Ben Rothwell Vs Junior Dos Santos: Fight Preview

 Loading ...

By JM “Shade” Daguio

The heavyweight division is still only shaping up, after the Fabricio Werdum’s glorious defeat of 2-time heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez suddenly the title picture became a little bit crowded.

Thus the entry of Ben Rothwell in the title picture makes it a little interesting. Rothwell is a perennial heavyweight dancing in the fringes of top 5, he is currently ranked at no. 4 which will make this potential win against Dos Santos a huge leap for a title shot. Rothwell’s UFC debut didn’t show much since he lost his debut fight, he went on to lose 3 of his first 5 fights up until the resurgence began; Rothwell defeated UFC veteran Brandon Vera via TKO (Rothwell was suspended after a post fight drug test showed he had elevated testosterone although the win was awarded) and Alistair Overeem also via TKO, critics weren’t impressed yet since Rothwell is known to be a well-rounded fighter but his attacks are often from relying on his KO power, kill or be killed.

But until recently Rothwell have been impressing critics and fans alike after the submission of Matt Mitrione and Josh Barnett (who has never been submitted in his career) with his patented go-go choke. Now, Rothwell’s arsenal is complete, he can now take the fight anywhere he wants; these are the types of tools needed to defeat Junior Dos Santos and with Rothwell’s current streak, the chances of winning is great.

Junior Dos Santos on the other hand, is currently on a crossroad. One might actually say that he has the same career path as Rothwell but in reverse. If Rothwell’s UFC start was rough, Dos Santos’ was a breeze. After utterly destroying current champ in Fabricio Werdum, Dos Santos went on a 9-fight winning streak and during that streak he captured the heavyweight title from Cain Velasquez in their first fight. Dos Santos caught Velasquez with a vicious overhand right and finished Velasquez in 64 seconds. Dos Santos went on to defend his title versus Frank Mir.

Dos Santos is 3-2 versus current or former champions, his luck ran out versus Cain Velasquez in their much-anticipated rematch. Dos Santos was battered through 5-rounds but he showed heart all the way although it didn’t change the course of the fight. After losing the title, Dos Santos lost 3 of his last 5 bouts, all his losses showed that he significantly slowed down and a little bit gun shy but Dos Santos insists that he’s just on a slump and will have his chance again. Dos Santos’ win versus current champ Werdum is what makes him relevant, he currently sits at no. 5 in the heavyweight rankings, a much-needed win versus Rothwell would give Dos Santos the leverage to either fight a top contender or the champ himself.

In this fight, Rothwell’s momentum is a huge advantage, his confidence will be through the roof but Rothwell does know that Dos Santos is still the vicious striker that he was before. Rothwell should close the distance and engage Dos Santos into a brawl and throw in some dirty boxing; this would be Rothwell’s keys to victory, since the clinch would give Rothwell the opportunity to take Dos Santos down and submit him or KO Dos Santos while inside the pocket.

Dos Santos’ keys to victory would be to become the sniper. Use distance, angles, feints, level changes and jab. This would keep Rothwell guessing as to what Dos Santos would do. The good thing about this type of strategy is that Dos Santos is adept at stalking and staying outside, he doesn’t have to look for the KO but instead will just set up his combos until the KO does come.

A memorable heavyweight match is in order.

Ben Rothwell Vs Junior Dos Santos is the main event for UFC Fight Night in Zagreb, Croatia.

[si-contact-form form=’2′]