There are plenty of hot prospects around the globe in MMA. The hottest, however, will always be those who manage to compile a strong, undefeated record. Today, we’ll take a look at a trio of those, in Diego Bianchini, Lowen Tynanes, and Jesse Urholin.
Diego Bianchini
Fighting currently at the age of 23
Weighing in at 170 lbs
Standing at 6’0″
Hailing from Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Training out of One a One
A professional record of 7-0 with five finishes all inside two rounds
The five things that stand out the most:
- Karate style
- Good back take
- Flashy kicks
- Improving grappling
- Lack of quality opponents
Where does Bianchini Excel?
Diego Bianchini is a kickboxer first who doesn’t shy away from throwing flashy attacks. That includes wheel kicks and switch kicks he likes to throw. He fights with a karate stance throwing a lot of kicks to the head with his lead leg, and attacking the legs. Bianchini doesn’t always use his hands as much as his legs. He’s a good counter striker though and is accurate. Bianchini, when it comes to wrestling, will shoot on a single leg and will chain into a better-secured position getting the takedown. He’s not too aggressive grappling but is very good at taking the back and getting the body triangle. Proving he’s so good at getting the back he has four wins by rear-naked choke. The times he has found himself on his back he’s been able to scramble and get back position. Still, there’s work to be done on the mat as a whole but overall he knows what he’s doing.
Where does Bianchini need improvement?
Bianchini doesn’t technically have any weakness as he really needs to just round out his overall skill-set. On the feet, he will only get so far with just kicks. He needs to throw his hands more besides leading with head kicks, because that’s too easy to read. He also needs to throw more combinations — he does go to the body, utilize kicks, and has good hands but just needs to put it together.
Will he reach 12-0?
It always depends on the level of competition but skill alone I don’t think he will reach that. You can easily pad your record on the Brazilian scene but you can also fight good fighters since Brazil is loaded with talent. I just believe he isn’t ready for a good striker which I think could give him trouble. I do think he has potential though and is someone I think we could see on a big stage in the future.
Lowen Tynanes
Weighing in at 155 lbs
Standing at 5’10”
Hailing from Ewa Beach, Hawaii, US
Training out of Hawaii Elite MMA
A professional record of 10-0 with seven finishes
The five things that stand out the most:
- Excellent wrestling
- Solid takedown defense
- Intelligent ground and pound
- Insanely strong
- Heavy top position
Where does Tynanes Excel?
Lowen Tynanes is somewhat a forgotten name as he’s only fought once in the last three years. You shouldn’t forget that Tynanes is an excellent talent considered a top prospect. He’s no doubt primarily a wrestler and a stellar one at that. Tynanes uses a lot of feints with his hands and level changes before powering forward with an explosive double-leg. If not able to get the takedown in the middle of the cage he’s good at pressing into the cage and getting the takedown from there. He’s really strong in the clinch, always the one in control until he drops and gets his hands together for an easy takedown. Once on the mat, he’s showed to be insanely strong with his top position. He puts a lot of pressure on the upper body of his foes nailing them down to the canvas while unloading ground and pound. He’s really intelligent when it comes to position control. Tynanes has glue-like grappling being all over every move his opponent makes. Just an overall dominant wrestler/grappler with solid cardio and a constant work ethic.
Where does Tynanes need improvement?
In the wrestling and the grappling department, he needs zero work as he’s already high-level there. On the feet is where I would easily say he’s the most vulnerable. What he does do well is he kicks the lead leg of his foes often. Other than that, he just seems to pop out some punches just trying to draw his opponent in. Tynanes basically strikes to wrestle. So when he can’t secure a takedown, how will he fare?
Will he reach 15-0?
Tynanes is currently signed to ONE Championship and is competing in a deep division. He could fight the likes of Eddie Alvarez, Christian Lee, Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev, Iuri Lapicus, Timofey Nastyukhin, Pieter Buist, and many more. I really think he can beat all those names and eventually become the champion. I think he will no doubt fight for the title within three more fights. I think he will reach 15-0 but it will no way be an easy road.
Jesse Urholin
Weighing in at 170 lbs
Standing at 6’1″
Hailing from Pori, Finland
Training out of Team East Front
A professional record of 6-0 with five finishes all coming inside two rounds
The five things that stand out the most:
- Very aggressive
- Solid ground and pound
- Good jiu-jitsu
- Fast starter
- Submission artist
Where does Urholin Excel?
No doubt in the grappling realm Jesse Urholin is in his wheelhouse. The Finland native is a BJJ black belt and arguably the best grappler out of the Nordic area. He’s won medals in the IBJJF European Open, ADCC trials, an ADCC European Champion in 2015 and 2017, and was an ADCC World qualifier those two same years. Urholin is so good in the grappling department but his ground and pound is fierce. Urholin is a feared grappler as if he isn’t putting you out with a submission he will smash you with punches and elbows. To complement his grappling he does have good wrestling usually utilizing takedowns from the clinch. On the feet, he’s still improving but has a good check right hook and heavy leg kicks.
Where does Urholin need improvement?
Grappling and on the mat in general, Urholin is superb and he’s in no need of growth there. To get it to the mat his wrestling needs work when it comes to improving on timing shots and setting them up besides relying only on takedowns from the clinch. He’s a grappler so obviously his stand-up is expected to need work. Offensively he does well with attacking leg kicks and has good hands. Urholin has been drawn into brawls before and that’s where his opponents have been able to land. His head movement needs work and while his chin does look pretty strong, you can only take so much damage. With that said, Urholin has improved as shown in his last fight with Dante Schiro.
Will he reach 11-0?
Urholin is the real deal and I think he easily will reach 11-0. He’s currently signed with Cage and they have done a good job getting him good competition in his last two fights at least. No matter who he fights on the regional scene his grappling is most likely going to be superior. Maybe he will fight someone who will be able to shut down his takedowns, but I’m confident his striking is good enough to hold up.
