With a lot of good prospects competing in MMA action in the month of June, Max Freedman and I named five of our personal favorites we think are ready for the big show.
Max Freedman’s Picks
Riccardo Nosiglia
Date: June 22 | Street Fight Party 2 | Method: TKO (Punches) – Round 1 | Opponent: Mauro Amaral (3-6-1)
A heavy-handed Italian with a great nickname, “The Walking Dead” moved his record to 7-1 in June. His three-fight win-streak consists of all first-round finishes and the light-heavyweights lone career loss is to surging UFC talent Michal Oleksiejczuk.
Ideal Card: UFC Sao Paulo (November 16)
Ideal Opponent: John Allan
Ľudovít Klein
Date: June 8 | Oktagon 12 | Method: TKO (Punches) – Round 1 | Opponent: Willian Lima (13-1)
Despite being a shorter lightweight, the 24-year-old boasts a 14-2 record with double-digit finishes. On June 8, Klein only needed 2:27 to dispatch the highly-touted Willian Lima (13-1 MMA) for his fifth-straight win.
Ideal Card: UFC Copenhagen (September 28)
Ideal Opponent: Austin Hubbard
Dustin Stoltzfus
Date: June 29 | GMC 20 | Method: KO/TKO (Punches) – Round 2 | Opponent: Jonas Billstein (20-8)
The 27-year-old American middleweight has mostly competed in Europe. Stoltzfus moved his record to 11-1 with eight-straight wins after finishing longtime German MMA standout Jonas Billstein (20-8 MMA) this past weekend. With finishes in six of those eight wins, Stoltzfus is ready to prove what he’s capable of on the big stage.
Ideal Card: UFC 242 (September 7)
Ideal Opponent: Abu Azaitar
Jai Herbert
Date: June 29 | Cage Warriors 106 | Method: KO/TKO (Punches) – Round 3 | Opponent: Jack Grant (15-4)
Despite being older than your average prospect at 31, Herbert proved 100% he’s ready for the big show with an impressive championship win over the favored Jack Grant this past weekend. The fifth-straight win moved the Englishman Herbert to 9-1 with eight finishes.
Ideal Card: UFC Copenhagen (September 28)
Ideal Opponent: Alexander Yakovlev
Kanako Murata
Date: June 7 | Invicta FC 35 | Method: Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) – Round 1 | Opponent: Liana Pirosin (7-2)
The 25-year-old Japanese standout has now rattled off six-straight wins with four-straight finishes. With multiple UFC and TUF vets on her resume, Murata is ready to step into the UFC’s strawweight division.
Ideal Card: UFC Shenzhen (August 31)
Ideal Opponent: Polyana Viana
Next: Shawn Bitter’s Picks
