Michael Chiesa has won three straight to start off his UFC welterweight career, including this performance against Diego Sanchez at UFC 239 last year. Chiesa faces Neil Magny in the main event of UFC Fight Island 8 on Wednesday.

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By MMA Junkie Staff
January 19, 2021 10:22 pm

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Fabricio Werdum

Even though Werdum’s armbar over Walt Harris is his last pick on the list, it still hold a lot of value.

Werdum was scheduled to fight Derrick Lewis at UFC 216, but things took an unexpected turn the day of the fight. Both Werdum and Lewis had gone through training camp, media day, weigh-ins, and face-offs – the fight was practically set.

However, the day of the fight Lewis had back complications and had to pull out of the bout. The UFC offered Werdum Harris, who was coming off two finishes, as a replacement, and with just hours notice, the Brazilian stepped up to the challenge. It stands as Werdum’s fastest career win.

“Against Walt Harris they changed the opponent last minute,” Werdum said. “I was going to the fight, I was leaving the hotel to the arena, and they called me telling me that I wasn’t going to fight who I was scheduled to fight.

“It was a fight that required me to have a strong head and I had to keep the mind sharp because the opponent changed last minute. And even then, I was able to grab an arm bar from a transition from the back mount.”

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By MMA Junkie Staff
January 20, 2021 12:05 am

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Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-257-video-dan-hardy-john-gooden-breakdown-analysis-dustin-poirier-conor-mcgregor-rematch

With Chiesa’s grappling intentions being no secret, do not be surprised to see Sikjitsu product get after takedowns early and often.

Although Chiesa traditionally does his best work along the fence, the former high school wrestling standout has shown a diverse takedown ability both in the open and against the cage.

From the clinch, Chiesa demonstrates the competency to hit everything from inside trips to hip tosses. The 33-year-old also keeps solid reactive shots in his back pocket despite having a decent double-leg going forward.

I can see Chiesa getting his counterpart down early in this contest, but keeping Magny down is an entirely different story.

Diligently working his wrestling and jiu-jitsu with Elevation Fight Team, Magny has quietly become a menace to tangle with in close quarters. From his ability to create scrambles from negative positions to the smart decision-making that he displays with his single-leg getups, the former “TUF” contestant has come a long way in when it comes to sharpening his technique and weaponizing his cardio.

Nevertheless, Magny will still need to mind his give-and-take sensibilities considering the specialist at hand.

An inherent hustler for position who seems at home in a dogfight, Chiesa comes alive whenever he can get a glimpse of his opponent’s back. Using his long frame and crafty controls, Chiesa appears to be a nightmare to get off, as Magny will need to be on his best behavior when scrambling.

Magny, who is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt, appears to have plenty of options from full-guard attacks to half-guard getups. And if he is able to survive the early storms from Chiesa, then none of us should be shocked to see Magny, once again, steadily turn the tides.

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