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FLYING UNDER THE RADAR | Jack Della Maddalena vs Ramazan Emeev

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This coming weekend, the UFC will touchdown in Singapore for the fifth time, for UFC 275 headlined by Light Heavyweight champion, Glover Teixeira and challenger, Jiri Prochazka. Not only will the Light Heavyweight title be on the line for the first PPV in South East Asia, but the women’s Flyweight title will also be contested. With there being two title fights on the card, one fight is discreetly going under the radar as a sleeper underrated fight. That being Jack Della Maddalena vs Ramazan Emeev.

In his UFC debut versus Pete Rodriguez, Maddalena exhibited extremely crisp boxing. Hardcore MMA fans, in particular UFC fans, have took an extreme liking to the Aussie due to his clear skill. On the other side stands Ramazan Emeev. The Russian stands as the far more experienced fighter of the two, already with 25 professional MMA bouts. Last time out, he came up short in a battle with the Brit, Danny Roberts. Prior to his last loss though, he defeated two Germans on the bounce, Stolze and Zawada.

(Credit: MMAjunkie.usatoday.com): Jack Della Maddalena defeats Pete Rodriguez in the first round on his UFC debut

Jack’s Keys To Victory

There is no doubt that Jack Della Maddalena comes into this fight as the more polished striker of the two. In his last outing he painted Rodriguez’s face red with his constant popping jab. During the fight, the 25-year-old showcased that he is an extremely comfortable fighter and can be calculative, as throughout, he switched stances looking equally as good in Orthodox and Southpaw. His counter punching caused Rodriguez a whole lot of issues as whenever the American tried to put on some forward pressure, he was met with either a stiff jab or a counter shot. His tight boxing guard allows him to soak up shots while he prepares to throw a counter bomb. One thing that needs to be further proved by the Australian prospect is that he can hold his own in the grappling and wrestling department. In his Contender Series bout with Ange Loosa, he proved to be a tough test to takedown and dominate on the mat, showing glimpses of impressive scrambling.

Jack’s chance of victory in this upcoming bout lies on his ability to keep the fight contested in the middle of the Octagon, and to be able to throw his popping jab to keep the distance between himself and Emeev. I don’t expect to see Della Maddalena throw many kicks, as in the past, Emeev has showcased a tremendous ability to perfectly time the takedown when a kick is thrown his way.

Emeev’s Keys To Victory

Despite the high praise for Jack Della Maddalena, Emeev stands as undoubtably the toughest test so far for the Australian. The experience of the Russian alone is something Della Maddalena hasn’t faced yet, as in his 13 professional bouts so far, he is yet to fight anyone with over 10 professional fights. Not only that, but Emeev’s wrestling ability will be a weapon we will likely see deployed in this fight.

The former M-1 Global Middleweight champion has shown in his previous bouts that despite his opponent, he is likely the dominant wrestler. Last time out, he showcased his wrestling acumen getting the fight with Danny Roberts to the ground in the first five minutes. He didn’t manage to keep the Brit down for long though, and then found himself involved in a striking match with the powerful Roberts. Before this bout, Ramazan Emeev found himself 5-0 in the UFC in fights which he scored at least 1 takedown.

(Credit: mmamania.com): Ramazan Emeev comes up short in split decision loss to Danny Roberts

Emeev’s keys to victory at UFC 225 lie solely on his ability to get Della Maddalena down on the ground, away from the cage. He will have to frustrate the 25-year-old getting him in exchanges that he doesn’t want to be involved in. Della Maddalena’s cautiousness of the takedown may play into Emeev’s hands and he may find that the tight guard of Jack becomes open at some points during their scrap, opening up the opportunity to land some crisp combos of his own.

Jack Della Maddalena finds himself on the main card of a primetime UFC event for the first time in his extremely short tenure, with Emeev set to feature on a UFC main card for the second time.

If Della Maddalena can get past the tricky test of Emeev, his popularity will grow tenfold, and it won’t be long till UFC fans around the globe are calling him a serious Welterweight contender.

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Paul Hughes Gets New Opponent as Oduwole Out

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Cage Warriors – Europe’s Leading MMA Organisation – have today announced a change in the scheduled opponent for Irish superstar Paul Hughes at Cage Warriors 170. 

An injury occurring just days after he signed to fight Hughes has forced Yemi Oduwole out of the contest. 

The promotion wishes him a speedy return to full health. 

CW officials have moved quickly to secure a suitable replacement, today confirming that Hughes will remain on the Saturday, April 6th bill, now facing off with Edgar ‘Smooth’ Escarrega. 

The bout will feature on the main card of CW 170 at Dublin’s iconic RDS, and air live on UFC Fight Pass and international broadcast partners. 

