Does Ikram have a real shot at beating Rob?

[swizztony]

Watching his highlights, he seems to be pretty green in the striking even though he has power, and he doesn’t seem like that much of a wrestler. Is there any possible way he can win this fight?

 

[Shaolin Alan]

Yes; by KO, Sub, Dec or even a DQ

 

[DougieJones]

Yes: by KO, Sub, Dec or even a DQ.

I dun belieb u

 

[andgonsil]

Desert privilege

If he's losing, just hit an illegal shot

 

[Pancake Sprawl]

most any MW has a chance vs Rob now a days. he's getting worse not better.

 

[DougieJones]

Desert privilege

If he's losing, just hit an illegal shot

 

[ElLunico]

If it goes past the 2nd round he could be in trouble.. But we've seen Whitakker KO'd and hurt a bunch of times. We know he can get KO'd so ofcourse Ikram has a chance.

 

[JoeRowe]

Definitely. Rob is too chinny & aging not to be vulnerable here. He's been rocked/dropped by; Costa, DDP, Izzy, Cannonier, Till, Romero, & Brunson, plus Wonderboy at WW. Been in some real wars over the years.

I think his tdd/get-ups are good enough to allow him to pick Ikram apart for 5 rounds, but he'll probably get an early scare or 2.

Rooting for him but taking the +money on Ikram as a sadness hedge.

 

[Cowboy Kurt Angle]

I do think he can KO Rob but getting knocked down on the amateurs and going the distance with a guy named Nah-shon Burrell who’s 19-12, is concerning

 

[TankAbbott4Eva]

Bad match up at this point in Rob's career, multiple world Sambo champion at his physical peak. I hope Rob is getting paid well for this because this dude seems dangerous and doesn't have a profile

 

[Question]

Probably, I think there's still a lot of unknowns about him for me at least.
While he's been booked against quite a few higher level opponents(Muniz, Hernandez, Imavov, Costa), his only two wins at middleweight were against Phill Hawes who's shot and a blown up Warlley Alves.

Mind you the second opponent was on short notice, I believe originally he was gonna fight Imavov on that date.
He's looked good enough so far outside of a little trouble with Hawes early with the kicks. It's a big jump, but a huge chance for him to prove himself here and Whittaker gets wobbled a lot in the later stages of his career.

I can't really make a proper assessment on how good he actually is yet, perhaps I'll have to watch some of his regional scene stuff for that. I will say I was surprised to see that he's not that big of a middleweight compared to some of the other ranked guys, doesn't really mean a ton tho.

 

[modulus]

World Sambo champ and his only loss oddly enough is to Khamzat -

I don't see an upside for Whittaker other than the dough, staying relevant and maybe banking some good will from Dana.

 

[Jawth]

World Sambo champ and his only loss oddly enough is to Khamzat -

I don't see an upside for Whittaker other than the dough, staying relevant and maybe banking some good will from Dana.

Robert is only ever a win or two from contention.

A win here definitely puts him in the mix, either another shot or an eliminator vs. Sean or Allen.

 

[Fact Checker]

Whit has a full camp and been training for a grappler. Ikram on the other hand has less than two weeks to cut weight and get some form of preparation.

Ikram beating Rob would definitely shake things up in the MW division. Leapfrogs his way to the top 5 and a potential title eliminator.

 

[Arm Barbarian]

Du Plessis decked Whitaker with a jab.

Ikram certainly has the power to check that chin.

That said, I'm a Bobby Knux fan and hope he wins.

But no idea who takes this tbh.

 

[Question]

Whit has a full camp and been training for a grappler. Ikram on the other hand has less than two weeks to cut weight and get some form of preparation.

Ikram beating Rob would definitely shake things up in the MW division. Leapfrogs his way to the top 5 and a potential title eliminator.

Ikram was suppose to fight yesterday at the Apex, he got a call to step in against Rob a few days prior when Khamzat got pulled.
He was in camp as well, but he definitely has less time to get accustomed to Riyadh due to the last minute travel plans.

Also I'm kinda curious what's your general opinion on Ikram and how far do you think he can go?

 

[laleggenda27]

Yes, but Whittaker is obviously the favorite.

I'm surprised Whittaker accepted this fight against an unranked but dangerous fighter. I wonder if the UFC promised him a title shot with a win. Otherwise, it's a ton of risk with almost zero reward.

 

[RichardHarrow]

Whit has a full camp and been training for a grappler. Ikram on the other hand has less than two weeks to cut weight and get some form of preparation.

Ikram beating Rob would definitely shake things up in the MW division. Leapfrogs his way to the top 5 and a potential title eliminator.

Ikram, albeit against a lesser opponent has also been in camp. He was originally scheduled to fight Derns boyfriend in the coming weeks. I’m not sure how seriously he was taking it though.

 

[jk7707]

Sure. But it's a gigantic step up in competition for him. If he's got the chin and skill to rush Rob, like Du Plessis did, he could catch his chin and put him out. But I really haven't seen enough of him so far against anyone good (besides Khamzat) to get a good read on how likely that is. I'll give Rob the slight advantage.

 

[scoobster]

Watching his highlights, he seems to be pretty green in the striking even though he has power, and he doesn’t seem like that much of a wrestler. Is there any possible way he can win this fight?

Yes and he will, Rob is on the TFerg path now