- Joined
- Oct 9, 2009
- Messages
- 16,989
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I really like Gilbert Melendez here. Seems to be in great condition and stylistically this is a good match up for him so long as he doesn't stand directly in front of Jeremy and bang it out like he did with Diego. I believe he's bluffing with the talk of standing toe-to-toe and just throwing hands for the fans amusement. He's on a 3-fight losing streak and needs a victory. Moreover, if he wanted to just entertain fans and pick up a paycheck classified sell the rest of his contract – he wouldn't have dropped to 145 and struggled with what he eats. I mean, he's not going to kill themselves to make 145 pounds at 35 years of old and put himself in line to get slept for a fourth consecutive loss.
This weekend I believe we see a bit of the old El Niño here, which is high pressure and excellent boxing. At his best Gilbert is one of the most dominant wrestle–boxers in the sport, right up there with Frankie Edgar, and he is in position to showcase those talents this weekend. That's because stylistically Jeremy Stephens is the perfect apparel to break this horrid losing streak.
Also of note is the lingering myth of Stephens and his heavy hands. That is to say, while he packs power if it connects, he misses a lot. Accordingly, he exhibits very rudimentary boxing from a technical perspective after the first few minutes of the fight. Particularly, this is because when he punches he winds up and swings from the bleachers rather than picking his shots. Using a baseball analogy: instead of hitting his man and landing singles, doubles and the occasional triple, he is consistently searching for the homerun. And as any good baseball coach will tell you, "If you try and force the HR it's going to remain elusive and you're gonna strike out. You have to let the pitch come to you (take what your opponent gives you) and it will come to you organically"
What's more, Jeremy's once vaunted knock out power has faded almost completely as he has went the distance in his 8 straight and 9 of his last 10.
His tendency to plant his feet and sit down on his punches gives Gilbert the opportunity to hit that blast double leg takedown.
Stephens is just 1-3 in his last four and 2-4 in his last six with victories over the aforementioned Bermudez and a vastly undersized 145 pound Barao who is a shadow of its former self. Worse still, Jeremy barely squeaked by with a split decision.
While Gil has dropped 3 in a row and 4 of 5, the losses look worse on paper than they are when placed in proper context. For instance, the majority of fans and media believed he defeated Benson Henderson to win the title, as well as Eddie Alvarez in his penultimate UFC outing. Pettis — who was on fire at the time — caught him in a sneaky guillotine after Gil looked in total control of that fight. Then he got clobbered by Edson Barboza who is fighting like a fucking gorilla right now. I mean, Barboza might be the hottest fighter in the UFC at this point, and is most certainly multiple levels above where Jeremy Stephens ever was.
At any rate, I believe Gilbert should be around -160 here I already put a pretty good bet on him after seeing him at the weigh-in's — which was all I was waiting for. Best of luck to those either way. This is just my humble opinion.
This weekend I believe we see a bit of the old El Niño here, which is high pressure and excellent boxing. At his best Gilbert is one of the most dominant wrestle–boxers in the sport, right up there with Frankie Edgar, and he is in position to showcase those talents this weekend. That's because stylistically Jeremy Stephens is the perfect apparel to break this horrid losing streak.
Also of note is the lingering myth of Stephens and his heavy hands. That is to say, while he packs power if it connects, he misses a lot. Accordingly, he exhibits very rudimentary boxing from a technical perspective after the first few minutes of the fight. Particularly, this is because when he punches he winds up and swings from the bleachers rather than picking his shots. Using a baseball analogy: instead of hitting his man and landing singles, doubles and the occasional triple, he is consistently searching for the homerun. And as any good baseball coach will tell you, "If you try and force the HR it's going to remain elusive and you're gonna strike out. You have to let the pitch come to you (take what your opponent gives you) and it will come to you organically"
What's more, Jeremy's once vaunted knock out power has faded almost completely as he has went the distance in his 8 straight and 9 of his last 10.
His tendency to plant his feet and sit down on his punches gives Gilbert the opportunity to hit that blast double leg takedown.
Stephens is just 1-3 in his last four and 2-4 in his last six with victories over the aforementioned Bermudez and a vastly undersized 145 pound Barao who is a shadow of its former self. Worse still, Jeremy barely squeaked by with a split decision.
While Gil has dropped 3 in a row and 4 of 5, the losses look worse on paper than they are when placed in proper context. For instance, the majority of fans and media believed he defeated Benson Henderson to win the title, as well as Eddie Alvarez in his penultimate UFC outing. Pettis — who was on fire at the time — caught him in a sneaky guillotine after Gil looked in total control of that fight. Then he got clobbered by Edson Barboza who is fighting like a fucking gorilla right now. I mean, Barboza might be the hottest fighter in the UFC at this point, and is most certainly multiple levels above where Jeremy Stephens ever was.
At any rate, I believe Gilbert should be around -160 here I already put a pretty good bet on him after seeing him at the weigh-in's — which was all I was waiting for. Best of luck to those either way. This is just my humble opinion.
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Nothing elite for me
