UFC 287: Pereira vs Adesanya 2

The official Tapology discussion thread for the event!

Meerschaert vs. Pyfer
Joseph Pyfer, DEC
watch

Holland opponent change? 

It not that Pereira just fought easy guys because Strickland is a top 5 guy(most likely because I don't know the rankings) and Izzy is one of the best to ever do it, Alex just really good stylistic matchups because all the guys who he fought aren't good offensive grappler, Izzy is the best offensive grappler he fought and that saying something, The Truth is that we don't know how good Pereria take-down defense is(against a grappler), And takedown defence is the most importent skill in MMA

* Edited at 04.05.2023, 5:27 PM ET *

@touloum no, that was him making a joke. When he fought Khamzat before the fight, everything went to ****. Since masvidal and him got into it in the hotel, he was joking saying his fight is now off

* Edited at 04.05.2023, 6:50 PM ET *

This is such a fun card. Let's get into it.

Alex Pereira vs Israel Adesanya:
We all know how the last fight went down, Israel did very well from range, using his footwork and movement on the outside to avoid the big power shots of Pereira. The leg kick battle was a very important one and one that Pereira won by checking more kicks and pushing the pressure on Izzy late. I think this notion that Izzy is going to put his wrestling shoes on is so played out - this guy is a kickboxer through and through, a point fighter who is elite at using his range and usual length advantages to win decisions. If you're telling me he is going to come in here and wrestle more, I just think you're wrong. The only reason that takedown even happened was because of Pereira engaging and trying to hip toss Izzy. If Izzy is going to come into close boxing range, he is setting himself up to wear the knees in close, to the body and will get worn on in close. I find this fight a bit of a catch 22 for Izzy in that, I think his best chance is to be more aggressive in the boxing range where he was having a good amount of success with his straight shots specifically. However, if he comes in and gets in close, he is setting himself up to get finished by the power hooks of Poatan. Tough matchup, I am sticking with the same pick as the first fight - takingAlex Pereira via TKO RD 3.

Jorge Masvidal vs Gilbert Burns:
Fun matchup here. I think on the feet, the speed and technicality of Jorge will have Gilbert guessing early. Given Jorge is a switch fighter but mainly OD and Burns is SP, I actually think this plays to the advantage of Jorge given that Gilbert struggles with his head movement against straight shots specifically, really sets up the cross of Jorge as well as that rear body kick which he throws consistently. Gilbert is very well rounded and is elite at maintaining top pressure, using his weight to just wear on you until he finds an opening to pounce on with a submission. He isn't the standard archetype of fighter that mauls Jorge ie. cardio machine, constant wrestling pressure etc but I do think he is the younger, more hungry fighter with enough left in the tank to get this one. I think the odds are definitely wide but I expect Burns to threaten more on the ground and win. TakingGilbert Burns via UD.

Rob Font vs Adrian Yanez:
Again, one I just don't agree with the odds on. Strength of schedule is massively on the Font side, I think he is the better all around mixed martial artist, I like the camp he comes from - I think they are excellent at these comeback fights after really bad losses, ie think Calvin Kattar vs Giga Chikadze. They are very good at game planning and I expect that to continue here. Yanez is an excellent boxer but he struggles against people who can keep him at range and touch at him, absorb the pressure he comes back with and reset. I think Font has good enough footwork to stay at range, if Yanez closes distance I think we see Font use his wrestling to control Yanez on the ground. The output Font puts out is massive, I don't think Yanez can keep up on that level but he does throw the more powerful shots with we have seen negate this for Font. The obvious main question is how does the durability of Font look but at this price, I am more than happy to find out. Huge step up for Yanez so super intrigued to see how we does here but takingRob Font via UD.

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Some bets we are looking at (we post our full betting card on our Instagram @ascendant.mma Friday nights):

 Alex ML +135  Amorim/Hughes FDGTD, Under 2.5 -110 C Rod ML +200 Font ML +150 Williams ITD +115

Meerschaert vs. Pyfer
Gerald Meerschaert, SUB, R3
Gm3 by comeback sub after almost getting finished

Ogden vs. Bahamondes
Ignacio Bahamondes, DEC
30-27 striking masterclass

Garcia vs. Nuerdanbieke
Shayilan Nuerdanbieke, DEC
Garcia is a gritty guy and has power but I think Shayilan can wrestle for 3 rounds and win a decision. Garcia is a better striker than him imo but his wrestling and TDD isn't good enough to stop what's coming.

