*Bantamweight's* - Mattandbenny's Unbeaten Unsigned Prospects 2015

[mattandbenny]

Hi guys. Here is Part 4 of my 2015 unbeaten unsigned prospects - The Bantamweight Division!

Previous 2015 versions are below
Middleweights: http://forums.sherdog.com/forums/f6...ys-unbeaten-unsigned-prospects-2015-a-2903743
Lightweights: http://forums.sherdog.com/forums/f6...ys-unbeaten-unsigned-prospects-2015-a-2898125
Women: http://forums.sherdog.com/forums/f6...ys-unbeaten-unsigned-prospects-2015-a-2900173


A quick reminder of the rules as always:

1) They must be undefeated!
2) They must NOT be signed to any of the three largest promotions (UFC, Bellator & WSOF)
3) They must have fought at least once in 2014
4) They must have had at least 3 professional fights


Today is the time for the Banta,weight division. This was very hard to keep to just 35 fighters, and like a few of the other decisions, I could have easily have included 50! A bit of a family affair this one with the cousin of Anthony & Sergio Pettis, the brother of Firas Zahabi, and the brother of Bentley Syler all among the top 35! Those just missed out on the top 35 include Mohammad Babadivand (4-0), Gareth Pilot (6-0), Khalid Taha (5-0), Dawid Pasternak (5-0), Felipe Dias Colares (4-0), Rogerio Bontorin (6-0), Gabriel Carrasco (5-0), Ivan Hernandez Flores (6-0), Daichi Takenaka (4-0) & Saimon De Oliveira (6-0)

Guys ineligible due to inactivity included Tavvakul Ragimov (7-0), Robson Souza Dos Santos (7-0), Harold Banario (4-0), Egly Diaz (4-0), Kong Dina (4-0), Franklyn Souza Santos (4-0) & Yusuke Tamashiro (4-0).

As always i'd be interested to hear everyone's opinions on this list, both good and bad!. Also if anyone can suggest fighters that I missed out or any ages of the fighters which I couldn't find it would be appreciated.

Enjoy Part 4!

--------------------

Bantamweights

1) Brett Johns – 10-0-0 - Wales – 22 Years Old
Signed to: Titan FC; Finish Ratio: 50% (2 KO, 3 Sub, 5 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 26-8; Opponent Strength Rating: 9/10
Key Wins: James Brum (14-2), David Haggstrom (7-1), James MacAlister (7-1), Jordan Desborough (7-2), Sam Gilbert (6-2)
Other Details: Former Cage Warriors Bantamweight Champion, Judo Black Belt, Perfect 4-0 Amateur Record

2) Julio Arce – 6-0-0 - USA – 25 Years Old
Signed to: ROC; Finish Ratio: 50% (1 KO, 2 Sub, 3 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 9-9; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Dennis Donbrow (5-2), Jake Grigson (5-3)
Other Details: ROC Bantamweight Champion, Perfect 11-0 Amateur Record, Former WKA Kickboxing Champion, Trains at Team Tiger Schulann with Uriah Hall, Lyman Good & Louis Gaudinot

3) Jonas Bilharinho – 5-0-1 – Brazil – 24 Years Old
Signed to: Jungle Fight; Finish Ratio: 67% (3 KO, 1 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 12-2; Opponent Strength Rating: 8/10
Key Wins: Mario Israel (9-0), Allan Dantas (9-2)
Other Details: Jungle Fight Bantamweight Champion, Trains at Team Nogueira, Perfect 8-0 Pro Muay Thai Record, Rejected contract offer from Bellator in 2014

4) Luke Sanders – 9-0-0 - USA – 29 Years Old
Signed to: RFA; Finish Ratio: 78% (6 KO, 1 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 24-10; Opponent Strength Rating: 10/10
Key Wins: Jarred Mercado (12-1), Dan Moret (6-0), Zach Underwood (11-4), Darrick Minner (9-3), Zachary Sanders (4-1)
Other Details: RFA Bantamweight Champion

5) Peter Montibeller – 7-0-0 – Brazil – 27 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 57% (4 KO, 0 Sub, 3 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 9-10; Opponent Strength Rating: 5/10
Key Wins: Claudir Dutkevis (11-3)
Other Details: BJJ Black Belt, Master of Capoeira, Amateur Boxing Experience, Protégé of Thiago Tavares

6) James David Gray Jr – 3-0-0 – USA – 27 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 100% (0 KO, 3 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 5-3; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: Lucas Moraes (5-1)
Other Details: Perfect 12-0 Amateur Recard, 11x National BJJ Champion, Submitted Each Opponent as Both Amateur & Professional

7) Magomed Bibulatov – 8-0-0 – Russia – 26 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 50% (0 KO, 4 Sub, 4 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 14-7; Opponent Strength Rating: 7/10
Key Wins: Taylor Lapilus (5-0), Said Nurmagomedov (6-1), Olivier Pastor (18-16), Oscar Nave (8-7)
Other Details: N/A

