Bantamweight: Jean Matsumoto Vs. Kasey Tanner
Tale of the Tape
23-years-old
5’6″
Braganca Paulista, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Inside Muay Thai
13-0
3 KO/TKOs, 5 Submissions
Combined opponent’s record: 68-24-1
31-years-old
5’8″
Scottsdale, Arizona
Fight Ready MMA
6-0
2 KO/TKOs, 2 Submissions
Combined opponent’s record: 13-10
Pros and Cons
Jean Matsumoto
Pros
- Solid Jiu-Jitsu
- Active ground and pound
- Nice bodywork
- Explosive
- Athletic
- Good wrestling
- Utilizes trips well
- Good pocket striker
- Chopping leg kicks
Cons
- TDD needs work
- Flat-footed
- Questionable chin
- Head movement needs improvement
Kasey Tanner
Pros
- Solid wrestling
- Good leg kicks
- Keeps hands high
- Aground and pound
- Scrambles well
- Chain wrestles well
- Chopping leg kicks
- Good bodywork
- Excellent grappling control
- Submission threat
- Good elbows
Cons
- Loose in transitions at times
Who has the advantage?
Striking: Matsumoto
Speed: Even
Output/Volume: Matsumoto
Kickboxing: Even
Striking defense: Tanner
Footwork/movement: Tanner
Wrestling: Tanner
Grappling: Tanner
Gas tank: Tanner
Prediction: I’ve been high on Matsumoto for years so I’m happy to see him get this opportunity. What I didn’t expect was to be so impressed with Tanner. He has areas where he’s stronger but he’s shown virtually no holes in his game. This fight should be headlining this week as it’s a UFC-level fight.
I was fully expecting to pick Matsumoto but I’m not. Matsumoto does have a striking advantage but not by much. Tanner’s hands are improving so he could very well give Matsumoto a lot of issues. I believe Tanner’s ability to mix in his wrestling will edge him in this fight. Matsumoto is a solid grappler but Tanner is even better in wrestling as well. The gas tank seems to run pretty deep as well so he can put on a hard pace on Matsumoto. It depends on how well Tanner can take the damage from Matsumoto but I predict him to take it well enough. The pick is Tanner by upset.
