mma / Columns

411’s MMA Roundtable Preview – UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Hunt

June 10, 2017 | Posted by Dan Plunkett

WELCOME:
Mark Hunt looks to get back in the win column on his home turf when he takes on Derrick Lewis in the main event of UFC Fight Night from New Zealand! In the co-main event, Derek Brunson meets Dan Kelly. At lightweight, Ross Pearson faces Dan Hooker. In light heavyweight action, Ion Cutelaba fights Henrique da Silva. Plus, Tim Elliot takes on Ben Nguyen, Alexander Volkanovski vs. Mizuto Hirota, and more!

THE STAFF:

  • He’ll lock you in the guillotine, Robert Winfree!

  • He’s 411’s Jack of All Trades, Jeffrey Harris!

  • And your host for this roundtable, Dan Plunkett!

    Preliminary Card
    UFC Fight Pass
    Lightweight Bout: Thibault Gouti vs. Dong Hyun Kim
    Catch-weight (118 lbs.) Bout: JJ Aldrich vs. Chan-Mi Jeon

    Fox Sports 1
    Welterweight Bout: Kiichi Kunimoto vs. Zak Ottow
    Welterweight Bout: Luke Jumeau vs. Dominique Steele
    Flyweight Bout: John Moraga vs. Ashkan Mokhtarian
    Lightweight Bout: Damien Brown vs. Vinc Pichel


    THE MAIN CARD:
    Featherweight Bout: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Mizuto Hirota

    Robert Winfree: Alexander Volkanovski, TKO, Round 2
    Jeffrey Harris: Alexander Volkanovski, TKO, Round 2
    Dan Plunkett: Volkanovski, Decision
    The staff picks Alexander Volkanovski, 3-0.


    Flyweight Bout: Tim Elliott vs. Ben Nguyen

    Robert Winfree: Tim Elliott, Decision
    Jeffrey Harris: Tim Elliott, Decision
    Dan Plunkett: Elliott, Decision
    The staff picks Tim Elliott, 3-0.


    Light Heavyweight Bout: Ion Cutelaba vs. Henrique da Silva

    Robert Winfree: Ugh.

    Winner: Henrique da Silva, Submission, Round 2

    Jeffrey Harris: Both light heavyweights are in a much dire need of a win here. Da Silva has dropped his last two. Cutelaba lost his last fight to Jared Cannonier, but he’s only 1-2 in the UFC, and fighters have been cut for less. Neither guy are close to being top light heavyweights, but Da Silva at least performed fairly well in his first two UFC fights. He has knockout power with 11 out of 12 wins being finished by knockout, and he’s never gone the distance. I’m leaning toward Da Silva here, and I’m expecting him to finish Cutelaba about midway through.

    Winner: Henrique da Silva, TKO, Round 2

    Dan Plunkett: Cutelaba proved to be tough and durable in his last fight, and has lost to two good fighters. I think he takes this.

    Winner: Cutelaba, Decision

    The staff picks Henrique da Silva, 2-1.


    Lightweight Bout: Dan Hooker vs. Ross Pearson

    Robert Winfree: Ross Pearson is a veteran, good defensive hips and solid boxing but his defense has always been a liability and at this point there’s a significant amount of both years and miles on him. Dan Hooker hasn’t set the world on fire or anything but he’s only lost to really good fighters in the UFC, he’s got good elbow strikes but struggles to set them up and he’s more of a grappler than striker. I could see this one going either way, but I’m leaning towards Hooker given the way Pearson has looked recently.

    Winner: Dan Hooker, Decision

    Jeffrey Harris: Ross Pearson has been in the UFC since 2009, but he’s failed to make it to a higher level due to a lack of consistency. Granted, a couple of his fights ended in iffy decisions, especially the Diego Sanchez fight. But he has plenty of legitimate losses in the UFC as well, and now he’s on a three-fight losing streak. Pearson is a talented striker, and he’s fairly well rounded in MMA. But I think the wear and tear is starting to set in for Pearson, and he’s going to drop another fight to Dan Hooker.

    Winner: Dan Hooker, Decision

    Dan Plunkett: Both fighters really need a win here, especially Pearson, who has lost four of his last five. Like Robert and Jeffrey, I worry about the wear on Pearson, and for that reason I’m leaning toward Hooker.

    Winner: Hooker, Decision

    The staff picks Dan Hooker, 3-0.


