On Saturday night, former Marine Jake Ellenberger faces his biggest challenge to date, as he is paired up against former King of The Cage Canada champion Rory MacDonald, in the co-main event of UFC on FOX 8. This fight features two fighters who are both on the cusp of a title shot, and will be eager to impress fans in this highly-publicised bout. In this piece I will break down each fighter, as well as where the fight will be won and lost.
Jake Ellenberger
Omaha, Nebraska native Jake Ellenberger entered his mixed martial arts career after a solid collegiate wrestling career. In his first 20 bouts he was only defeated four times, and earned a great reputation amongst fans on the regional scene. Following a 42-second KO at Bellator 11, he was signed by the UFC. Right away the promotion fed him to the wolves, as they paired him up with former WEC welterweight champ Carlos Condit. After a close fight with Condit, Ellenberger went on a tear and defeated his next six opponents.
In June 2012, at the TUF 15 Finale, Ellenberger faced Martin Kampmann in a high-profile fight. Despite nearly knocking his opponent out early, he himself got caught and stopped by the Dane.
Skillswise, Ellenberger is ever-evolving. While he entered the sport primarily as a wrestler, his forte has proven to be his power punches. He trains at The Reign Training Center under former world champion boxer Danny Perez and undefeated Muay Thai fighter Raja Shippen, and his standup skills have improved drastically. His coaches at Reign have really helped hone his raw, conclusive power into fast technical strikes, which were on full display in his last outing against Nate Marquardt at UFC 158.
As for his grappling, Ellenberger is solid, wrestling with Mark Munoz and Orange County Wrestling Hall of Famer Paul La Blanc; rest assured, his skills aren’t lacking in that department. If taken down, Ellenberger usually explodes back to his feet quickly, but if he were to remain on the ground, his guard is ever-improving under the tutelage of Cesar Gracie black belt Jason Manly.
Rory MacDonald
Since making the move to the illustrious Tri Star gym in Montreal, Quesnel, British Columbia native Rory MacDonald has been slowly working his way up the ladder in the UFC’s welterweight division. Following his dominant performance against former two-division champ BJ Penn on UFC on FOX 5, many fans were calling for him to be awarded a title shot, but unfortunately for fans, Rory’s teammate and friend Georges St. Pierre is the champion, and as long as it remains that way, the fight is unlikely to happen.
Rory MacDonald is a prodigy, gifted in every facet of the sport and ever-improving. In his first few appearances in the Octagon, his striking was far from crisp, but over the last 18 months, improvements in his technique have been noticeable. In his fight with BJ Penn, MacDonald showcased the vast array of strikes he has in his arsenal and made the infamous boxing of “The Prodigy” look useless.
Grappling has always been MacDonald’s main strength. He began his career with six submissions in his first ten fights, and is always dangerous from a submission standpoint in any area on the ground. Recently, however, “Ares” has used his BJJ to set a dominant base and throw down some brutal ground and pound, which highlighted his bouts with Che Mills and Mike Pyle, both TKO wins.
The Verdict
Expect Ellenberger to come out swinging early and MacDonald to try and keep his distance while throwing an abundance of kicks. I don’t believe MacDonald will be able to take Ellenberger down. The fight will end in one of two ways: either Ellenberger catches MacDonald early and finishes him, or Rory traditionally a slow starter) loses the first round, but wins big in the second and third, and rides out a unanimous decision victory.
**********
UFC on Fox 8 is due to take place on July 27, 2013 at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC on Fox 8 will be.
