Cage Warriors continues to provide one of the best routes for European fighters to get to the UFC. While that’s something to hang their hat on, it can also create some problems, as evidenced by Cage Warriors 79. The card held in Newport, Wales was originally set to be headlined by middleweight champion, and Welshman, Jack Marshman. However, Marshman got the call from the UFC to step into the Octagon at their Northern Ireland event in November. The main event will now be a lightweight bout between Scott Clist and Martin Svensson. Clist brings a four-fight winning streak into the contest, and will be looking for his 12th finish in as many wins here. Svensson will be competing for the first time since getting knocked out in his lone UFC appearance. He has previously gone 2-1 in Cage Warriors, competing for the featherweight title back in 2013. While Marshman won’t be competing in front of the home fans, Cage Warriors has assembled some solid Welsh talent for this card. Josh Reed has gone 9-0 between his amateur and pro careers, stopping eight of those opponents by submission, and his most recent foe with strikes. He’ll be taking on three-time Cage Warriors veteran Martin Sheridan. The card also features Welsh fighters Aaron Khalid and Jack Shore, taking on undefeated prospect Adam Proctor and Eddie Pobivanez, respectively. Opening up the main card on UFC Fight Pass will be a bantamweight clash between Arnold Quero — who brings an eight-fight winning streak in — and Dean Trueman, who has won four of his last five bouts. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting odds for Cage Warriors 79 today at Several Bookmakers. Check them out: ——————– Cage Warriors 79: Clist vs. Svensson OCTOBER 15, 2016 Newport Centre | Newport, Wales Main Card UFC Fight Pass, 4 p.m. ET Scott Clist -110 Martin Svensson -130 Martin Sheridan +265 Josh Reed -385 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: Scott Clist is an aggressive heavy hitter, and Martin Svensson is almost exclusively a grappler who has relatively poor striking defense. That recipe didn’t work so well against David Teymur in Svensson’s UFC debut, and I kind of expect the same thing to happen here. If Svensson can get inside and drag the fight to the ground, he’ll have an advantage, but it may not be as pronounced as some think. The Swede is in far more peril on the feet than Clist is on the ground, and I expect Clist’s hands eventually find the target. Martin Sheridan has more fights than Josh Reed’s previous five opponents combined, but I think that Reed is talented enough that won’t matter. Reed’s submission game is slick, and Sheridan doesn’t have the defensive wrestling to avoid this turning into a grappling bout, nor the submission defense to survive for a prolonged period of time on the mat. If it does turn into a striking battle, Sheridan may have a slight advantage, but I find it hard to picture Reed not going back to what he knows.
