I am writing this article to provide some of the prospects I feel have relatively high potential in the UFC based off what I’ve seen thus far. I am not stating all of these fighters in this full article have the potential to be the champion of their respective division (though I think some can be). However, I am including them because I believe they have the capability of moving up the rankings and obtaining a very good reputation inside the octagon.
I realize ‘prospect’ can be perceived as a subjective term so I will specify that the fighters in this article I am referring to have no more than 4 fights in the UFC thus far (as of April 10th, 2020) and have made their promotional debut. By no means have these fighters looked perfect in the UFC thus far. In fact, some of these fighters have lost at least once so far in the promotion, but I believe in their long-term growth and future success which is why I am mentioning them in this piece. I hope you enjoy!
Heavyweight Division
Jairzinho Rozenstruik
If his first name is Jairzinho, he is a bad man inside the UFC’s octagon. Jairzinho Rozenstruik has a very impressive Kickboxing record at 76-8-1 (64 wins via TKO/KO) and his high-level striking background has translated very well to MMA thus far. Jairzinho has HUGE power in his hands (including from his jab) that he carries for as late as the 5th round of a fight (i.e. his last performance). Jairzinho’s technical, very experienced striking combined with his power make him a huge TKO/KO threat to any of his future opponents.
Jairzinho has looked most vulnerable in his defensive grappling and wrestling so far, but I believe he’s improving in these areas working with very-talented training partners and coaches at American Top Team. Also, I believe Jairzinho’s confidence will be another key ingredient to his future success in the promotion. I mean who calls out Francis Ngannou? …. Jairzinho Rozenstruik does.
Ciryl Gane
Ciryl Gane has looked very impressive in the UFC so far through 3 bouts. Ciryl is very athletic, fast, a threatening finisher, a technical fighter, a capable wrestler, and has solid cardio. The only glaring flaw I see in his game is he at times keeps his hands low when standing at range in striking exchanges. At the Heavyweight weight class, this flaw can very well lead to a TKO/KO loss against a good technical striker with power and proficient counter striking capabilities.
Regardless, I expect Ciryl to move his way up the ranks and fight for the title at some point because he checks an abundance of boxes as it pertains to a very talented MMA fighter. In general, I trust Gane’s tools to win rounds and finish fights. Gane is a very promising fighter and I anticipate excellent results from him in his UFC career.
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