UFC Paris Takeaways
UFC made their long-awaited return to Paris, France, although the card wasn’t as entertaining as some fans anticipated. What we did see was some main card fighters showing their ready to level up their game, to make it to the rankings. I think the biggest win of the main card, had to be Renato Moicano. Not many people expected him to win that fight the way he did. With some unexpected wins, I think it’s appropriate I go over the biggest takeaways from UFC Paris France.
Bryan Battle Is Ready to Battle a Ranked Opponent
Bryan Battle is the Ultimate Fighter season 29 winner, and after winning the season, he has become a prospect that every welterweight should be keeping their eyes on. Bryan Battle is on a three-fight win streak in welterweight. At UFC Paris France, Battle faced off against France native Kevin Jousset, throughout the first round, Kevin and Battle were trading punches. Jousset punches seemed to do more damage, while Battle was landing more. Going into the second round, Battle was able to pressure Jousset with lighter jabs, and crosses. The pressure left Kevin in the cage while Battle started throwing heavier shots that stunned Jousset and ultimately was not defending himself correctly, the ref had to stop the fight. Jousset was on a five-fight win streak before being TKO’ed by Battle, and at this point, Battle is on a three-fight win streak. I think it’s time for Battle to test himself against 15th-ranked welterweight gatekeeper Neil Magny.
Nassourdine Imavov Hasn’t Proved He’s Ready for a Title Fight
Nassourdine Imavov faced off against Brendan Allen in a potential title eliminator bout, however, we were left with doubt about the winner getting a title shot after that performance. Imavov is the fourth-ranked middleweight contender and Allen is the eighth-ranked middleweight contender, Imavov is known for his precision striking while Allen is known for his submission skill. In the first round, Allen was able to take Imavov down early and was able to hold him down for the round, Imavov did a good job not getting caught into a submission. Going into the second round, Allen looked exhausted, every time Allen went for a takedown, Imavov would stuff the takedown; however, that’s really what happened for most of a five-minute round. The third round was the round that made Allen fans yell at their televisions. The third round started with Allen shooting for more telegraphed takedown attempts and Imavov properly defending each one, however, Allen started opening up and striking with Imavov. Allen was able to find some success, especially with a knee that slightly stunned Imavov, then Allen’s coach advised him to go for the takedown again with only 40 seconds left in the fight. A finish wouldn’t be possible, however, Imavov was able to stuff more takedown attempts and won the fight by Decision. After that fight, it’s clear that Imavov wouldn’t perform well against current middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis. I think Imavov needs one more win to really cement his place for a title shot, Imavov should face Caio Borralho or Israel Adesanya.
Renato Moicano Shocked the World
Renato Moicano was coming in as an underdog against the always dangerous Benoît Saint Denis, even though this fight was scheduled for five rounds, yet it was cut short to two rounds thanks to Moicano brutalizing Saint Denis’ face. In the fight, Moicano was able to take Saint Denis down early in the round, Saint Denis was trying to get up Moicano was able to control him and started landing huge ground and pound strikes. At one point, everyone was surprised the fight didn’t get stopped, Moicano threw a huge elbow that cut Saint Denis multiple times on his forehead and his eyelid. Saint Denis was a bloody mess, his face was unrecognizable, however, Saint Denis survived the first round. In the second round, it was clear that Benoît could not see out of one of his eyes. Yet, Benoît was still able to slightly out-strike Moicano in the second round, while Moicano seemed not to want to engage in striking with Saint Denis. During the build-up to round three, the ringside doctor came in and stopped the fight since Saint Denis was unable to see. Moicano called out a rising UFC star, Paddy Pimblett; although I feel like Moicano should fight Beneil Dariush to continue to climb the lightweight ranks.
