Glyan Alves Archives - Cageside Press

Weekly MMA Prospect Report: Bellator 218, LFA 62, and More

Shawn Bitter — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 17:20:28 +0000

Plenty of MMA prospects are in action this weekend with quite a few taking part in Bellator 218.

Future FC 3 | Friday | Brazil

Bantamweight, Glyan Alves (13-3)

The Shooto Brasil current champ, Alves is a super fun and promising fighter to keep in eye on. Alves is well-rounded, being both good on the mat and on the feet, but more so the feet where he is very dangerous. He’s really explosive and dynamic with his offensive output including spinning attacks, flying knees, and many other flashy strikes. He isn’t just a flashy-type fighter as he can be very technical and he holds a lot of power in his hands. Alves does have good wrestling to fall back on, but he’s not too effective once on the mat. He fights Herbeth Sousa (12-1) who poses a threat to Alves.

Bellator 218 | Friday | Oklahoma

Light Heavyweight, Valentin Moldavsky (7-1)

Valentin Moldavsky is mainly a wrestler, he knows how to effectively position himself for the takedown, if that is in the clinch, where he is at his strongest, being able to control the position. Or if he just grabs a single leg for the takedown. On top, Moldavsky is as heavy as you can be as he is strong on top due to his background in Sambo. On the feet, he doesn’t go right for the knockout as he is more of a counter striker with a lot of power coupled with solid defense. Just a few adjustments would make him a complete fighter. He fights Linton Vassell (19-7), who is on a two-fight skid but a tough challenge.

Middleweight, Anatoly Tokov (27-3)

Anatoly Tokov is an excellent prospect out of Russia with an impressive record with plenty of experience. Tokov is 20-1 in his last 21 fights as his only loss is to UFC fighter Ramazan Emeev. He does have wins over solid competition including former champion Alexander Shlemenko. With a background in combat sambo, he is a great wrestler and the ground-and-pound he possesses on top is his best aspect. Tokov has heavy hands and is very aggressive with great cardio. Tokov is a major prospect and a possible future Bellator champion. He fights former UFC fighter Gerald Harris (25-7-1) who Tokov should run through.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_oG_JkQDes

Middleweight, Norbert Novenyi (2-0)

Novenyi is only 2-0 as a pro but had some experience as an amateur at 3-0. He is a Hungary native, but he trains out of a top camp in the UK, London Shootfighters. Novenyi is a primary wrestler that has slick jiu-jitsu with three career submissions. He hasn’t stayed on the feet too much but has some nice footwork and a good kicking attack along with nicely cut angles showing his training with the London Shootfighters. He fights William Lavine (1-1).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHIx93NEI1I

Middleweight, Johnny Eblen (4-0)

Johnny Eblen has a background as a Division I wrestler for the University of Missouri. Eblen trains with American Top Team and is 4-0 as a pro. The wrestler hasn’t shown much on the feet but he does swing hard. Eblen is 100% on his takedown attempts with explosive shots and excellent finishing ability. The work he does on top has been utter dominance. His top control is heavy and he will rain down heavy ground-and-pound. He’s looked great thus far in his career. He fights Chauncey Foxworth (9-7), who Eblen should be too much for.

LFA 62 | Friday | Texas

Flyweight, Casey Kenney (10-1-1)

He is extremely solid all around with his stand-up, he uses a little bit of everything such as knees, leg kicks, head kicks, and striking. On the mat, Casey is very good but his wrestling and judo are spectacular. Not only is he dangerous with a double-leg takedown but also using his judo for the trip takedowns and hip tosses. While on the mat, he is very heavy on top and can transition well. He fights Vincent Cachero (6-0).

Bantamweight, Vincent Cachero (6-0)

Vincent Cachero is undefeated as a pro and also went 4-1 as an amateur. Cachero is a well-conditioned striker that likes to stand and let his hands go. Cachero has power, but it’s his aggressive pace along with his constant output that makes him stand out. He is always throwing more than one punch and always throwing from different angles. He does have some holes in his takedown defense and cardio though, so that could be an issue moving forward. He fights Casey Kenney (10-1-1).

Island Fights 54 | Friday | Florida

Featherweight, Mike Davis (6-1)

Davis has a background in boxing along with Muay Thai and is undefeated in both of those as sports. His striking is solid, the way he throws combinations and uses his head movement is fantastic as is reminiscent UFC fighter Shane Burgos. The striking is crisp but the wrestling of the Contender Series veteran is good as well as he executes timing and double-legs very well. On top, he is smooth in transitions and getting dominant positions with effective ground-and-pound. He fights Carlos Guerra (3-1).

