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thesportssoundoff · 5 years

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DWCS Episode 3 Primer

Joey

July 8th

Thus far the 3rd season of the Contenders Season has given us four fighters; 1 HW (Yorgan de Castro), 1 MW (Punahele Soriano), 1 BW (Miles Johns), 1 WW (Miguel Baeza). What’s episode three got for us?

Joseph Solecki (7-2, 25 years old, Pro since 2016) vs James Wallace (9-2, 26 years old, Pro since 2015) Lightweights

Joseph Solecki Where He Fight At? ROC and CFFC! Solecki has fought primarily in CFFC. Who’d He Ever Beat? Not anybody necessarily that I'd be familiar with for sure. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 37-23-1! That's not awful but definitely not exactly the sexiest of records. His two losses are a combined 10-2 (2-0 Cesar Balmaceda, 8-2 TUF Brazil fighter Nikolas Motta). His last fight out, Solecki beat 7-6 Jacob Bohn by decision. Why Is He Here? Eh, I mean Solecki isn't a bad idea on paper. He's a guy who has hung out on the regional circuit and he's a young lightweight. Watching him fight, you can kinda see some upside as a crazy grappling guy. He is quick, has exciting fights and tends to finish them when he gets the chance. He's a fun guy to keep an eye on even if the records presented here are pretty gross.

James Wallace Where He Fight At? Wallace is one of those dudes who has been pretty much everywhere. Bellator, LFA, V3 Fights and Summit FC; four promotions of various qualities who have at least been holding shows for a good long minute. Who’d He Ever Beat? Kinda nobody of note but kinda sorta some intriguing names? His early career was complete and utter fluff but in his last five fights, Wallace has beaten 6-2 Sean Holden, 3-0 Kaleb Harris and 3-0 Stash Kuyukendall. Maybe not the creme de la creme of MMA but those are at least spiffy records on paper. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 32-29. Little bit of a yuck city here. Hard to get excited about 32-29 with some serious fluff on here like 8-16 Jimmy Van Horn and 0-4 Henry. His two losses were a combined 4-1. Why Is He Here? Solecki vs Wallace feels like one of those fights where both guys are so close, dare we say virtually identical, that it makes sense they'd be matched up together. Watching Wallace's few fights out there on youtube land, I got a pretty good comp for him I feel; Mickey Gall. He's kind of an uncoordinated striker who has some natural pop that needs refining. He's a BJJ ace first and foremost so he prefers working on the mat and even most of the times off his back. He's squirrelly and athletic but maybe without much purpose behind what he does. This is the sort of guy this show tends to gravitate towards.

Kenneth Bergh (6-0, 30 years old, Pro since 2013) vs Antonio Tricoli (11-3, 28 years old, Pro since 2013) Light Heavyweights

Kenneth Bergh Where He Fight At? There are two places you'd recognize Bergh from. The first is Cage Warriors where he last fought at and the other? TUF! He was a TUF 23 contestant (the same season that gave us Khalil Rountree, Eric Spicely and Andrew Sanchez) although he lost in the "Get in the house" round to Eric Spicely. Who’d He Ever Beat? How's about our old pal Norman Paraisy?! Two time TUF try out and Cage Warriors veteran Norman Paraisay was the last opponent of Bergh; a 2nd round rear naked choke win for the Norweigan. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 23-11-2. That's probably what you should expect from a big dude who has six pro fights officially. That said if you remove Norman Paraiasy from the mix and his 15-4-2 record, you're left with a not too pretty 8-7 for his combined other five opponents. Why Is He Here? He's a light heavyweight! It's really that simple on paper. Dig a bit deeper and there's cause to be made that Bergh is pretty much what this show is about; he's a fight finisher with all six of his wins coming by submission, he had his failed stint on TUF and then rebounded to beat two pretty tough guys in Brett McDermott and Norman Paraisy by submission and he's still somewhat on the right side of 30 given that he JUST turned 30 this month. The UFC knows who he is based off of TUF as well. The problem I have is that Kenneth Bergh has not fought since June of 2017, ergo he's technically coming into this fight on a two year inactivity streak. Vomitando.

Antonio Tricoli Where He Fight At? Tricoli has a ridiculous amount of fights in promotions you'd know of. Brazilian fans probably know of Imperium MMA and Jungle Fight and American fans should still have found memories of Legacy FC. Tricoli has been at this for a good long minute. Who’d He Ever Beat? His BEST win is actually pretty solid regional MMA wise. Tricoli beat Wendell Oliveira who you may remember from TUF Brazil Season Two and an 0-2 stint inside the UFC (with losses to legitimate top 10 WWs like Darren Till and Santiago Ponzinibbio). Tricoli's three losses are all very solid as you have Dhiego Lima (still in the UFC), Jacob Volkmann (had a long stint in the org) and Brazilian fight circuit veteran Marcelo Barbosa who was 11-3. All good comp. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 91-46! Tricoli has been around, man! His best win is the aforementioned Wendell Oliveira at 24-9 while his losses were to 18-6 Jacob Volkmann and Dhiego Lima at 10-4. Even Wendell Barbosa is 7-3. Rodrigo Carlos by the way at 20-13 is also one of his wins and Carlos is sort of the universal "Fight everybody" guy in Brazil. Why Is He Here? The natural instinct in me is to look at a dude like Tricoli and assume he's here to test Kenneth Bergh. He's the more shopworn of the two despite being younger, he's fought the better competition but more often than not lost to them, he's quit on his stool in the past against smaller fighters and he's on a decision streak. This feels like a chance to test whether Bergh can get into the UFC. At the same time, male Brazilian MMA is really in a lull in the UFC and Tricoli may be here because the UFC thinks that his 3-0 record at 205 lbs is more a sign of a guy evolving into his best form.

Jacob Rosales (11-4, 23 years old, Pro since 2015) vs Jonathan Pearce (8-3, 27 years old, Pro since 2014) Lightweights

Jacob Rosales Where He Fight At? For being just 23 years old, Rosales is a well traveled dude. He's fought for LFA, RFA, Bellator and Combates. He also fought for Shamrock FC which is sort of a gateway into Bellator as well. Maybe he has tremendous representation but it sure seems like a lot of organizations who know a thing or two about a thing or two like him. His last fight was in FCOC which seems like a nondescript bit of business until you learn they have a CATCHWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (apparently at 165 lbs). Who’d He Ever Beat? Rosales has packed fifteen pro fights into four years. That probably requires a fair bit of barnacle scrubbing. As such it shouldn't be much of a surprise that Rosales' best win is probably regional veteran Joshua Jones (7-4) or Ivan Castillo (16-10). Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 74-65-1! In fifteen fights, Rosales has packed in some pretty good numbers. His last four opponents alone are 46-35 and the number is somewhat skewered by his last opponent, 15-25 Quinton McConnell. His four losses are a combined 15-10-1 including what looks like a borderline inexcusable loss to 4-7-1 Derion Chapman in 2017. Why Is He Here? On paper I feel like there's a lot of good to be looked at. Rosales is a really young guy who is still fresh in his fighting career, he's on a four fight winning streak vs top competition and big name organizations have brought him in. His third ever pro fight was on an RFA card which again suggests that he's got some followers. Watching the bevy of footage out there (including the loss to Chapman), Rosales seems like the sort of dude Dana White would absolutely fall in love with. He's a hyperactive scrapper by trade who throws with reckless abandon, is more chin than defense with length on the feet and an aggressive ground game. This is the sort of guy Dana White likes. It's not that big of a surprise that he's here. I just don't know how high the upside is if he's letting dudes who are 4-7-1 rock him consistently.

Jonathan Pearce Where He Fight At? Pearce is another guy who has been everywhere so to speak. Valor Fights and Shogun Fights are pretty well known regional orgs in the Northeast and it seems like Pearce has done most of his work in places like Tennessee and North Carolina. He does have two Bellator appearances on his resume as well. Who’d He Ever Beat? Pearce's win/loss record? Not so hot I guess. Jonathan Pearce's opposition is not too great BUT he does have 6-1 Omar Johnson on it. Johnson's record is equally fluffy but he did fight and lose to WSOF/Bellator/LFA veteran Jaleel Willis. That's something. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 45-20 would be the record of opposition at the time they fought which isn't too bad. To his credit of his eleven fights, only one of his opponents had a losing record. The best fighter is Omar Johnson. Why Is He Here? Pearce is a pretty interesting guy; remove a three fight skid which includes a loss to DWTCS alum Peter Petties and Pearce is 8-0 with wins over some reputable regional competition. He's on the right side of 30, coming into this fight on a four fight finishing streak with some of those wins happening in Bellator. Fighters like him are of value and at the very least wind up on the short notice list when the UFC needs a guy. He also trains with the MMALab and they seem to have an in on DWTCS since a lot of their guys wind up filling spots on it. They're the even further West version of Fortis MMA.

