Prediction: Jean Matsumoto via Decision<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jean Matsumoto is the side\u2014but it\u2019s not a layup. At all. The dude\u2019s clearly got the more complete striking arsenal. Kicks, punches in combination, clean mechanics, solid shot selection\u2014it\u2019s all there. He\u2019s fluid when he gets going. But the issue is how he gets going. Matsumoto\u2019s lack of offensive footwork is a real concern here. He doesn\u2019t cut off the cage, he doesn\u2019t enter on angles, and he tends to stand right in the zone just long enough for someone like Miles Johns to tee off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And when Johns lets it fly, it\u2019s mostly that right hand\u2014but it\u2019s a problem<\/em>. That shot is timed well, thrown with bad intentions, and has been a real equalizer for him throughout his UFC run. That said, the reason we\u2019re leaning Matsumoto is because Johns is kinda one-dimensional. He\u2019s banking on you walking into his power. Outside of that right hand, there\u2019s not much behind it. He doesn\u2019t throw in volume, doesn\u2019t build combos, and you can start to get reads on him as the fight goes on\u2014especially if you stay composed and force him to show his hand early.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Grappling-wise, this one feels like a wash. Johns has solid wrestling and strong top control, but Matsumoto\u2019s defensive grappling is slick. He\u2019s hard to hold down, he doesn\u2019t panic, and even when taken down, he makes you work for every second of control. That\u2019s a big deal because it means the margins are going to come down to what happens on the feet\u2014and that\u2019s where Matsumoto\u2019s variety gives him the edge. Even if he\u2019s a bit too stationary at times, he\u2019s still offering more offensively. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Prediction: Jean Matsumoto via Decision Jean Matsumoto is the side\u2014but it\u2019s not a layup. At all. The dude\u2019s clearly got the more complete striking arsenal. Kicks, punches in combination, clean mechanics, solid shot selection\u2014it\u2019s all there. He\u2019s fluid when he gets going. But the issue is how he gets going.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-448","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capmma.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}