The 29-year-old Escarrega, who hails from the port city of Ensenada in Baja California, Mexico, brings an impressive 12-3-1 record to the contest. 

The Victory Fight Club man – who is a striker by trade – is unbeaten in his last six contests, and from twelve victories has a total of five KOs, two submissions and five points wins to his name. 

“From Mexico to the world, here I come!” said Escarrega, when signing on the dotted line for what is undoubtedly the biggest opportunity of his professional career. 

Hughes, from County Derry, is widely considered to be on the cusp of signing with the UFC following a series of impressive performances in the famous yellow gloves of Cage Warriors. 

‘Big News’ recently vacated his featherweight title, moving up to the 155lb division to stop top contender Jan Quaeyhaegens in the first round. 

Also scheduled for the CW 170 card, Dublin’s James ‘Jimbo Slice’ Sheehan contests the vacant welterweight title with Switzerland’s Daniel Konrad, with Ger Harris, Solomon Simon, Decky McAleenan, Taka Mhandu and more set to feature. 

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“I Should Get The Shot” – Jacob Smith Wants World Title Fight If He Bests Denis Puric At ONE Fight Night 21

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Fiery flyweight Muay Thai star Jacob Smith enjoyed a triumphant return to ONE Championship last December at ONE Fight Night 17 after 18 months on the sidelines. 

The Scouse striker knocked out Walter Goncalves to gain momentum in the world’s largest martial arts organization, and he plans to add to it next month.

Smith returns to action against Bosnian-Canadian powerhouse Denis Puric at ONE Fight Night 21: Eersel vs. Nicolas on Saturday, 6th April, inside Bangkok, Thailand’s historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium. 

Fans anticipate a thunderous clash, as they are both known to finish fights. Smith feels he knows what to expect from Puric, and he plans to give him an unwelcome gift for his birthday. 

“I’m either going to stop him with the knee or stop him with an elbow. I feel like the first round is going to be quite fiery. But if he decides to rush me too early, he’s going to walk into some big shots, so I could just finish him in round one,” he said. 

“But I’m sure I’m fighting him on his 39th birthday. So, unfortunately, my birthday present is going to be me knocking him out.”

When Jacob Smith debuted in ONE Championship at May 2022’s ONE 157, he battled ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon across three rounds of hard-hitting action. 

He came up short that night via unanimous decision, and a series of injuries forced him to take time away from action afterward. But that gap seemed to have allowed him level up his skill set. 

Smith came back stronger than ever, and his first-round finish of Goncalves last December pegged him as one to watch. The #2-ranked flyweight Muay Thai contender is hoping to score back-to-back wins against Puric next month, and he knows exactly what he wants if he’s successful.

“My goal is to be ONE Championship Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion, and fingers crossed by the end of the year that comes through,” Smith said. 

“Rodtang is the champion, and Superlek is number one. After beating Walter, I’m now number two. Rodtang and Superlek are probably going fight each other again soon. Then I should get the shot at the winner after I beat Puric.”

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UFC Vegas 89 – Results | Ribas vs Namajunas

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Live from the Apex, UFC Vegas 89 saw former strawweight Rose Namajunas make her second appearance at flyweight against contender Amanda Ribas.

Note: any point deductions will be denoted by an asterisk and explained at the bottom of the page.

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Main card (2am GMT – TNT Sports)

Rose Namajunas defeats (#8) Amanda Ribas via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47) – flyweight bout

Karl Williams defeats Justin Tafa via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) – heavyweight bout

Edmen Shahbazyan defeats AJ Dobson via knockout (punches – 4:43 – R1) – middleweight bout

Payton Talbott defeats Cameron Saaiman via TKO (punches – 0:21 – R2) – bantamweight bout

Youssef Zalal defeats Billy Quarantillo via submission (rear-naked-choke – 1:50 – R2) – featherweight bout

Fernando Padilla defeats Luis Pajuelo via submission (brabo choke – 2:45 – R1) – featherweight bout

Prelims (11pm GMT – TNT Sports/UFC Fight Pass)

Trey Ogden defeats Kurt Holobaugh via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) – lightweight bout

Julian Erosa defeats Ricardo Ramos via submission (guillotine – 2:15 – R1) – featherweights bout

Miles John defeats Cody Gibson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) – bantamweight bout

Jarno Errens defeats Steve Nguyen via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) – featherweight bout

Darya Zheleznyakova defeats Monsterrat Rendon via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) – bantamweight bout

Andre Lima defeats Igor Severino via disqualification (biting – 2:52 – R2) – flyweight bout

Mick Parkin defeats Mohammed Usman via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) – heavyweight bout

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