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Agreed.Bobby is going to have to fight the best fight of his life to win this.
He'll need a Lebron vs Celtics Game 6 performance
Agreed.Bobby is going to have to fight the best fight of his life to win this.
I finished taping this fight yesterday and am shocked Izzy is a decently sized favorite. Rob absolutely dominated Kelvin Gastelum who despite being undersized for the division is a far more well rounded fighter than Izzy.
I am expecting Rob to employ a strategy similar to the one Jan Blachowicz did, with more wrestling early, and would not be surprised if he won every single round. Izzy will pick you apart if you fight him from long to mid range but if you make the fight more dirty and don't give him the space he needs to setup shots, in addition to the takedown threat, it makes his path to victory a lot more difficult.
Izzy has power but he does not load up on shots so if Rob is as sound defensively as he has been over his last three fights it is hard to see Izzy getting the finish. I am a fan of Izzy but don't see how this is not the hardest MMA fight of his career thus far.
Yeah, we'll have to find out what the answers to those questions are.I always thought the real problem with pressing him with wrestling is he's just never really there.
It's hard to actually get your arms around him because he's always moving.
Jan did it with striking, and power.
If Rob does get him down, can he hold him down?
I want Rob to win myself, so these are just questions because it's gonna be a hard one sir.
This??? Bobby is so much better than Franklin it's not funny, and Izzy is not nearly that much better than Bobby either
Decided to rewatch their first fight and give Rob a better chance than initially because of it. His speed gave Izzy some problems before the knockdown right before the bell. If he mixes in wrestling and doesn't leap in like crazy he has a good chance.
Yeah, we'll have to find out what the answers to those questions are.
Jan also timed Izzy in the center of the octogan and took him down by shooting doubles as opposed to getting him by the fence and systematically stringing together a TD. I think that can maybe be a viable option against Izzy if you have the strength , timing and explosiveness to do it.
??? Bobby is so much better than Franklin it's not funny, and Izzy is not nearly that much better than Bobby either
Well put. It truly is incredible.It's worth appreciating eras. Silva was always gonna be relevant, but not every fighter could pick up MMA in its early years when there was less certainty and infrastructure, and do it while having a full time job as a high school math teacher, and then make an honest go of it like Rich Franklin did. Respect to the man. A lot of fighters today would not be who who see them to be if you make them start 20 or 25 years ago. Likely you wouldn't see most of them get into the sport in its trailblazing years. It takes a certain mind to be a part of something while it's breaking new ground.
Once the infrastructure has settled it welcomes people in who otherwise wouldn't jump for it.
He's also been training with a 20-0(15 KO's) boxer, Tim Tszyu who's the 3rd best ranking super welterweight in the world wide by boxrec and number 1 in Autralia.
I think since then, Jan showed the way to take him down is to time his counters and duck under.There's nothing I'd love to see more than Whittaker pull it off and get that MW belt back, and he can do it... But it's TOUGH man...
Izzy is just a horrible matchup for him. How do I put this eloquently - the discrepancy in their striking AND reach (7 inches) , is far larger than Adesanya's weaknesses in the grappling department, and ability to defend a TD in general.
This is what these guys drill over and over at CKB with Izzy. He's pretty good at TDD and is getting better at it. His height and length also give him good leverage to defend takedowns.. Jan was an exception to the rule because of his strength and size. Bobby unfortunately doesn't have that size or strength so I think he'll struggle to get Israel on the ground tbh.
That'll leave Bobby back at square 1, the same problem from the first fight - figure this man out and beat him at his own game - striking. The first time , Bobby was doing pretty well early on until he started head hunting and blitzing like a mad man. But that's the problem with facing a savvy kickboxer like Izzy, you're not really gonna ever have his number and control the exchanges to win a decision, particularly when he's controlling the distance.. You'll eventually get figured out. The one to beat Izzy at MW will have to be someone who will hurt and finish Izzy on the feet, and I'm hoping Bobby does, but I'm skeptical folks.
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