Hughes vs. Amorim
Jaqueline Amorim, SUB, R1
Hughes is a dog but other than that she has no skill. Amorim is a question mark if this fight gets out of round 1 but I don't think it does.

* Edited at 04.05.2023, 8:04 PM ET *

Bit off topic, I find Masvidal lame now after coward punching Colby a month later after Colby 49-44 him, Arguably 50-43 him, Where the tough guy then???, All you can do is surprise punch him when he eating a burger and didn't even know you were there, Such a ***** move, And to brag about it as he's  some gangster and Colby some ***** is super lame, Espacally we know what happen when you 2 have a fair fight

I use to really like Masvidal before that too, I had a Masvidal wallpaper before the Duck one on here for the tapology historians, Also not really a Colby fan or a hater either,More indifferent, 

* Edited at 04.05.2023, 11:55 PM ET *

Pereira vs. Adesanya II
Alex Pereira, TKO, R4
Pereira will close the distance on Izzy again and knock him out. I wanted to pick Izzy in this spot but I can't. It seems like he's never gonna beat Pereira. Alex is just in his head it seems. Izzy is still a goat though. Izzy could try to wrestle but he's not a wrestler so good luck doing it for 25 mins.

Burns vs. Masvidal
Gilbert Burns, SUB, R2
Burns gets him down and subs him. Masvidal has a knockout chance of course but I just don't see it happening. Masvidal is a journeyman but he's awesome for the sport.

Font vs. Yanez
Adrian Yanez, TKO, R2
Yanez will hurt Font badly and finish him. Font needs to work in his jab here but I just don't see how he can win this. His durability is a in question at this point. His confidence seems to be super low right now.

Holland vs. Ponzinibbio
Kevin Holland, TKO, R2
Santiago is a great fighter that can't seem to put it all together. He has durability issues for sure. I'll take Holland to win this one but it's gonna be a lot closer than the line indicates.

Rosas Jr. vs. Rodriguez
Raul Rosas Jr., SUB, R1
I wanna take Rodriguez because he's a beast but his TDD is gonna kill him in this fight. Raul should be able to sub him early but if not then I can see Rodriguez piecing him up on the feet.

Gastelum vs. Curtis
Kelvin Gastelum, DEC
I'll lean Gastelum because he's impossible to finish and has fought the better competition but Curtis has fought great guys too and has unreal takedown defense. A true pickem.

Waterson-Gomez vs. Pinheiro
Michelle Waterson-Gomez, DEC
I'm actually gonna take Waterson to win this fight. She has fought the much better competition and it's not even close. Luana is a beast in round 1 but she gives up on herself as she starts to get tired. Waterson won't give up and has skill still.

Meerschaert vs. Pyfer
Joseph Pyfer, TKO, R1
I'm gonna take Joe Pyfer to get a knockout but I'm not sleeping on Gerald to come in here and sub him in the later rounds. This guy is a great gatekeeper and can sub anyone that messes around on the ground with him.

Williams vs. Sherman
Karl Williams, DEC
Williams looked ok in his last fight. His wrestling looked great but he started to gas which concerns me here seeing he's coming in on short notice. I'll still pick him to win though because Sherman sucks and has no TDD.

Calvillo vs. Godinez
Lupita Godinez, TKO, R3
Loopy ground and pound finish coming. It's time for Cynthia to retire.

Ogden vs. Bahamondes
Ignacio Bahamondes, TKO, R2
Bahamondes is gonna land something huge and get a highlight real finish again. He has some holes in his game still but Ogden is too slow and he's gonna have trouble taking control in this fight. Ogden is a smart fighter but he's another guy that isn't UFC caliber.

Pereira vs. Adesanya II
Alex Pereira, TKO, R2
Elk poop

I thought it was interesting how Izzy seemed legit surprised when a journalist told him that his coach did an interview and said that he didn't like Izzy making such a quick turnaround for this rematch. I wonder if that's CKB's weird way of playing mind games here, or if there really is some weird disconnect between Izzy and his coach.

Waterson-Gomez is the overall better fighter.

You heard it here first. 🔌

I think the Pinhero vs Waterson fight has split written all over it

Is crod takedown defence really that bad? Take in to consideration that he went up a weight class and fought on short notice against JSP, just saying

I'd rather pick pinhiero over lupita.