AXS TV will be back this Friday with some action from the Northeastern US. CES MMA continues their run on AXS with a card featuring a host of lightweight fights. Originally, the main event was intended to be a lightweight title bout between Ryan Sanders and defending champion Luis Felix. The two had previously fought in Janaury, with Sanders winning the catchweight bout due to injury. Unfortunately, Felix was forced out of the fight, but CES found a more than suitable replacement. UFC veteran Levan Makashvili — who I was unaware had even been cut by the promotion — will step in on short notice and move up a weight class to take on Sanders. Sanders’ current three-fight win streak matches the longest of his career, while Makashvili is winless in his past two bouts, a decision loss to Hacran Dias and a draw against Damon Jackson. The winner of this bout will certainly have the inside track on the next title challenge for Luis Felix. CES seems to be lining up lightweight contenders beyond the main event however. A pair of fighters with one loss, Rhode Island’s Nate Andrews and Oklahoma’s Luis Muro, look to stake their claim at 155 as well. Andrews sole loss came in a 165lb catchweight fight in 2014, but he has rebounded with a pair of wins since then, most notably knocking out former CES lightweight champion Julian Lane in March. Muro was undefeated as an amateur (4-0), and started off his pro career with four straight wins as well, before dropping a decision in a five-round title fight just last month. The aforementioned Lane snapped a three-fight losing skid in April, and looks to build some momentum to get him back to the CES title. His obstacle in that task will be Lewis Corapi. While Corapi sports a 7-2 record, this will only be the fifth time he faces an opponent with a winning record, and he’s gone 2-2 in those bouts previously. The final two fighters worth noting on CES 36 won’t have lines on their bouts, but both Matt Bessette and Josh Laberge are in action. Bessette is facing Ran Weathers, who has been around MMA forever, but is only 5-18 since the start of 2010. Laberge returned to MMA in 2014 following a three year absence, and has gone 2-1 since coming back. One of his wins came against Weathers, and his loss was to Bessette. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting lines for CES MMA 36 today at Several Bookmakers. Check them out: ——————– CES MMA 36 Friday, June 10th AXS TV (9pm ET) Luis Muro +145 Nate Andrews -185 Ryan Sanders +325 Levan Makashvili -475 Lewis Corapi +130 Julian Lane -170 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: Nate Andrews being the hometown guy will certainly have the crowd behind him, and he will be the better fighter on the feet than Luis Muro, but this could get interesting if it hits the ground. Muro has some solid grappling skills if he gets on top, and Andrews struggled in the one fight where a bigger opponent was able to overpower him. I think Andrews keeps this upright — or ends up in top position in scrambles — and picks up the win, but I can’t bet this price. Ryan Sanders is pretty difficult to finish, and Levan Makashvili isn’t the greatest finisher. What that likely means is we’re going to see 15 minutes of Makashvili being quicker to the punch and better in the grappling exchanges. Unless Makasvhili is completely unmotivated following his release from the UFC, I expect him to win comfortably. I also don’t understand why he was cut in the first place. He didn’t have particularly exciting fights, but he was still far more worthy of his roster spot than many of the people in the UFC. From a technical perspective, Lewis Corapi is pretty solid. Unfortunately, he’s not a particularly fast or high-paced fighter. Those two things will hurt him against Julian Lane. Lane is prone to inactivity, but has a big right hand, a dangerous guillotine, and some pretty good wrestling. I think that combination will be enough for him to pull off the win against Corapi who won’t be doing quite enough to pull away on points when Lance inevitably sits back looking for the big shot.
