling required to win we just haven't seen from him in a long time and Gane is superior on his feet. Jones physique doesn't look great at 248 either. Not saying that means too much on its own, but could be indicative he didn't exactly dedicate his life to this fight.
I really don't know how this will go, or about any hand injury but I think Jones should be a slight favorite.
Firas Zahabi thinks that the threat of a takedown will be enough for Jon Jones to defeat Gane standing. Honestly, if Jon Jones can just stand there like he did vs Santos and Reyes and outpoint Gane that would be a sad fight and a bad look for MMA. I personally don't think he can do it though. Zihabi noted that Gane has never faced someone as long as Jones. But Jones has a reach advantage vs everyone, does that mean we should expect him to outstrike everyone? Thing is, Jones has never faced someone as long as Gane (outside of training). Jones struggled with the likes of Gustaffson, Santos, and Reyes, and Gane is bigger and longer than any of those guys. Even if Jones were to land more than Gane, I think Gane will do more damage, largely due to kicks (which one could argue he won't throw vs a wrestler, but I expect kicks)
That being said Jones most certainly has the skillset to defeat Gane. He should be able to put him on the cage, wear him down with wrestling, and devastate him with elbows. Then, if he takes Gane down it's all Jon Jones barring a hail mary submission from Gane.
To me this fight comes down to Jones' coaching and game plan. If Jones was still training at Jackson/Winklejohn then I'd pick Gane because I'd expect Jones to just stand with him. If Jones was at a top camp, I'd pick Jones because he is the more well rounded fighter with a very clear path to victory. I haven't really followed his training much and don't know a lot about his new camp Hopefully he hasn't surrounded himself with a bunch of "yes" men that think he can just outstrike Gane. I'm not overly impressed with the fighters I've seen he's training with, but I think the most important thing is that he is putting an emphasis on wrestling.
Physically, Jones looks sloppier than I expected. That's not really a concern though in MMA HW. If he was just all bulked up with muscle that would be a bigger concern as fat is a store of energy, while muscle is an energy spender. I expect Jones to be able to go 5 hard rounds. I do find it interesting that Jones has decided to be bigger. If you recall, Stipe and Cormier both cut some pounds off to try to be the quicker HW. Back in the day Randy Couture came into the Lesnar fight light in order to maximize his speed advantage (despite the outcome, Couture faired quite well physically in the match). I suppose Jones' former training partner Alistair Overeem is the other extreme as he went from being a 205lb fighter to essentially cutting weight to make 265lbs.
The fact that Jones added pounds tells me he probably aims to wrestle, which is a good sign. Hopefully he doesn't still have these delusions that he's developed great KO power (which he had hyped up years back).
They are feeding Cody Garbrandt a guy with a mediocre record who is on a 3 fight losing streak himself vs not the best competition. I still think it is likely that Cody gets KO'ed in this fight a large percentage of the time. Cody's downfall has been sad to watch but an end to his career would be in his best interest.
I just have seen enough bad Jones grapping/wrestling vs Santos/Smith/Reyes that I don't think he can turn it on. Atleast I think it less likely than likely.