Jay Primetown gives his thoughts on each of the fighters who competed at UFC on FOX 25 in Uniondale, New York. Jay gives his letter grades for each fighter on TheMMA-Analysis podcast which can be found on MMAOddsBreaker.com.
Frankie Perez vs. Chris Wade
Perez: While he’s made improvements to his striking arsenal, he struggled to defend takedowns throughout the fight in dropping a clear decision. Perez has a decent all-around skill set, but he has no differentiators that can help him win fights in the UFC. Grade remains D+
Wade: His top control game is sneaky good, and his ability to have lengthy portions of this fight in top position was the biggest difference in this bout. Wade is a tough out for much of the division. Grade remains C
Shane Burgos vs. Godofredo Pepey
Burgos: His ability to stand in the pocket and trade with opponents is right near the top of the featherweight division. His takedown defense is underrated, and we saw it in this bout, as he was able to fend off Pepey’s takedowns and submission attempts. He’s quickly moving up the featherweight rankings. Upgraded from C to C+
Pepey: His cardio held up pretty well in this fight, but his striking technique simply was not at the level of his opponent. He was dropped multiple times in this fight but was able to get through 15 minutes to lose a decision. Downgraded from C to C-
Junior Albini vs. Timothy Johnson
Albini: A tremendous debut from the Brazilian heavyweight. His hand speed was on full display in this bout. He had Johnson hurt early on and was able to finish. This win likely sees him enter the heavyweight rankings next week. Upgraded from D to C-
Johnson: He really struggled with the hand speed of his opponent in this bout. He was dropped and finished in the opening round. This was the most disappointing result of his career. Downgraded from C- to D+
Brian Kelleher vs. Marlon Vera
Kelleher: He did a good job controlling pace early, put himself in a difficult position and was forced to tap. A tough loss for Kelleher given he was controlling the opening sequences. Downgraded from C to C-
Vera: With a submission win over Kelleher, he’s now won three fights in a row in the UFC and appears to be one of the most improved fighters in the division over the past 18 months. Upgraded from D to C-
Kyle Bochniak vs. Jeremy Kennedy
Bochniak: He struggled to defend takedowns all throughout the fight and never was able to get into the bout. A back to the drawing board type performance from Bochniak. Grade remains D
Kennedy: His relentess approach and ability to quickly lessen the distance to swarm opponents with takedown attempts is certainly underrated in the featherweight division. He wears out opponents and will be a tough out for most opponents in the division. Grade remains C-
Damian Grabowski vs. Chase Sherman
Grabowski: He’s too slow and plodding to have any impact in the UFC. He struggled to land consistently against Sherman. It’s unlikely Grabowski will be given another fight in the UFC. Grade remains F
Sherman: He did a good job of maintaining distance in this bout and got the better of the striking to win by decision. It wasn’t Sherman’s best performance, but it was good for the young fighter to get the cage time. Grade remains D-
Ryan LaFlare vs. Alex Oliveira
LaFlare: After a successful first round, he was unable to secure a takedown in the second round and was forced into a striking exchange with Alex Oliveira. It didn’t work out well for LaFlare, as he was caught and floored for the first knockout loss of his career. Downgraded from B- to C+
Oliveira: He was taken down in round one but came out full of energy in the second round showing improved cardio. He landed a couple clean strikes on the feet before he caught LaFlare coming in and put him away by knockout. Oliveira will likely enter the welterweight rankings next week. Upgraded from C+ to B-
Eryk Anders vs. Rafael Natal
Anders: An exciting debut from the former University of Alabama linebacker. He hurt Natal with a series of left hands and put him away. He’s a high-level prospect and should be fast tracked to face a fringe Top 15 fighter in his next bout. Upgraded from C to C+
Natal: As he’s gotten older, his chin has become a concern. He was caught in this bout by an athletic power puncher. At this point, Natal has hit his ceiling and is on the tail end of his career. Downgraded from C to C-
Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos vs. Lyman Good
Dos Santos: While he did tend to back up towards the cage, he showed a lot of variety in his strikes and had Good hurt towards the end of round three. He landed with heavy volume in this bout and showed he’s capable of having a lengthy career in the UFC. Grade remains C-
Good: In a very close fight, the long layoff may have been the difference as dos Santos’ output really became a factor in the third round. Good is still a powerful fighter with heavy hands and is a capable UFC welterweight. With another set of judges, he could of walked out the victor. Downgraded from C to C-
Thomas Almeida vs. Jimmie Rivera
Almeida: After a poor opening round in which he was nearly finished, Almeida had his moments particularly in the second round when he had Rivera stumbling backwards. It was a closely contested bout, but one he reasonably lost on the scorecards. In this fight, Almeida showed that he’s very much a Top 10 bantamweight. Grade remains B
Rivera: He really had Almeida in trouble in the opening round but did not push for finish. Instead, he ended up in a competitive striking contest. One thing to point out is Rivera went for the takedown early in round three and was able to do some work on the ground. It was a smart third round from Rivera to separate himself from Almeida on the scorecards. Rivera has proven he’s a real contender for the bantamweight championship. Grade remains A-
Pat Cummins vs. Gian Villante
Cummins: He was hurt badly early on but recovered well to out work Gian Villante on the feet to sneak out a decision win. It was a big fight for Cummins, who has now won two straight in the UFC. Grade remains C-
Villante: =This is a fight that he really should have won. He had Cummins hurt in the opening round but didn’t take enough risks and was out-struck late in the bout as he got tired. At this point, it’s tough to see Villante be able to get into the Top 15 at light heavyweight. Grade remains C-
Dennis Bermudez vs. Darren Elkins
Bermudez: He had a poor round one but fought better in the second half of the fight. The second round was basically a coin flip, and he lost two of the three flips. Grade remains B-
Elkins: He did surprisingly well in the first round by securing takedowns. He fought his usually gritty type of bout. While he didn’t have the success in round three that he usually does, he did enough in the first two rounds to get the nod on the scorecards. Grade remains B-
Kelvin Gastelum vs. Chris Weidman
Gastelum: He had Weidman dropped in round one but was unable to put the former champion away. He struggled to defend the takedown attempts and eventually succumbed to submission. He’s undersized for the weight class, and this fight showed that. Grade remains A-
Weidman:
