2013-07-07
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Alien Invasion 11 Preview

Event Preview: Alien Invasion 11
What used to be Feral Combat
2013-07-06, Amsterdam, The Beer Garden
Author:Ernie White

Another week, another stellar event brought to you by Feral Combat. Alien Invasion 11 is headlined by the #3 and #5 fighters pound-for-pound in the organization fighting for the middleweight title. Once again, this is Ernie White, giving you a closer look at the upcoming action.

 

                Our main card starts out with a heavyweight faceoff between Cain Dos Santos (6-3 MMA, 2-2 FC) and Jackson Kenny (9-7 MMA, 4-4 FC). Both fighters would agree that their strength lies in their boxing. That area of the fight is pretty even, but two key factors that could be considered is Kenny’s 2 inch height advantage, while Dos Santos has a considerable 30 pound weight advantage. That could seriously come into play as Dos Santos is the much more improved grappler of the two. Kenny only has one career win by knockout, so a one punch K.O. is likely not in the books for him. He needs to make full use of that slight reach advantage to keep this fight on the feet where he has the best chance of scoring points.

Prediction: Dos Santos by submission, round 2.

 

Two men who have fought for Feral Combat’s lightweight strap will look to earn themselves another shot at the title, as Dan Smith (9-7 MMA, 6-5 FC) meets former champ Ejay Shazad (1-4 MMA, 2-3 FC). Smith started his career at an impressive 7-2, including four straight finishes in Feral Combat. That earned him a shot at the inaugural lightweight championship, where he lost a narrow majority decision to Ben Jackson. That loss was the start of a 5 fight skid that derailed his hype train. He just recently got back on course and scored two straight wins. Shazad lost the title last month in his first title defense. The well-rounded knockout specialist looks to get back on track against a submission artist in Smith. His biggest edge is in the Muay Thai department, and he should look to take advantage there. Smith is clearly the more experienced grappler, but Shazad is no slouch on the ground, and it’ll be interesting to see how well he holds up. One thing to take not of: Shazad has seemed really low this week, simply going through the motions, while it appears Smith has found a renewed love for the sport.

Prediction: Smith by submission, round 1.

 

The co-main event is a highly anticipated re-match between former middleweight champion Thomas Fu (15-6 MMA, 5-2 FC) and one-time title challenger Danny Trejo (14-8 MMA, 3-1 FC). The first time these two met, Fu was the reigning champion, and Trejo was undefeated in Feral Combat. The fight was very competitive; with neither man really pulling away with much of a lead until Fu landed a grazing head kick that hurt Trejo badly. A right hand put him down, and punches from mount forced a referee stoppage in the second round. This re-match is interesting because there are so many variables that make it tough to predict. Trejo has far superior ground credentials, but will that even come into play? He has never even attempted a submission in an MMA fight. Another variable is the technical striking of Trejo vs. the massive power of Fu. Their last fight was ended by a shot from Fu that hardly even landed, but still rocked Trejo. It will be interesting to see if Trejo can avoid that power the second time around.

Prediction: Thomas Fu by (T)KO, round 2.

 

                The main event is one hell of a match-up, ladies and gents, as the ridiculously talented 22-year old Hironobu Uematsu (5-0 MMA, 5-0 FC) looks to defend the middleweight title for the first time against 34-year old BJJ wizard Gideon Abieezer (15-6 MMA, 4-2 FC). I am not 100% sure on this, but I think Abieezer is Feral Combat’s first BJJ red belt. It is the highest honour one can receive in jiu-jitsu, and he has clearly dedicated years of his life to it. However, that much focus on BJJ has left his striking game a little bit underappreciated. At 34 years old, he doesn’t have much time to fill that gap. Uematsu is light years ahead of Abieezer when it comes to the stand-up game, and has as much of an edge on the feet as Abieezer does on the mat, if not more. If Abieezer cannot get him down, there is no question that Uematsu will knock him out like his previous 5 victims. However, if Abieezer does manage to takedown Uematsu, it will be interesting to see how well he manages to hold his own.

Prediction: Uematsu by (T)KO, round 2.

 

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