Middleweight, Yousri Belgaroui (7-3) vs. Taiga Iwasaki (9-1)
Notable Notes
- Iwasaki is taking this fight on short notice.
- Belgaroui fought last season on CS and lost to Marco Tulio.
- Iwasaki’s only loss comes to former Bellator champ and legend Rafael Lovato Jr.
- This will be the first time fighting out of Japan for Iwasaki.
- Both have combined nine first-round finishes.
- Belgaroui is the current LFL light-heavyweight champion.
Yousri Belgaroui
Pros
- Solid kickboxing
- Good timing
- Heavy leg kicks
- Good knees
- Long jab
- Nice straight punches
- Good shot selection
- Good distance control
Cons
- TDD needs work
- Chin up
- Lacks off his back
- Hands drop over time
- Doesn’t commit enough
Taiga Iwasaki
Pros
- Maintains range well
- Good teep
- Solid kickboxing
- Mixes up striking patterns
- Good ground and pound
Cons
- Head sits on the centerline
- Struggles with position control
Prediction: Belgaroui is getting another shot at the Contender Series after coming up short last year. That might come as a bit of a surprise as not only did he lose, but it was a bad showing at that. He fought like he didn’t want to be there. Luckily, he’s won two fights since then, looking better than before.
With Iwasaki, he’s taking this fight on short notice but now it’s a better fight. Not many times do we see fighters from Japan that are talented in the bigger weight classes. Iwasaki is certainly good as his only loss is to Bellator legend Rafael Lovato Jr. Iwasaki was walked through in that bout but that was an unnecessary fight to even take.
I like the striking of Iwasaki but he’ll have to mix in his wrestling. From watching Iwasaki I can’t be sure it’s good enough to take this fight down. Belgaroui has struggled with takedown defense but Iwasaki isn’t a strong grappler. I see Iwasaki struggling with the size of Belgaroui so I see Belgaroui using his strikes from the outside to wear on Iwasaki. I’ve got Belgaroui by TKO in round two and I’m 60% confident.
