UFC on Fuel 6: Franklin vs. Le Prelim Recap

Lineker and Urushitani slug it out. 

The UFC’s sixth event on Fuel TV and first to China came with mixed results, but was ultimately a success. It had several great fights, breakouts of future stars, and a spectacular knockout and comeback. It also showed us several fighters who don’t have what it takes to be in the UFC. Let’s see what these fights were and give them some matchups.

Riki Fukuda vs. Tom DeBlass: This was a surprisingly good fight. I was expecting this fight to be one of the more boring fights on this card, but both men really impressed me. From start to finish Fukuda won everywhere the fight went, but not without DeBlass having some memorable moments himself. Fukuda’s wrestling would ultimately overpower DeBlass’ BJJ. With a record of 0-2 within the UFC against lower-tier fighters, DeBlass will most likely receive a pink slip.

Possible matchups for Fukuda: Riki Fukuda is a legitimate fighter in the UFC, even though he only has a 2-2 record, which should really be 3-1. In his wins over both Steve Cantwell and Tom DeBlass, Fukuda has shown good wrestling and very technical kickboxing. He is definitely looking for stiffer competition, but I’m not sure he’s ready just yet. Another fighter in a similar position is Chris Camozzi. These two should fight to see who’s ready for some stiffer competition.

Yasuhiro Urushitani vs. John Lineker: This fight was awesome. I also believe it showed the breakout of a future star. Lineker showed superior power from the very beginning of this fight. The first round was very close and could have gone either way. In the closing minute, Lineker did drop Urushitani, which would become routine in the following rounds. Lineker would stalk down his opponent, eating shots, pushing forward, and delivering knockout blows. His technique was great and his power was very impressive. There was one combo that I remember that Lineker landed in the second round that seriously impressed me. He pushed Urushitani into the cage and unloaded on his body and head. The Japanese star has now lost twice definitively in the UFC and I foresee a pink slip.

Possible matchups for Lineker: Like I said in the last paragraph, I believe that Lineker will become a star within the UFC. With devastating standup and a great chin, he has a lot of the attributes for a future champion. The scary part is that he is only 22 years old. Urushitani was a top-10 or maybe even top-5 going into this fight and Lineker easily beat him. I was extremely impressed. Darren Uyenoyama is also coming off of a very impressive submission win over Phil Harris and I would love to see these two guys fight.

Alex Caceres vs. Motonobu Tezuka: This was a really fun grappling match with two very promising bantamweights. Tezuka clearly had the better wrestling, as he took down Caceres on multiple occasions, though it was Caceres who was the busier fighter on the ground, both on the top and bottom. Though I did score all three rounds in favor of Caceres, one could certainly make the case for two rounds in favor of Tezuka. Both guys impressed me, but Tezuka even more so. Even though he lost, it was extremely close and he took this fight on only about one week’s notice against a surging up and comer.

Possible matchups for Caceres: The standup of Caceres looked much improved in this fight. His jab was spot on and his kicks looked solid. I want to see his skills really tested against another fighter who won in China: Takeya Mizugaki. Caceres will certainly have his skills tested against a veteran like Mizugaki and it would show just how far he has come.

Possible matchups for Tezuka: I liked how Tezuka looked in this fight. He shows a lot of promise. But the fact of the matter is, he lost his debut so he is going to have to fight lower tier fighters. Dustin Pague has a 1-3 record within the UFC and this would be a fun loser goes home grappling match. 

Click here for the main card recap.