Bantamweight: Farid Basharat Vs. Willian Souza
Tale of the Tape
24-years-old
5’6″
Afghanistan
Xtreme Couture
8-0
1 KO/TKO, 5 Submissions
Combined opponent’s record: 29-18
25-years-old
5’11”
Sao Cristovao, Sergipe, Brazil
Academia Team Figueiredo
11-1
9 KO/TKOs, 2 Submissions
Combined opponent’s record: 24-11
Pros and Cons
Farid Basharat
Pros
- Excellent movement/footwork
- Good shot-placement
- Creates traps really well
- Uses hard feints well
- Good single leg
- Unpredictable
- Good jab
- Explosive
- Good bodywork
- Diverse
- Good vision
- Scrambles well
- Good counter striker
- Good off his back
- Good kicks
Cons
- Hands low/Chin-up
Willian Souza
Pros
- Knockout power
- Good ground and pound/Nasty elbows
- Fast starter
Cons
- Wild striking
- Hands low
- TDD needs back
- Questionable off his back
Who has the advantage?
Striking: Basharat
Speed: Souza
Output/Volume: Even
Kickboxing: Basharat
Striking defense: Basharat
Footwork/movement: Basharat
Wrestling: Basharat
Grappling: Basharat
More likely to finish on the mat: Basharat
Gas tank: Basharat
Prediction: Basharat is the brother of Javid Basharat who won a contract last season on the Contender Series.
Farid, just like his brother, is super talented with a lot of upsides. The biggest threat Souza brings is knockout power and given Basharat holds his hands low, there is a chance he gets caught.
The footwork of Basharat should allow him to avoid the more stationary movement of Souza however. Souza throws looping punches so the chance of him catching an evasive fighter like Basharat is unlikely. The more likely outcome in this match-up is Basharat taking Souza down and dominating the fight. Souza has shown before that he’s not good off his back and Basharat is solid all around. My prediction is Basharat looks great and ends up submitting Souza. Much like his brother, his Contender Series appearance could pave the way for a shot in the UFC.
Update, July 25, 2022: With Willian Souza missing weight, this fight has been cancelled. Read more about it here.
