A couple new fights were announced over the weekend, and here they are along with my thoughts on them.
Kurt Holobaugh vs. Raoni Barcelos, UFC Fight Night 133
A lightweight bout between Kurt Holobaugh and Raoni Barcelos will take place at UFC Fight Night 133, which is set for Saturday, July 14 at CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho. Nolan King of MMA Today broke the news. Holobaugh (17-4, 1 NC) looked great on Dana White’s Contender Series but his win over Matt Bessette was overturned to a No Contest when he failed a USADA test and he’s missed nine months on the shelf. Now that he’s back, he’ll look to improve upon his five-fight unbeaten streak. Barcelos (11-1) is on a four-fight win streak himself and in his last bout picked up a knockout win over current UFC fighter Dan Moret. I’d have to lean towards Holobaugh due to his experience and success at the sport’s highest levels but Barcelos is certainly someone to keep an eye on.
Alan Jouban vs. Danny Roberts, UFC Fight Night 134
A welterweight matchup between Alan Jouban and Danny Roberts is the latest addition to UFC Fight Night 134, which goes down Sunday, July 22 at BarclayCard Arena in Hamburg, Germany. Jouban himself announced the bout on The MMA Heat Podcast. Jouban (16-6) is 7-4 so far in the UFC and is coming off of a KO win over Ben Saunders in a “Fight of the Year” candidate from earlier this year. Somehow Jouban is 36 but he looks 10 years younger and is still fighting at a high level. For the most part Jouban has acted as a high-level gatekeeper who beats the guys who should beat but loses to higher-ranked opponents. Back-to-back stoppage losses to Niko Price and Gunnar Nelson made some sour on Jouban for a while but the Saunders win showed what he does best and that’s knock people out as four of his seven UFC wins have come via T/KO. Roberts (15-3) is 4-2 so far in the UFC with three stoppage wins, including a brutal KO over Oliver Enkamp in his last bout. At 30 Roberts is in his prime and ready to make a run up the welterweight ladder, but he’ll have to hope his chin holds up better as he’s been knocked out twice in his last four bouts, albeit to two power punchers in Mike Perry and Nordine Taleb. This is a really good fight on paper that should be a standup war between two guys who like to stand and bang. Overall I think Jouban is the more skilled fighter but his age does concern me going up against a younger fighter here. I’d lean towards Jouban ever-so-slightly but it’s definitely a very close fight to call.
