Middleweight, Mario Mingaj (7-0) vs. Wes Schultz (7-2)
Notable Notes
- Schultz fought last season on the CS
- Schultz is 1-1 to the decision
- Both have a combined nine first-round finishes
- Both have nine combined submission wins
- Mingaj is 1-0 to the decision
- Mingaj hasn’t fought in nearly a year
Mario Mingaj
-Submission threat
-Long jab
-Dangerous off his back
-Good jiu-jitsu
-Terrible TDD/Pulls guard
-Rushes in blindly
-Hands low
Mingaj isn’t a huge surprise this season, especially with middleweight being the focus this season and his Cage Warriors background. On the feet he’s a long jab on the outside but nothing in front of it or behind it. It’s all single strikes. He likes to rush in with more output especially the elbows but he’s reckless and there to be hit on the way in.
He’s billed as a submission grappler, but the process is lacking. His wrestling is basically non-existent, and his submission opportunities mainly come from off his back—he’ll even pull guard to get there. That said, he does use his long frame well to attack triangles. Still, his style of “lose until you find an opening” isn’t going to fly at a higher level.
Wes Schultz
-Good positional grappling
-Submission threat
-High work rate
-Scrambles well
-Crafty
-Good ground and pound
Cons:
-Slow
-Weak TDD/Pulls guard
-Hands low
-Throws naked kicks
Schultz fought last season and got finished. Since then, he’s only fought once, winning via submission in under a minute—but it was against a 33-year-old who had lost two in a row. He has a herky-jerky style with an aggressive pace and a lot of volume, but he lacks speed, power, and refined technique.
His goal is usually the takedown, but his wrestling isn’t strong. Like others, he’ll pull guard just to grapple. Schultz is an opportunistic grappler who thrives in scrambles and relies heavily on his work ethic. He’s a solid regional middleweight, but far from UFC-level competition.
Prediction: This is a good fight for the mid middleweight champion of the world. Both guys have similar holes in their game. They have sloppy striking and are both grapplers who will pull guard.
The difference is the effort Schultz puts in. He will at least look to actively wrestle, unlike Mingaj.
Mingaj is fine with hanging around off his back until something opens up, whereas Schultz is looking to advance positions or at least throw ground and pound. The pick is Schultz because of his will and aggressiveness.