8) Demarte Pena – 10-0-0 – South Africa – 25 Years Old
Signed to: EFCA; Finish Ratio: 40% (2 KO, 2 Sub, 6 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 34-10; Opponent Strength Rating: 9/10
Key Wins: Leo Gloss (8-2), Wentzel Nel (8-3), Francois Groenwald (8-3), Wesley Hawkey (7-2), Nkazimulo Zulu (5-1), Alain Ilunga (5-1), Terrence Griessel (4-2)
Other Details: EFCA Bantamweight Champion, 4-1 Amateur Record, 6-0 Amater Muay Thai Record

9) Augusto Mendes – 3-0-0 – Brazil – 31 Years Old
Signed to: Legacy FC; Finish Ratio: 100% (0 KO, 3 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 4-3; Opponent Strength Rating: 3/10
Key Wins: Omar Castro (4-2)
Other Details: BJJ Black Belt, 2013 BJJ World Champion, 2012 BJJ World No-Gi Champion, Training Partner of Ben Henderson at MMALab

10) Amir Albazi – 5-0-0 - Sweden – 21 Years Old
Signed to: UCMMA; Finish Ratio: 100% (2 KO, 3 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 7-3; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: Salih Kulucan (4-2)
Other Details: 4x Swedish Grappling Champion, European No-Gi BJJ Champion, Brother is Also an MMA Fighter, Finished All 5 Fights

11) Ricardo Lucas Ramos – 6-0-0 – Brazil – 19 Years Old
Signed to: Legacy FC; Finish Ratio: 83% (1 KO, 4 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 12-4; Opponent Strength Rating: 7/10
Key Wins: Allan Nascimento (10-1), Rafael Correa (6-2), Fabio Lima (3-0)
Other Details: N/A

12) Kurban Gadzhiev – 9-0-0 – Russia – 21 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 100% (5 KO, 4 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 5-5; Opponent Strength Rating: 3/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: Trains with UFC fighter Albert Tumenov, Finished All 9 Fights (8 in Less Than 4 Minutes)

13) Joseph Maness – 4-0-0 – USA – 23 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 50% (1 KO, 1 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 13-5; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Isiah Ferguson (6-0), Brandon Sandefur (4-0)
Other Details: Perfect 10-0 Amateur Record

14) Matheus Mattos – 8-0-1 – Brazil – 22 Years Old
Signed to: Jungle Fight; Finish Ratio: 93% (5 KO, 3 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 9-11; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Allan Dantas (10-3), Ronaldo Lima Jr (7-4)
Other Details: Trains at Team Nogueira

15) Jordan Lucas – 7-0-0 – Australia – 20 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 71% (1 KO, 4 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 10-9; Opponent Strength Rating: 5/10
Key Wins: Stephen Reeks (7-1), Edwin Arana (7-7)
Other Details: State Muay Thai Champion in Australia, BJJ Purple Belt, Perfect 4-0 Amateur Record

16) Brandon Phillips – 5-0-0 – USA – 25 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 100% (4 KO, 1 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 5-4; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: Owen Evinger (8-4)
Other Details: 14-2 Amateur Record, Finished All 5 Opponents

17) Takeshi Kashiwazaki – 10-0-2 – Japan – 18 Years Old
Signed to: ZST; Finish Ratio: 83% (2 KO, 8 Sub, 2 Draws)
Opponent W/L: 20-13; Opponent Strength Rating: 7/10
Key Wins: Tatsuya Watanabe (15-7), Kengo Okubo (8-8)
Other Details: Drawn 2 Fights

18) Eli Tamez – 8-0-0 – USA – 29 Years Old
Signed to: Legacy FC; Finish Ratio: 37% (1 KO, 2 Sub, 5 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 21-11; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Kory Vialet (4-1), Eliazar Rodriguez (5-2), Nelson Salas (4-2)
Other Details: 5-1 Amateur Record, Training Partner of UFC Fighters Sean Spencer, Matt Hobar & Damon Jackson

19) Josh Baker – 7-0-0 – USA – 26 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 29% (0 KO, 2 Sub, 5 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 13-12; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: BJJ Brown Belt, 2-0 Pro Boxing Record, 5-1 Amateur MMA Record

20) Manny Vazquez – 6-0-0 – USA – 21 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 67% (0 KO, 4 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 8-7; Opponent Strength Rating: 5/10
Key Wins: Eric Moell (5-2), Jeremy Pender (10-10)
Other Details: Perfect 5-0 Amateur Record

 

[mattandbenny]

21) Dean Garnett – 7-0-0 – England – 26 Years Old
Signed to: CWFC; Finish Ratio: 71% (0 KO, 5 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 15-13; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: John Cullen (17-8), Nico Gjoka (9-8), Martin Sheridan (7-5)
Other Details: 3-0 Amateur Record

22) Henry Corrales – 11-0-0 - USA – 28 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 83% (3 KO, 6 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 20-16; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Alejandro Garcia (14-7), Mike Christensen (10-6), Seth Dikun (9-6), Cooper Gibson (7-1), Jerod Spoon (6-3)
Other Details: KOTC Bantamweight Champion, Training Partner of UFC Fighter Francisco Rivera

