Preview: UFC Fight Night 122 ‘Bisping vs. Gastelum’

Featherweight

Zabit Magomedsharipov (13-1) vs. Sheymon da Silva Moraes (9-1)

ODDS: Magomedsharipov (-500), Moraes (+400)

ANALYSIS: Lest you think that our undercard is devoid of pop and sizzle, we have a compelling clash of developing prospects between Magomedsharipov and Moraes. You would be hard-pressed to recognize the value of this contest, however: Due to the unknown quality of so many of our debuting Chinese undercard talents, we have a slew of conservative, near-even lines, while the heavily touted Magomedsharipov is the card’s biggest favorite by considerable measure, presently -500 on the money line. Moraes just turned 27 years old and has tons of untapped potential, yet his growth has been slowed by a knee injury and the fact that he opted to sign with World Series of Fighting -- a promotion that could hardly supply him with substantive bouts. Moraes has not fought for 17 months, and worse, the power-punching Brazilian has shown an incredibly passive style in recent outings that runs contrary to Magomedsharipov’s eye-grabbing, jaw-dropping style. Magomedsharipov met Mike Santiago in his UFC debut in September, dominating his opponent to a second-round submission while nearly landing a half dozen “Showtime” kicks along the way. Another student of the Mark Henry-Ricardo Almeida synergy in New Jersey, Magomedsharipov is a truly elite prospect, a wielder of incredible and exotic striking techniques who also shows a disciplined and advanced defensive wrestling game. Moraes’ real problem here is not being offensively outgunned but rather his slow, patient methodology. The Brazilian feels out his opponents to the point of fault, giving over five to seven minutes of combat to his foes, as evidenced in him nearly losing a decision to anonymous Gabriel Solorio in the WSOF. This simply will not fly against the Russian, who throws constant, unyielding volleys of strikes over the long haul, yet remains a solid takedown defender. Moraes has shocking power in both hands and can dominate fighters as a kicker, but he is so unwilling to push that agenda that he will likely be stuck in first gear immediately against the hyperactive Magomedsharipov. If Moraes escapes a highlight-reel ending from the 26-year-old blue chipper, he will still drop a wide decision to the more active, attention-grabbing striker. Even if the odds have misdiagnosed Moraes’ chances of swinging one or two fight-ending punches, Magomedsharipov on points is the call.

Welterweight

Bobby Nash (8-3) vs. Kenan Song (11-3)

ODDS: Nash (-310), Song (+255)

ANALYSIS: Outside of the specious line on Magomedsharipov-Moraes, this fight has the longest odds on the card. As it concerns local Chinese talent facing foreign fighters, these are soundly the widest odds on the card -- and with good reason. Nash may be 0-2 in the Octagon, but his game is a known quantity; unfortunately for Song, so is his. Nash is a former Michigan State University wrestler, and while he may not mature into Rashad Evans or Gray Maynard, he is undoubtedly a rugged grappler who is not afraid to let his hands fly. His UFC losses to Jingliang Li and Danny Roberts came against physically large, overwhelming strikers who were able to take him to task. Song is a physically robust welterweight, but Nash will enjoy a two-inch reach advantage, as well as the fact that Song prefers to move backwards, operating off of the counter. Nash’s Achilles’ heel is being an overaggressive striker, but in this case, his punch rushes would seem to move Song right into the cage, where he can work his gritty wrestling style to effect. Song has shown himself to be fallible to both of these elements: Australian Brad Riddell is a much better striker than Nash but savagely beat Song to the head and body in January, while Russia’s Elnur Agaev had little moving a counter-oriented Song backwards, taking him down and controlling matters on top 12 months ago. Unless Nash dives headlong into a powerful combination of strikes, he should find a home for his powerful punching and, more critically, his strong takedowns and top position skills. “Nashty” earns the judges’ favor over 15 minutes.

Women’s Strawweight

Kailin Curran (4-5) vs. Xioanan Yan (7-1, 1 NC)

ODDS: Yan (-140), Curran (+120)

ANALYSIS: You are likely shocked by the fact that Curran and her sub-.500 record are still in the UFC, so let me take this moment to remind you: She entered the UFC as an unbeaten 3-0 prospect and has gone a dreadful 1-5 in the Octagon. Worse than that, this fight was not made under the pretense of getting the Hawaiian an easy win; in fact, Curran is taking on perhaps the best debuting Chinese fighter on this entire card. Curran is admittedly better than a 4-5 pro MMA record may indicate, but her UFC woes have largely been her own fault. The 26-year-old demonstrates a baffling lack of strategy, going for takedowns and getting beaten on the floor in fights she is winning -- a la Paige VanZant and Alex Chambers -- or winning Round 3 after doing nothing for the first 10 minutes, as she did against Jamie Moyle and Aleksandra Albu. Yan’s “Fury” nickname is apt, as she throws in rapid, chain-gun rushes of punches punctuated with kicks. Owing to her sanda background, she utilizes the side kick, not as a means to assess or preserve range but as a legitimate weapon. Her latest fight against longtime Japanese standout Emi Fujino may have resulted in a no-contest, but Yan has already shown the ability to smack up a superior technical wrestler, even if Fujino is not a physical specimen like Curran. This is Curran’s last UFC stand, yet Yan’s aggressive and unorthodox standup attack seems like exactly the thing to leave her flummoxed for at least a round too many, allowing the Chinese fighter to land more telling shots against a lackadaisical Curran while winning a tidy decision in the process.

Bantamweight

Bharat Khandare (5-2) vs. Yadong Song (10-4)

ODDS: Song (-145), Khandare (+125)

ANALYSIS: Khandare is the first Indian-born fighter to be signed by the UFC, and with an injury to originally slated opponent Pingyuan Liu, he has been blessed with the good grace to face Song, Liu’s teammate and late replacement. Will it yield a victory? Song is just 19 years old and another sanda-honed product of the Enbo Fight Team, which made headlines this year for its clandestine adoption of Chinese orphans and seeking to turn them into professional fighters. He is not as experienced or well-rounded as Liu, yet the teenage “Terminator” has already faced and defeated better opposition than Khandare. The Indian exponent has spent more than a year training with Jackson-Wink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but still appears to be an extreme iteration of a jack of all trades, master of none. His best route to victory against Song is to take down the MMA neophyte and exploit him on the ground, but Khandare’s biggest weakness has been his submission game on the floor and he is far from being top position dominator. Standing, he works a lazy jab and looks to close the distance behind it, which only seems to accentuate the strengths of his late-replacement opponent. Song tags him standing and wins on points in a competitive if under-skilled decision.

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