UK Fighting Championships 9 | Saturday | United Kingdom

Featherweight, Shoaib Yousaf (4-1)

Only 4-1 as a pro, Yousaf went 10-0 as an amateur and was the 2016 IMMAF Featherweight World Champion. Yousaf is dynamic on the feet with both his kickboxing and his counter-striking along with the great timing he has. His ground game I believe is his best aspect. His jiu-jitsu is fantastic as he has a very active guard as well. He fights Martin Fouda (5-12-1).

Berkut Young Eagles 8 | Saturday | Russia

Heavyweight, Murat Gugov (5-1)

After losing his pro debut, Murat Gugov went on to win his next five with a perfect finish rate. Gugov wants to take the fight down quickly as he’s hardly had any time on his feet. He’s a big strong guy so once he gets his hands together he gets the takedown. Gugov has mauling ground-and-pound with stoppages coming that way. He also is a submission threat locking in two rare ones in a north-south choke and a Von Flue choke. He still has a lot to show but he’s worth watching for. He fights Adlan Ibragimov (3-0), who I think Murat should beat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZWNjbwlb7k&t=134s

Featherweight, Bibert Tumenov (6-0)

Bibert is the younger brother of Albert Tumenov, who was a former UFC fighter and the former ACB welterweight champion. Tumenov has a background in boxing and won at the 2014 Youth Boxing World Championships. He also won gold in the Russia Cup and was a member of Russia’s National Boxing Team. He’s an extremely dangerous striker and a very smart one. He doesn’t favor a singular strike as he is always mixing up his combos and switches levels. He has a bright future. He fights Timur Khizriev (6-0) who I think Bibert is just too good for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1MZArQrosI

The post Weekly MMA Prospect Report: Bellator 218, LFA 62, and More appeared first on Cageside Press.

10 Bantamweight Prospects the UFC Should Sign in 2019

Shawn Bitter — Tue, 05 Feb 2019 19:00:10 +0000

MMA is off to a great start in 2019 with UFC Brooklyn and now UFC Fortaleza, so now we’ll look towards the future at 10 bantamweight prospects that should be in the Octagon by year’s end.

First up, last year’s list, with both Nathaniel Wood and Ricky Simon making it to the big show. Now on to 10 bantamweights we should see in the UFC by year’s end!

Demarte Pena
Jesse Arnett
Nathaniel Wood
Ricky Simon
Ricky Bandejas
Rustam Kerimov
Grigory Popov
Alexander Keshtov
Raufeon Stots
Patrick Mix

Patrick “Patchy” Mix

Mix was on the list last year and it seemed like he was a shoo-in. Now 9-0 with two more KOTC title defenses, and also signing with manager Ali Abdelaziz, this should be the year. Mix is all about pressure and he is always moving forward walking his opponent down.

Mix has twelve career submissions (counting his amateur days), showing he is more than comfortable on the mat. As he’s now training out of Jackson-Wink MMA, he’s been improving every step of the way. At 20-0 including his amateur bouts, Mix is more than ready for the big leagues.

Nathan “Mayhem” Maness

Being from Kentucky myself, I’ll be the first to say that talent has been lacking around here lately, but Maness is on a different level. This talented bantamweight has carried Kentucky on his back proudly. Jesse Arnett was a fighter I had on my list last year, one who was a major prospect and ready to knock on the UFC’s door. That was until he ran into Maness last September, who finished Arnett in round two.

Maness has served up the first career loss to a total of four other fighters. He is a wrestler first, has good hips and a solid jiu-jitsu base. His striking is coming along nicely, but once he gets it to the mat he’s been dominant.

Jack “Tank” Shore

If Jack Shore keeps winning, even just one more when he defends his Cage Warriors title, it would be unthinkable if he were not signed by the UFC this year. Shore has made some good strides in his striking with impressive output, combinations, and fight-ending knees in the clinch. He is a slick wrestler with excellent timing on his takedowns. If he can’t get it down the first time, he has shown the ability to adjust and chain-wrestle his opponents.

In top position, he is a nightmare opponent. Shore is a pro at passing into better positions, scrambling well and hunting submissions. Shore’s ground-and-pound is a big fight-changer as well. He loves to throw vicious elbows often. He’s beaten good prospects along the way and holds a win over former UFC fighter Vaughan Lee.

Raufeon “Supa” Stots

Raufeon Stots is a former NCAA Division II national wrestling champion at the University of Nebraska. The only loss on his MMA record came to current UFC fighter Merab Dvalishvili. Since that defeat, Stots got back on board with two wins and is one of the best bantamweight prospects today.