23) Elias Garcia – 3-0-0 - USA – 21 Years Old
Signed to: CFFC; Finish Ratio: 67% (1 KO, 1 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 1-2; Opponent Strength Rating: 1/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: Perfect 4-0 Amateur Record, Cousin of with Anthony & Sergio Pettis - Trains with them at Roufusport

24) Aiemann Zahabi – 3-0-0 - Canada – 27 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 100% (0 KO, 3 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 2-6; Opponent Strength Rating: 2/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: BJJ Brown Belt, Brother of Famous Trainer Firas Zahabi, Trains at Tristar With George St Pierre & Rory MacDonald

25) Joey Gomez – 5-0-0 – USA – 28 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 100% (5 KO, 0 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 11-7; Opponent Strength Rating: 7/10
Key Wins: Joe Cushman (11-4), Jeremy Pender (10-9), Miguel Santos (3-0)
Other Details: Knocked Out Each Opponent in 1st Round, Is a U.S Marine

26) Gabriel Silva – 4-0-0 – Brazil – 19 Years Old
Signed to: Jungle Fight; Finish Ratio: 75% (2 KO, 1 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 10-3; Opponent Strength Rating: 5/10
Key Wins: Diego Pralon (4-0), Vinicius Baraldo (4-1)
Other Details: Trains at Team Nogueira

27) David Burgara – 6-0-0 – USA – 25 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 33% (1 KO, 1 Sub, 4 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 14-9; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Josh Gow (4-0), Jeremiah Guzman (5-2)
Other Details: Perfect 4-0 Amateur Record

28) Kevin Syler – 3-0-0 - Bolivia – 21 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 67% (0 KO, 2 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 5-4; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: Perfect 7-0 Amateur Record, Trains at American Top Team With The Likes of Will Brooks, Dustin Poirer & Jorge Masvidal, Brother of UFC Fighter Bentley Syler

29) Austin Springer – 7-0-0 – USA – 27 Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 71% (4 KO, 1 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 9-6; Opponent Strength Rating: 3/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: 10-3 Amateur Record, Training partner of UFC fighters Mike Pierce, Pat Healy & Dave Jansen

30) Ed Arthur – 5-0-0 – England – 25 Years Old
Signed to: BAMMA; Finish Ratio: 80% (2 KO, 2 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 14-6; Opponent Strength Rating: 6/10
Key Wins: Nathaniel Wood (4-0), Martin Akhtar (4-2)
Other Details: 6-1 Amateur Record

31) Kwan Ho Kwak – 4-0-0 – South Korea – ?? Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 100% (4 KO, 0 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 4-4; Opponent Strength Rating: 3/10
Key Wins: N/A
Other Details: Trains at Korean Top Team With UFC Fighters Hyun-Gyu Lim & Tae Hyun Bang, Knocked Out All 4 Opponents

32) Bruno Viana – 7-0-0 – Brazil – 24 Years Old
Signed to: Legacy FC; Finish Ratio: 100% (2 KO, 5 Sub)
Opponent W/L: 6-2; Opponent Strength Rating: 3/10
Key Wins: Edilceu Alves (3-0)
Other Details: Finished All 7 Fights

33) Ray Elizalde – 6-0-0 – USA – ?? Years Old
Signed to: Unsigned; Finish Ratio: 67% (1 KO, 3 Sub, 2 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 8-5; Opponent Strength Rating: 3/10
Key Wins: Atiq Jihad (5-4)
Other Details: 3-0 Amateur Record, Veteran of The U.S Air Force

34) Daniel Crawford – 4-0-0 – England – 20 Years Old
Signed to: CWFC; Finish Ratio: 75% (2 KO, 1 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 7-10; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: Martin Sheridan (5-2)
Other Details: Former Amateur Boxer

35) Evan Martinez – 4-0-0 – USA – 23 Years Old
Signed to: Legacy FC; Finish Ratio: 75% (0 KO, 3 Sub, 1 Dec)
Opponent W/L: 7-1; Opponent Strength Rating: 4/10
Key Wins: Brandon Ruiz (4-1)
Other Details: Training Partner of UFC Fighters Sean Spencer, Matt Hobar & Damon Jackson

Link to image: http://s22.postimg.org/nuzn5oaz5/V6_Bantamweights.jpg

*Note: I left out Fransino Tirta due to a combination of his age and the fact he is already a well known fighter for One FC & headlining cards for them, therefore i wouldn’t really class him as a ‘prospect’

 

[iThrillhouse]

I think, speaking worldwide, bantamweight has the most promising amount of undefeated prospects

EDIT: as per usual, great work M&B

 

[Lucifer Alpha]

No Boston Salmon?

 

[mattandbenny]

To be honest I had Salmon on my 145 pound shortlist (going by his facebook) and he didn't make the top 35 on that list. But just dug a little further and seen he has dropped to 135 for his last couple, so may have missed a trick there! With BW being a big weaker than FW on the whole Salmon would probably have been around the number 25-30 mark.

 

[Slongkong]

damn surprised how low Henry is