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: Daniel Hooker vs. Maximo Blanco, UFC Fight Night 52
My pick for the best new fight announced this past week is the upcoming featherweight bout at UFC Fight Night 52 between Daniel Hooker and Maximo Blanco. UFC Fight Night 52 takes place September 20 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, and the main event of the card is a five-round heavyweight bout between Mark Hunt and Roy Nelson.
The fight between Hooker and Blanco isn’t a fight between two huge names or anything, but anyone who knows these two fighters knows what they bring to the table, and this matchup between these two is going to be nothing but pure violence.
Hooker had a tremendous UFC debut, as he absolutely destroyed Ian Entwhistle with vicious elbows on the ground. The fans in Japan will appreciate that kind of fighting style, and they will also appreciate the fighting style of Blanco, who is one of the most violent fighters on the entire UFC roster. Blanco was a huge star when he was in Sengoku, and when he returns to Japan to take on Hooker, I believe he will be very motivated to put on a great show for his old fans.
This fight has serious potential to be a bloodbath, and I think the UFC made a very good decision to book this one. I’m looking forward to it very much, and its inclusion makes UFC Fight Night 52 that much stronger.
• Daniel Hooker vs. Maximo Blanco
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
Worst: Hyun Gyu Lim vs. Takenori Sato, UFC Fight Night 52
My pick for the worst new fight announced this past week is the upcoming welterweight bout at UFC Fight Night 52 between Hyun Gyu Lim and Takenori Sato. Lim is 2-1 overall in the UFC, with brutal knockouts over Pascal Krauss and Marcelo Guimaraes, and a “Fight of the Night” decision loss to Tarec Saffiedine. Sato, however, is 0-1 with a knockout loss to Erick Silva.
I’m not exactly sure what Sato did to UFC matchmaker Joe Silva, but for whatever reason, Silva just doesn’t want this guy to live a long life, as he keeps matching him up against some of the most dangerous opponents in the UFC welterweight division, despite his lack of experience in the Octagon. Sure, he had a nice win streak before coming to the UFC, but the loss to Silva showed he isn’t ready for top-level opposition just yet, and Lim certainly qualifies as just that.
Although Lim did lose to Saffiedine, the fight was extremely close on the scorecards, and he nearly finished it with a knockout in the last 10 seconds of round five. He is one of the biggest and baddest welterweights around, and he should be fighting top 25 fighters at least, not guys like Sato who are barely clinging to the roster.
The fight will serve it’s purpose of getting Lim back on track with a brutal knockout win, but it does nothing for Sato, and his manager honestly should have rejected the fight. The poor guy is in store for a huge headache when he meets Lim this September in Japan — let’s just hope his corner has the ice bags and Advil ready.
• Hyun Gyu Lim vs. Takenori Sato
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
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UFC Fight Night 52: Hunt vs. Nelson is due to take place on September 20, 2014 at the Saitama Arena in Saitama, Japan.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC Fight Night 52 will be.