Stots is a fantastic wrestler and his stand-up has come along nicely. Along with some great movement, his skills have turned him into the total package. He’s currently with LFA, which is the number one “feeder league” to the UFC in North America. There are many good tests for Stots in LFA, but you can expect to see him on the Contender Series this Summer.

Glyan Alves

Alves is the current Shooto Brasil and Jungle Fights champion. Alves is a super fun and promising fighter to keep in eye out on. The Brazilian is well-rounded being both good on the mat and on the feet, but more so the feet, where he is very dangerous.

He’s really explosive and dynamic with his offensive output including spinning attacks, flying knees, and many other flashy strikes. He isn’t just a flashy fighter though, as he can be very technical and holds a lot of power in his hands. Alves does have good wrestling to fall back on, but he’s not too effective once on the mat.

Miles “Chapo” Johns

Labeled as a boxer/wrestler, that’s exactly how well-rounded Johns is. The first thing you notice when watching the Fortis MMA product is the wonderful jab he throws over and over and the one-twos he uses when the opportunity there. Sometimes Johns can be a bit wild and throws some wide hooks, but he does make up for it with speed and footwork, moving in-and-out. He loves to throw the big overhand right and at times he connects.

Johns loves to stand and trade and put on a “controlled chaos” performance but guys forget about how good he is with his wrestling. The timing, the level changes, and the execution are perfect. He is also signed with LFA, so we could very well see him fight Stots for the promotion’s title.

Alexander “AK-47” Keshtov

Keshtov is an undefeated fighter out of the amazing camp K-Dojo Warrior Tribe training with some UFC fighters and other top prospects. Keshtov is an excellent prospect as he is super diverse, throwing many different attacks both with his striking and kicks and he puts them all together perfectly. While his wrestling hasn’t been on display much, he owns solid takedown defense. He definitely looks like a future UFC fighter.

Keshtov is the former Ring of Combat champion and the current CFFC champ. He was contacted by the UFC to step in on short notice against Tim Elliott in Canada in last year but visa issues held that back. Look for Keshtov to be in the UFC this year with another win.

Phil “The Hitman” Caracappa

Caracappa started wrestling at a young age all the way up to high school and later transitioned into MMA where he is now undefeated as a pro and is the ROC champion. He is a solid wrestler due to his background, which has transferred over into his MMA career to become his best aspect. He also brings a good base in top position with solid jiu-jitsu.

His stand-up is still a work in progress, but he has good volume and technique. He has a key win over former UFC fighter Louis Gaudinot, proving he is a top prospect. He’s definitely a possibility for the Contender Series this Summer.

Tony Gravely

Before transitioning over to MMA, Gravely was a standout wrestler in high school who was All-State four times, an All-American three times, and a two-time state and regional champion. He also became a two-time conference champ at Appalachian State University. Gravely has five losses but they are to top Bellator contender Ricky Bandejas, fellow top prospects in Patrick Mix and Pat Sabatini, and UFC fighters Manny Bermudez and Merab Dvalishvili.

He is a wrestling-first type fighter. That wrestling is solid as he shows a lot of quickness and athleticism when he shoots in for takedowns with a near-perfect takedown percentage. On the mat, he is at home as he has perfect control and is always in the right place when there are scrambles. On top of that, his ground-and-pound has fight-ending capabilities. He is a bull on the feet pressing forward and as he doesn’t have a knockout in his career he does possess heavy hands but uses it more so to close the distance.

Victor “La Mangosta” Henry

Henry came into 2018 with a 1-3 record in his last four fights, but ended up going 4-0 for the year. He has never looked better and has key wins over current UFC fighter Anderson Dos Santos, and good prospects in Kyler Phillips, Denis Lavrentyev, and many more.

Henry has shown he’s well-rounded to go along with his a successful background in catch wrestling. He thrives in scrambles and hunts for submissions actively, being well-versed on the mat. His striking is getting better with a solid base of kickboxing. Henry is marketable and overall would be a good signing for the UFC.

Magomed “Tiger” Magomedov

This is a bonus pick, so yes, you are counting right. Magomed has been a dominant force in the last seven years with only one loss since 2012, which came against UFC contender Petr Yan. Magomedov is a veteran of ACB (now known as ACA), performing there for his last eight fights. His contract must be coming to an end soon and some big wins, including a victory over Yan in their first meeting, should earn him a contract.

At only 27, Magomed is at his prime and, in my opinion, one of the best of many Russian prospects. He’s a tiger in the cage as he is all pressure with excellent wrestling and cardio. Magomedov is always working on top with guard passes and ground-and-pound and can fight at a solid pace the whole fight. Magomedov would be a nightmare to the UFC’s 135-pound division.

The post 10 Bantamweight Prospects the UFC Should Sign in 2019 appeared first on Cageside Press.