UFC on Fuel TV 5 Prelim Recap

Gunnar Nelson finishing DaMarques Johnson

The UFC continues to deliver on their smallest scale of fight nights on the obscure Fuel TV. This event had brutal knockouts, slick submissions, big upsets, and the emergence of some extremely promising fighters. Fuel TV continues to deliver exciting UFC events, which is sad because no one is really watching these fights. Anyway, let’s head into this event and take a look at some possible matchups for the winners and losers of this event.

Robbie Peralta vs. Jason Young: There isn’t much to say about this fight. It only lasted 23 brutal seconds. Peralta went out there and put his hands on him instantly. He landed a huge right hand and dropped “Shotgun”. A few punches followed and Young was as unconscious as unconscious gets. Peralta has emerged as a highly underrated contender at 145 pounds. And with this, Young is now 1-3 in the UFC, leading to the inevitable pink slip.

Possible matchups for Peralta: Peralta showed on Saturday that he has some of the best power for 145-pounds. He has a solid ground game that is overlooked as well. Another fighter who has similar skills, with technical boxing and a solid ground game, Nam Phan is coming off of a huge win over Cole Miller, a fight in which he easily outpointed the much larger Cole. This fight would show who is ready for that big step up in competition.

DaMarques Johnson vs. Gunnar Nelson: Gunnar Nelson’s UFC debut was one of the most anticipated UFC debuts in years. Many consider him to be the future of MMA as he sports a highly refined all around mixed martial arts arsenal. His first round submission win over DaMarques Johnson showed exactly why he is such a hyped fighter. He started out with an unorthodox karate stance, much to that of Lyoto Machida, and landed a nice headkick in the opening seconds. He then took him down and slowly worked his way to the back of Johnson and into a rear naked choke. It was a flawless performance and the sky is truly the limit of the 24-year-old Iceland native. And sadly, with this being the third loss in a row in which he was finished, DaMarques Johnson has to be done.

Possible matchups for Nelson: As I just mentioned above, Gunnar Nelson is one of the most promising fighters in the UFC today. Sporting a perfect 10-0-1 record, with the one draw being his MMA debut, Nelson is ready for a huge step up. Another winner on this card whom has a very bright future in the UFC is John Hathaway. Hathaway won a highly lackluster bout against John Maguire in a fight that I have no interest in recapping. Both these guys should fight and depending on how the fight goes, it will be quite telling on the future of the welterweight division.

Brad Tavares vs. Tom Watson: This fight was screwed out of the “Fight of the Night” in my opinion. This was a back and forth brawl between two highly touted middleweight prospects, including the long awaited debut of Tom “Kong” Watson. I really felt that going into this fight that Tom Watson was going to win the standup in this fight and stop any takedowns that Tavares went for. I, including many others, was wrong and underestimated the skills of the 24-year-old Tavares. Tavares out struck Watson, using pinpoint accurate jabs and solid combinations with leg kicks and takedowns mixed in. He used a much more versatile attack that ultimately won him the split decision, although it should have been a easy unanimous decision, as I scored every round for Tavares.

Possible matchups for Tavares: I truly believe that we have found a new contender at 185. Tavares has looked better in every one of his performances. Now that he is sporting a 4-1 record with the UFC, he could even be 5-0, he is now ready for the next level of competition. Chris Leben and Karlos Vemola are fighting at UFC 155 and the winner of that should fight the ever-improving Brad Tavares.

Possible matchups for Watson: Although he gave a spirited effort, Watson thoroughly disappointed many hardcore MMA fans around the world. He had one of the most anticipated MMA debuts, and he fell flat. If he wants to stay with the UFC, he has to impress in his next fight. One fighter that has yet to have his next fight set up is Clifford Starks, who is extremely athletic. Watson would have to win that fight to stay with the UFC.

Andy Ogle vs. Akira Corassani: Before this fight, I really disliked Akira. After this fight, I vehemently dislike him. He is an extremely dirty fighter, like a seriously grimy person. Not only that, but Goddard didn't even warn him on anything. It was enraging. Corassani lands a groin shot, head butt, highly illegal soccer kick that no one is talking about, and a huge haymaker that dropped Ogle that was thrown way after the bell. The guy is gross. And on top of all this, I scored the fight an easy 29-28 for Ogle. Akira ended up winning by split decision. Enraging is the perfect word to sum up this fight. Akira didn't deserve this win; Andy Ogle did. 

Possible matchups for Corassani: I have no interest in to where Akira goes. Cool, he has powerful standup, but his ground game and cardio sucks. Milton Vieira is coming off of a draw to Felipe Arantes. I want Vieira to go and submit him instantly.

Possible matchups for Ogle: I really hope that the UFC doesn't release Andy. He really got screwed with this loss. I thought he easily won. I think a fight with Cole Miller would be really fun.

Kyle Kingsbury vs. Jimi Manuwa: Jimi Manuwa was one of the many fighters making their UFC debut under a ton of hype. He both highly impressed and didn't. Although the first round was most likely a 10-8 for "The Posterboy", he was easily out grappled in the beginning of the opening frame. But once Manuwa made it to his feet, he lit up Kyle Kingsbury so bad that Kyle looked like Sloth from "The Goonies". It was both disgusting and hilarious. Manuwa seemed to have gassed out midway through the second round, so it was probably a lucky break that the fight was stopped after the second round. Kingsbury's eye was completely closed shut. This is now the third decisive loss in a row for Kingsbury, it's a shame but he will most likely receive his walking papers from the UFC.

Possible matchups for Manuwa: It's always a good thing to start off with an impressive debut over a solid veteran in the UFC. Although Jimi Manuwa gave us the formula for which you defeat him, take him down and smother, he still showed some of the best power in the light heavyweight division. He seems to be he perfect fighter to set up exciting matchups. Igor Pokrajac is coming off of a submission loss to Vinny Magalhaes and a fight with Manuwa would be an absolute slugfest.

Main card recap here.