Welcome to the UFC: Yoshinori Horie

UFC 231 Hakeem Dawodu
Credit: Jay Anderson/Cageside Press

Canada’s own Hakeem Dawodu will welcome Pancrase veteran Yoshinori Horie to the Octagon at UFC 240.

UFC 240 is taking place this weekend on July 27 in Edmonton, Canada. The event will be held in Rogers Place. The card is full, headlined by featherweight champ, Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar. A late addition was brought on as Canada’s own Hakeem Dawodu (9-1-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) welcomes newcomer Yoshinori Horie to the Octagon.

5’8″
Featherweight
24-years-old
Nagasaki, Japan
Alliance
8-1
5 KO/TKO

How Will Yoshinori Horie Fare in the UFC:

Horie has been a star of Japan’s promotion Pancrase his entire career, delivering some entertaining knockouts. Horie is a primary striker who does mix takedowns in here and there. His wrestling is good but his grappling needs work as it’s more so holding the position. He has five finishes by KO/TKO which stems from his explosiveness, speed, and raw knockout power. Horie’s main weapon is his right hand as he loves to throw the overhand. He has some other weapons such as leg kicks, body kicks, and hooks to the liver. At times though, Horie will just throw strikes one at a time and won’t mix them together. When he does mix all his weapons together he is much more dangerous. He’s not afraid to sit in the pocket and trade which has worked out well, but he has been finished in his sole loss. Horie has been taken down many times in his career but has shown a great ability to work back to his feet using the cage. Since he’s never spent at least a minute off his back, once he fights a good wrestler it will be a good test to see how he does then. At only 24-years-old Horie has a bright future but he’s gotta learn to put it all together.

How Yoshinori Horie Matches Up with Hakeem Dawodu:

Coming up short in his debut, Dawodu has won his next two fights. He hasn’t looked all that stellar, but he is dominant. Both resemble each other in many ways as both are primarily strikers. Both are power punchers who attack the body and head well. The thing is, Dawodu is just a more polished striker who will be the one that puts it all together. Dawodu has been dropped and finished and so has Horie. It can go either way if they both decide to just stand and trade. If Dawodu just fights his fight being the technician he is, he should get the edge.