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 Heroic 165
13th July 2014
London, Wombley Arena
HEROIC returns to London to grace the British fans with some of the very best fighters in MMA today. HEROIC has gone from strength to strength and it has done so with the support of the British fans so they would be hoping for a sellout of the 93607 seats in the arena. Now lets get to the main card for Heroic 165.
Dmitry "Edge" Borschev vs. Leonardo "Voodoo Child" Ferreira 265+lbs
Borschev is a very impressive young man from Russia. At only 26 years of age he has the world at his feet and could give most in the 265+ or 265 division a run for their money. He has amazing stand up skills, his boxing and Muay Thai blends them so seamlessly that it is very hard to stop him when he gets going and that has led to him to finishing 15 opponents via (T)KO. His has one punch KO power in both his hands and his feet so anywhere he can hit you from you are in danger, what is more impressive is his chin. Having only been finished once and the other losses on his record are from decisions. Fighting at the heavy weight classes where everyone has power it is very impressive he hasn’t been finished more often with the murderers row of fighters he has been facing. He will likely be one step away from a title shot with a win, but first he must face the heavy handed and former HEROIC champion, Leonardo Ferreira. Ferreira is coming of a loss where he lost his title and will surely be wanting to crush anyone in his way to get the gold back around his waist. He prefers to use a heavy kicking game to wear his opponents down before going in for the finish and this style of fighting has led him to 18 (T)KO victories. Also worth noting is that he is a very light fighter for the 265+ divison fighting at a weight of around 240lbs so he will have a speed advantage over most. I am slightly inclined to pick Borschev here as he can probably match Ferreira’s Muay Thai game and come back with a stronger boxing game, the question also lingers as Ferreira’s manager Mannetosen/Choose Life may be lacking in the motivation department so he may not give Ferreira all the training advice he needs; only time will tell for that and we have a potential candidate for KO of the night or FOTN.
Prediction: Borschev via KO round 2
"Cunha" Jorge Junior vs. "The Underestimated" Michael Ehrmantraut 170lbs TITLE FIGHT
Junior is 2-3 in his last 5 fights but those losses have not been in HEROIC so he has kept his belt. He is a wrestler with a black belt and his ground game is very feared in the 170 division, as once your there he works tirelessly to keep you there or pound on you. His striking is very good also but serves more as a means to get a takedown and the ground game. Is he nearing his end as a top fighter or can he still pull off wins to keep himself as the most sought out fighter in HEROIC’s 170 divison. On the 13th he will be facing a very similar fighter to himself in Ehrmantraut, as Ermantraut is a very very high level wrestler, but only has a brown belt in BJJ, he has been submitted 3 times in his career but against Junior a submission loss is unlikely. His striking is probably on the same level as Junior’s as it serves well enough to get the fight on the mat. The thing Ehrmantraut has an advantage over Junior is, is that his ground and pound is merciless. The person to win this fight will likely be whoever gets the takedown first, as both guys have incredible top games, or we may see one of them using their wrestling defensively to strike and keep the opponent guessing. In my mind I think Junior’s ground game is a little better and will be able to get out of bad situations and will outwork his opponent.
Prediction: Junior via UD
Santiago "Fancy Pants" Colon vs. Bowser Stormcrow 170lbs
This fight will likely be the fight to determine the number 1 contender for the title fight later in the evening, so an impressive performance is paramount in the stacked 170 divison. Colon will be wanting to use his world class boxing skills to win this fight as it his boxing that has led him to 14 wins in his career. 8 decisions and 6 (T)KO’s. He has been exposed on the ground before and Stormcrow may be able to do just that. Stormcrow certainly has skills on the ground with Olympic level wrestling and a black belt, but he prefers to use them defensively and use his world class boxing and heavy clinch game. If there is one area where anyone had a definitive advantage, it is Stormcrow with his clinch game and his Muay Thai. Both guys possess elite boxing skills so this could turn into a fun striking battle or it could be Stormcrow playing it smart and wanting to clinch up with his foe or to take the fight to the mat where he holds another advantage. Outside of Stormcrow being silly, this is his fight to lose and Colon’s to win. Expect Colon to come out aggressive and Stormcrow to grab a hold of him to keep him still.
Prediction: Stormcrow via UD
Martin Philippe Njewel vs. Timmey "Grecko" The Gangster 145lbs
These two approach a fight very differently from one another. Although recently he has won a few by decision, Njewel made his name as a knockout machine. Fighting at a weight of 130lbs, he fights in the 145lbs division so he is the faster guy against bigger men. So it’s very surprising when he knocks them out and so frequently at that. The Gangster is also a lighter fighter, fighting guys that are bigger than him but his early success saw him dominate the 135 division. The Gangster is the definition of pillow fisted wrestler. Out of 15 wins, 13 are by way of decision. He is very good at getting the fight to the floor where he can ‘impose his will’ on the other man. It has led him to a very respectable record of 15-2. That’s not to say his striking is bad, but we just haven’t seen enough of it to make a good guess of where it’s at. He is so good at wrestling that he rarely has to deviate from the game plan of wrestling his opponent into ‘living death’. I think that Njewel will be looking to punch a hole in The Gangster’s face and The Gangster will be looking for his usual grinding ways but I feel that Njewel is smart enough to get up off of his back and will score the more points on the feet.
Prediction: Njewel via UD
Silik "The Gash" Hunt vs. Bartek Pietrzak 145lbs
Hunt is so skilled in every area of MMA that it is very surprising he is not one of the best at 145. This will be down to the fact that his chin is easily touched and easily broken. At 145 the power in those guys isn’t that great so when a fighter like Hunt loses 11 times via (T)KO fighting at that weight. He has also shown to be not too great on the floor despite being a black belt as he has found himself tapping out 6 times as well. This said he still has great skills, It may just be his mental game that is lacking (and chin). Pietrzak also possesses a black belt and some dangerous power in his hands. He is a well rounded fighter with wins via submission and (T)KO and decision so he can get tough when the going gets rough. I am slightly inclined to choose Hunt due to his superior skills but he has so many losses that I think Pietrzak may be under looked and pull off a KO victory.
Prediction: Pietrzak via KO round 1
Undercard Predictions
Wesley "The Knight" Templar vs. Ted Stefans – Templar via UD
"Warfare" Wes Walker vs. "Boston Strong Boy" John L Sullivan IV – Sullivan IV via KO
"The Casablanca Clouter" Marcel Cerdan vs. Kraal The Bouncer – Cerdan via TKO
"Papa Johnny" John Torrio vs. Piru Parka – Torrio via submission
Josh "The Machine" Matson vs. "The Mountie" Andy Wilkins – Wilkins via decision
Be sure to catch all of these fights on the 13th, and if you disagree with my picks take to the smack talk page to voice your opinions on the fights.
Until next time
Michael “The Wolf” Brakeley
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