    Middleweight Bout: Derek Brunson vs. Dan Kelly

    Robert Winfree: I really like Dan Kelly. Kelly only has one loss in the UFC, he was starched by Sam Alvey, but he’s tough and always comes to fight. Kelly isn’t a great striker but has tricky takedowns influenced by his extensive judo background and his top control is good. Kelly is also over 40 with years and years of international judo competition and subsequent abuse on his body, his right knee basically needs to be replaced, and I tend to feel this is just going to be a bit too much for him. Derek Brunson is a strong wrestler with good power, his only legitimate UFC losses are to Yoel Romero and Robert Whittaker, and in desperate need of a win after hitting a two fight losing streak. I’m rooting for Dan Kelly, but I can’t pick him here.

    Winner: Derek Brunson, TKO, Round 1

    Jeffrey Harris: Dan Kelly gets a nice step up in competition here after going on a four-fight winning streak, including getting a win over Rashad Evans. Meanwhile, Derek Brunson looks to rebound over his some of his recent losses. I think this is a solid middleweight bout. I don’t expect the major underdog Dan Kelly to come out on top here and pull out another stunning win. But credit to Dan Kelly, he’s done quite well for himself so far in the UFC and definitely earned his spot on the roster. Brunson has had a little bad luck as of late. He got stopped by Robert Whittaker, and he lost a controversial decision to Anderson Silva. So for this fight, unless Brunson is having mental issues over those losses, he should win here. Brunson is still dangerous standing up and has knockout power. Kelly shouldn’t be able to match him for power and speed. But, Kelly will be the underdog yet again, and it will hopefully be a fun fight.

    Winner: Derek Brunson, TKO, Round 2

    Dan Plunkett: Dan Kelly is the man and has heart for days, but Brunson is a real step above him. Plus, I think Brunson will be motivated after judges cost him a victory over Anderson Silva his last time out.

    Winner: Brunson, TKO, Round 1

    The staff picks Derek Brunson, 3-0.


    Heavyweight Bout: Derrick Lewis vs. Mark Hunt

    Robert Winfree: This is kind of a tough one to call really. Mark Hunt isn’t on the best run lately, just 2-4 in his last six, but those losses are to guys like Alistair Overeem, Fabricio Werdum, and Stipe Miocic. While Hunt has been struggling to win against the best, Derrick Lewis has yet to face anyone of legitimate note. Shamil Abdurakhimov was on a good run but no one thought of him as a truly dangerous fighter and Travis Browne hasn’t been all that good for the past three or four years. Both men are strikers but the methodology behind each man couldn’t be more different. Lewis is more of a brawler who doesn’t mind waiting you out, sucking up some damage while you exhaust yourself and then making you pay when you’re too tired to respond. Mark Hunt is on a completely different level in terms of technical acumen from his opponent. Hunt prefers to march you down, lull you into a false sense of security about timing or distance, then drop a bomb on you that ends your night. Lewis is a little soft to the body and doesn’t deal well with leg kicks, both tools Hunt should look to exploit here, but he tries to compensate by simply being an incredibly tough human being. Hunt has been known to struggle a bit as long fights wear on as well. This is heavyweight and I wouldn’t be shocked with either man winning here just given the forces involved, but Hunt has fought a better level of competition and I’m really unsure how Lewis will handle fighting someone who really knows how to strike with him.

    Winner: Mark Hunt, TKO, Round 2

    Jeffrey Harris: Mark Hunt has much stronger striking credentials. Considering the streak he started his UFC career on, he shouldn’t have been able to last as long as he did, especially at his age. But Mark Hunt’s career frequently defies all logic and belief. Hunt is still very dangerous standing up, and he hits like a freight train. Derrick Lewis is a surging heavyweight, and he’s looking to get into the title mix. This could be the fight to get him into that title conversation, or it could send him crashing back down the ladder. The fight is five rounds, and that actually might favor Lewis over Hunt. Lewis tends to do very well when fights get into the deep waters, especially for a heavyweight. He doesn’t come off or look especially athletic, but if he starts slow, he can win over the fight in the later rounds. Lewis is also probably not as technical as a striker as Hunt, but he packs quite a bit of power himself, and he’s been improving exponentially over his six-fight winning streak. I might be going out on a limb, but I’m predicting a win for Derrick Lewis here.

    Winner: Derrick Lewis, TKO, Round 4

    Dan Plunkett: These are some big fellas. Hunt is 43-years-old and has been through so much. It’s remarkable he is where he is at his age. Lewis is stoppable. He’s been stopped with head strikes and Travis Browne hurt him badly in the body last time out. However, the momentum is certainly in Lewis’ favor.

    Winner: Lewis, TKO, Round 2

    The staff picks Derrick Lewis, 2-1.


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