First and Worst is an ongoing series for MMARatings.net, where every week Adam will make his pick for the best and worst newly-announced fight of the past week (Monday to Sunday). If you’d like to see any additions to this series, hit him up on Twitter @MMAdamMartin.
First: Max Holloway vs. Andre Fili, UFC 172
My pick for the best new fight announced this past week is a featherweight matchup between up-and-comers Max Holloway and Andre Fili. The bout takes place at UFC 172, and I’m sure when it’s all said and done this bout is going to be in contention for Fight of the Night at that event.
Both of these fighters are in their early 20s and high-volume strikers, so putting them in the same cage with one another can only lead to fireworks. They are both coming off big TKO wins, both are ranked in a similar spot in the division, and they both have styles that compliment one another very well. So this is pretty much the perfect matchup.
Yes, it does kind of suck that one of them is going to lose and take a step back, but this fight is needed to determine who has the potential to fight for the title one day and who is just going to end up as a gatekeeper (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). So I definitely dig UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby’s work here.
Fili vs. Holloway is going to be awesome and it’s one of my most-awaited matchups of any booked so far in 2014. April can’t come soon enough.
• Andre Fili vs. Max Holloway
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
Worst: Evan Dunham vs. Mark Bocek, TUF Nations Finale
My pick for the worst new fight announced this past week is a lightweight bout between Evan Dunham and Mark Bocek which takes place at the TUF Nations Finale. It’s a fight booking that made me scratch my head when it was announced because it doesn’t make sense as far as the rankings are concerned and stylistically it sounds boring to me.
Bocek hasn’t fought since a decision loss to Rafael dos Anjos all the way back at UFC 154 in November 2012, and he looked awful in that fight. Dunham, meanwhile, has lost back-to-back fights against dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone, but the majority of those watching (minus the judges in Brazil) thought Dunham defeated dos Anjos. As for the Cerrone fight, “Cowboy” is just on another level.
I see this matchup pitting Dunham against Bocek as a way for the UFC to get Dunham back on track and boost his confidence, because it’s a fight that he should easily win. Yes I know he was submitted by Cerrone and Bocek has excellent subs, but Cerrone’s wrestling is much stronger than Bocek’s, and I just can’t see the Canadian getting Dunham to the floor so he can work his BJJ.
Hopefully Dunham is pumped up for this fight and we get a highlight-reel finish out of him, but I have a feeling it’s just going to be a snoozer, and in cases like that, no one wins, especially not the fans.
• Evan Dunham vs. Mark Bocek
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UFC 172: Jones vs. Teixeira is due to take place on April 26, 2014 at Baltimore Arena in Baltimore, Maryland.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 172 will be.
The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale: Canada vs. Australia is due to take place on April 16, 2014 at a venue To Be Determined in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Click the stars to rate how good you think the TUF Nations Finale will be.
