UFC 246 is sure to be the center of attention this week, with some promising young fighters like Aleksa Camur, Maycee Barber, and Sodiq Yusuff. Bu there are plenty of MMA prospects in action on the regional scene as well, with LFA and Brazil’s Future FC in action.
Future FC 11 | Friday | Brazil
Featherweight: Gabriel Alves Braga (4-0)
Only 4-0 and 21-years-old, Gabriel Alves Barga has really impressed. He has a solid ground game with his ground-and-pound but prefers to stay standing. Braga is very technical as he loves to throw from all different kinds of angles. He throws a bit of everything including knees and elbows, and puts all his strikes together perfectly. Braga rips the body frequently and he mixes that into combinations very well. He’s always throwing output, mixing in all his weapons. He fights Loibe de Oliveira Neto (4-0).
LFA 80 | Friday | US
Featherweight: Steve Garcia Jr. (10-3)
Steve Garcia Jr. is coming off a win last Summer on the Contender Series and although he looked good, he missed weight, which was certainly a factor in not getting a UFC contract. He’s had problems with his takedown defense in the past but the Jackson-Wink MMA product is improving with time. The tall rangy striker is a dangerous guy with power in his hands. Garcia also has good combinations he throws and some good footwork compliments his stand-up. He fights Jose Mariscal (10-4).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O5VNRHBosE
Featherweight, Jose Mariscal (10-4)
After a loss to current UFC standout Gregor Gillespie, Jose Mariscal made the move down to featherweight from lightweight. One of his three losses is to another current UFC fighter, Bryce Mitchell, in what was a close decision. Since then, he is 4-1-1, and his competition throughout his career has been high level. He’s very well-rounded with a good kickboxing base and solid BJJ. Learn more about him here. He fights Steve Garcia Jr. (10-3).
Lightweight: Chris Brown (5-1)
Chris Brown is a bit awkward in his output, especially with the way he slings his kicks around with his hands low. With that said, it’s worked in his favor through his career. It’s hard to tell what Brown is going to throw as he mixes his kicks and punches together very well. He’s just so diverse on the feet you may forget he’s a solid wrestler as well being a former state wrestling champion. He fights the very good Carrington Banks (8-2).
Fight Exclusive Night 27 | Saturday | Poland
Lightweight: Mateusz Rebecki (10-1)
Mateusz Rebecki is a BJJ black belt and is a two-time gold medalist in ADCC (Poland). He trains out of Berserker Team with fighters like Michal Materla, Tomasz Narkun, and many more established veterans. Rebecki is a former Fight Exclusive Night lightweight champion, which is a solid promotion out of Poland. Rebecki is a bit one-dimensional being solely a grappler but in that area, he’s just so dangerous and that’s on top or bottom. He fights Magomed Magomedov (12-1).
Elite 1 MMA: Fight Night 37
Welterweight: Christien Savoie (7-0)
Christien Savoie looked at last Summer for Dana White’s Contender Series. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out, but Savoie remains a fighter that would be great for the show. Savoie is mainly a grinder who will push the pace in close quarters. He wants to take the fight to the mat where his ground and pound is excellent, landing at a solid rate with good shots from a short amount of distance. He fights Pat Carroll (4-1).
