No UFC, no Bellator, no PFL, Invicta, or ONE Championship. With the Fourth of July falling on a Sunday, MMA action is scarce over the next few days. Here’s a look at who’s in action, and which prospects you should keep your eye on.
Titan FC 70 | US | Friday
Flyweight, Roy Echeverria (4-0)
Echeverria is a stud and powerhouse of a prospect coming out of the flyweight division. The native out of Venezuela went 6-3 before turning pro and since has been on a tear. Venezuela is an explosive guy and as he does have tons of power in his hands he thrives more when wrestling. He has an explosive power double he will shoot from the outside. Venezuela has nasty ground and pound and solid jiu-jitsu. His cardio is his biggest thing that needs work. He fights Andrew Richardson (4-0).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCpu5Q97ViM
Lightweight, Slava Borshchev (3-1)
Born in Russia, Borshchev has been residing in California, training out of Team Alpha Male. He’s a former international K-1 kickboxer with over 200 kickboxing fights and was a K-1 champion. Borshchev is a treat to watch compete on the feet as he has some high-level striking/kickboxing. Everything to his vision, shot selection, bodywork, combinations, and counter ability is top-notch quality. His takedown defense has been his biggest issue, but it’s something that’s shown improvement over a short span of time. He fights Kendly St. Louis (3-3).
LFA 110 | US | Friday
Light heavyweight Joshua Silveira (5-0)
Silveira trains out of American Top Team under head coach and his father, Conan Silveira. He’s currently 5-0 and went 4-0 as an amateur, so he does have good experience. Silveira wrestled in college for Arizona State University and was a Florida high school state champ. With that wrestling pedigree always in his back pocket, he’s able to let loose on the feet. His shot selection is very on-point with his hands, and his left high kick is very sneaky and dangerous. Silveira really checks all the boxes and is a major prospect to watch for. He fights Jesse Murray (8-3).
Middleweight, Roland Dunlap (2-0)
Dunlap is someone that’s been on my radar ever since he was an amateur. Dunlap has won two wrestling state titles in high school and had a career record of 159-9. He went on to be a three-time All-American and wrestled D3 in the University of Wisconsin Whitewater. Along with that wrestling upbringing his father was a high-level karate black belt. Dunlap fights very loosely and very long. He’ll throw a lot of kicks and he’ll attack with both legs attacking each side of his opponent. Where Dunlap shines is when he uses his wrestlers. Dunlap does nice work changing levels as his opponents come forward to engage. He sneaks under punches to get ahold of the legs to left guys up and slam them to the mat. He fights Joseph Holmes (4-1).
For more on Dunlap check out our feature on him ahead of LFA 110.
Bantamweight, Christian Natividad (3-0)
Natividad is only 3-0 as a pro but in those three fights, he’s looked darn good. In his first two pro fights, Natividad put his power on full display with a pair of huge knockout wins. In his last fight, he showed to be more compact and technical while using good wrestling. Outside of the huge power in his hands, he also has a background in wrestling. The last name sounds familiar because he’s the younger brother of UFC fighter Kevin Natividad. He fights Luis Aguirre (1-2).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJqnJKETF6s
Strawweight, Jaqueline Amorim (3-0)
Amorim is a highly touted jiu-jitsu ace that has made the transition to MMA not even a year ago. Some of her accomplishments in BJJ are IBJJF World Champion, IBJJF World No-Gi Champion, CBJJ Brasileiro Champion, and more listed here. So far Amorim has easily closed the distance, got the takedown, moved to a dominant position, and finished with a sub. All three finishes are in the first round and all three by different subs. He fights Megan Owen (1-0).
CFFC 98 | US | Saturday
Welterweight, Evan Cutts (12-4)
“The Butcher” from Fort Worth, Texas has been fighting in MMA for a long time. Despite a few setbacks, all his losses have come by the scorecards and two were split decisions. He’s made up for it with a solid 12-4 record and he has some solid wins on that record as well. Cutts not long ago had a memorable showcase with the CFFC welterweight champion Bassil Hafez. Cutts is a wrestler but a much better grappler with a deep gas tank. He defends his title against Yohan Lainesse (6-0).
Welterweight, Yohan Lainesse (6-0)
I’ve been watching Lainesse since his days in TKO. I’ve had questions about his cardio in the past but he still is dangerous enough through the course of three rounds. In his last fight his cardio held up very well. Not many guys will make it to the late rounds with Lainesse though. On the feet, he uses a lot of feints to set up the bigger shots. He is a good wrestler and where he is best is on the mat. He’s a strong but fluent fighter on top. Lainesse has heavy ground and pound and transitions very well. He fights Evan Cutts (12-4).
Welterweight, Solomon Renfro (7-1)
Solomon Renfro is a nice product out of Tiger Schulman. The biggest thing against Renfro in the early stages of his career was his lack of finishing ability. His first five pro fights went the distance but in his last two wins, he’s finished. Renfro is coming off a recent loss last December but it was to a talented Mike Malott. Renfro earlier this month got back on the board with a win and looked better than ever. He’s very talented and still super young and already well-rounded. He fights Lee Henry Lilly (7-4).
Shooto 2021 Vol. 4 | Japan | Saturday
Bantamweight, Tatsuro Taira (8-0)
Taira is someone that jumped out to not long ago and is one of the brightest young prospects out of Japan. He’s well-rounded: on the feet, he’s got an explosive barrage of strikes he closes the distance with well. He’s got some solid takedowns and on the mat is where he’s best. Taira has fight-ending ground and pound and is a submission threat. He fights Ryuya Fukuda (12-5-1).
Open Fighting Championship 6 | Russia | Saturday
Heavyweight, Oleg Popov (11-1)
Popov is a wrestler who has some decent power in his hands. He’s an aggressive guy constantly shooting and what he lacks in size he makes up for with his strength. Not entirely someone who will blow you away on the mat but he has some heavy top control and a submission game. Popov is getting better and better with each fight. He fights Fernando Batista (10-6).