Chris Ocon (4-0, 23 years old, pro since 2017) vs Hunter Azure (5-0, 27 years old, pro since 2017) Bantamweights

Chris Ocon Where He Fight At? With just 4 fights and 2 in the same locale, Ocon has spent most of his time in Tennessee. He's another Valor Fights guy. Who’d He Ever Beat? Nobody really. He's had four fights and they're all against guys you'd never hear of. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 7-3 combined record for his four opponents. Ocon is SUPER green obviously with just two years into his career and under five pro fights. His best win is actually his pro debut against then 2-1 Dre Miley. Miley has gone on to go 6-2 and I think he might be a bit of a legitimate prospect except he's got an eye issue which IMO would have him far off their radar. Why Is He Here? Chris Ocon is in a weird spot here and it almost feels like one of those cases where even IF he wins, the UFC will be telling him that he's still not ready yet. He's four fights into his career, looks moderately impressive in glimpses and has the tools that would normally get them excited. He's just too raw and in a division like 135 lbs where even the bottom half of the division is quality capable dudes.

Hunter Azure Where He Fight At? After starting most of his career in small regional orgs, Azure has had his last three pro fights at LFA. Who’d He Ever Beat? Nobody really good I suppose. Azure has faced some reputable fighters for a young prospect but nothing that you'd hang your hat on. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? Azure's five combined opponents are 17-14. To his credit, he fought just one guy with a sub .500 record so at least he wasn't barnacle scrubbing. His best win is probably Jaime Hernandez who was 3-1 at the time with sole loss being to DWCS alum Rico Disculio. Why Is He Here? Hunter Azure is a more polished version of Chris Ocon which makes me wonder if Azure is the guy they expect to find a home for quickly. Azure has been groomed in LFA where he could develop his skills as main card filler. Watching his fights, you can see that he's got a serious lack of developed tools but a lot of intriguing assets to his game that could in the future lead to him developing into something. He's also yet another MMA lab guy.

Maki Pitolo (11-4, 28 years old, Pro since 2013) vs Justin Sumter (7-2, 29 years old, Pro since 2016) Middleweights

Maki Pitolo Where He Fight At? Maki's been everywhere I suppose. He started his career fighting in Hawaiian orgs and moved his way over to the mid west where he cut his teeth in Victory FC. He's fought in CFFC and Bellator as well. Who’d He Ever Beat? Some good solid regional competition. How do names like Andrews Nakahara (TUF contestant, PFL/WSOF guy) and Justin Guthrie (Bellator and Titan FCvet) sound? Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? Maki's been around for a long time and had a lot of fights. His record of opposition at the time of is a really solid 121-56! Not bad at all. Chris Cisnersos and Kassius Kayne appear twice and both guys are reputable; Kayne at the time was 9-2 and then 9-3 when they fought. Maki actually fought Cisneros in his 2nd pro fight when Cisneros was 13-7. They met up again when Maki was 10-4 and Cisneros was 17-9. You also have 28-12 Dakota Cochrane on the same resume as well as 4-2 Andrews Nakahara and 18-8 Justin Guthrie. Why Is He Here? The Maii Pitolo story has been kind of interesting to me at least. So when the UFC started to do work with regional orgs for Fight Pass, they'd fly in a few dudes here or there to be at some events just to promote the synergy. One of those guys was always Maki Pitolo (the other was Jose Torres). It made sense! Maki was a young guy, fighting out of Hawaii, he was the Victory FC welterweight champion and he had a reputation of being your prototypical exciting Hawaiian scrapper. It fell apart from there for some reason. Maki was KO'd in a rematch vs Kassius Kayne and dropped his Victory FC belt. Then he dropped a fight to Dakota Cochrane and he fell off the Victory FC radar. He had a few prelim showings for CFFC and Bellator in 2017 and 2018 plus they tried to get him on the Contender's Series last year. Pitolo on paper is probably an easy sell for Dana and the Contender's Series has been TRYING desperately for like three years now to find one Hawaiian guy. This could be it.

Justin Sumter Where He Fight At? Sumter is a DWTCS alum! He fought last year, taking on Ian Heinisch who is tearing it up in the UFC currently. He's fought for CES and Bellator. Who’d He Ever Beat? No wins you'd be impressed by. His wins aren't too hot but his losses are superb with Tim Caron (DWCS and Bellator vet) and Ian Heinisch (LFA MW champ and current UFC top 15 MW) on there. Record Of Opposition At The Time Of Their Fight? 59-37! That would be the records owned by the opponents of Justin Sumter. Most of that work comes from the likes of 4-0 Tim Caron, 17-16 Roger Carroll and 10-1 Ian Heinisch. Why Is He Here? The general sneaky rule of thumb is if you're a DWCS guy who fights twice and you win on your second go around, you're probably going to get a deal. We've seen Ryan Spann get wiped out in his first fight, come back and win the second one and then get a snazzy new contract (which he's now 2-0 on). Sumter is a fine fighter and a good guy to give a second chance to.

Likelihood of a contract with a win:

1- Joseph Solecki 2-James Wallace 3- Jacob Rosales 4- Maki Pitolo 5- Justin Sumter 6- Jonathan Pearce 7-Justin Azure 8- Chris Ocon

#MMA #UFC #DWCS

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