This weekend isn’t shaping up to be the biggest in MMA this year, but with the Bellator PPV and Titan’s second offering since making wholesale changes, it is certainly an interesting one. In the spirit of what Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney has proclaimed the organization’s “freakshow fight,” another promotion known for putting on fights aimed more at entertainment than sporting value has a card on Saturday. If Tito Ortiz and Alexander Shlemenko aren’t enough to fill your need for wacky fights, KSW 27 and it’s co-main event of Mariusz Pudzianowski (6-3, 1 NC) and Oli Thompson (12-6) is the card for you. Of course not all of the fights have the strange sort of appeal that one does, as the main event is a quality bout between Mamed Khalidov (28-4-2) and Maiquel Falcao (32-5, 1 NC). Even that bout has the back drop of Falcao’s 2013 gas station melee however, so KSW is firing on all their kooky cylinders for this event. Some of Poland’s better prospects find themselves on this card as well. Also serving as a welterweight title bout, Aslambek Saidov (15-3) takes on Borys Mankowski (14-5-1) in a rematch of their December 2012 bout which came to an early end because of a leg injury to Mankowski. The country’s top female talent, Karolina Kowalkiewicz (4-0), is also in action with a belt on the line, taking on Invicta veteran Jasminka Cive (5-1) at strawweight. The other notable bout features Abu Azaitar (9-2) — fresh off his quick TKO win over Jack Marshman on a Cage Warriors card earlier this year — looking to run his win streak to five against Piotr Strus (9-3) who has faced veterans Karlos Vemola and Matt Horwich in his past two bouts. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting lines for KSW 27 today at Several Bookmakers. Take a look: ——————– MAIN CARD (Internet PPV, 2pm ET) Mamed Khalidov -420 Maiquel Falcao +300 Mariusz Pudzianowski -130 Oli Thompson -110 KSW Welterweight Title Aslambek Saidov -215 Borys Mankowski +165 KSW Women’s Strawweight Title Karolina Kowalkiewicz -600 Jasminka Cive +400 Abu Azaitar -285 Piotr Strus +205 Mateusz Gamrot -600 Jefferson George +400 Tomasz Narkun -350 Charles Andrade +250 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: Now that I’ve worn out the “k” and “z” keys on my keyboard from typing all those names, let’s see if we can’t get some insight into these fights. Mamed Khalidov is simply a better overall fighter than Maiquel Falcao, and he comes into fights in better shape. This may be competitive early, as Falcao is a quality fighter, but the gap will widen the longer the bout goes. Khalidov started his career 3-3, and since that time has gone 25-1-2, which is one of the best records in MMA over that time. As crazy as it is, I lean towards Pudzianowski against a UFC vet. KSW implements special rules for Pudz’ fights including shortening them to two rounds and basically issuing referee stand-ups whenever he needs one. His biggest problem is always gassing in the second round of fights, but against another heavyweight with the same issue in Thompson, I think his strength will be enough to overcome that massive flaw. Aslambek Saidov already has a win over Borys Mankowski, although it was because of an injury. That fight was competitive before the injury, and I believe this one will be as well. Mankowski is still young, and aside from the injury defeat, hasn’t lost since he was 20 years old. If there’s a spot for a dog on this card, this could be it if the public jumps on the favorite. There are very few female fighters not named Ronda Rousey or Cris Cyborg who I would trust laying -600 on, and when I say “very few” I really mean none. Kowalkiewicz should win this fight, but Cive is a solid striker who can give her problems if this stays on the feet. It’s a pass for me. The final bout I can offer any insight on is Azaitar’s fight. He’s not an overly complete fighter who hits very hard, and has a knack for landing those shots. Piotr Strus has faced some high-level competition, but has had mixed success when stepping up. To me, this is another step up for Strus, and I don’t expect him to come through. Azaitar could add some value to parlays.
