The contest:
Fort Lauderdale's BB & T centre plays host to a crucial middleweight contest between Ronaldo Souza and Jack Hermansson later tonight.
It's the second visit of the UFC to the BB & T arena after Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall headlined a flyweight bout back in June, 2012.
The main event for the card was originally meant to be a contest between Yoel Romero and Paolo Costa but Romero contracted pneumonia and subsequently pulled out of the contest.
Costa was originally expected to face Souza but said three weeks was inadequate amount of time to prepare for the BJJ expert.
Hence the game Swede stepped in on just three weeks notice after dispatching David Branch in 49 second at UFC Philadelphia on March 30th.
The 39-year-old Rio fighter has struggled for moment in his last four fights dropping two of them, his most recent loss coming to Kelvin Gastelum and UFC Champion Robert Whittaker.
Saying that "Jacare" scored a recent and impressive KO victory over former middleweight champion Chris Weidman at UFC 23O.
The Oslo based Swede has the momentum with three-straight victories in the division taking his record to 6-2 in the promotion with a mix of submission and tko wins.
Keys to Victory:
Hermansson
The game Swede must be clever with on the feet and look to land hard on the Brazilian with 3 of his eight UFC appearances ending in TKO finishes in his favour. It's area of Hermanssson game that is vastly underrated, although, if the former Cagewarriors middleweight champion can take Souza to the ground it will be fascinating to see if he can control the BJJ ace with his excellent ground and pound skills.
Jacare
Ronaldo Souza must look to neutralise the Swede by looking to take the fight to the canvas. Not many in the world are as dangerous on the ground as "Jacare" but it would fascinating to see the Brazilian off his back against the dangerous ground and pound skills that the "Joker " has in his arsenal. Again an underrated striker but this contest is more suitable for his submission skills and that's where he will try and take the fight to get the victory.
Prediction:
In a fascinating contest between two fighters who like to take the fight to the ground, it's a fight that has many permutations.
I do believe that Hermassson must control the BJJ black belt against the fence and potentially look for a finish on the feet. He needs to grind on the Brazilian.
It remains to bee seen if Hermansson wants the fight to go near the ground but if it does it's crucial that he takedown Souza rather than being the one that is put on his back, that is crucial.
If Jacare can initiate the takedown it could be a short night for the Swede. The alligator isn't called that for nothing.
The #4 and #10 ranked fighters in the UFC's thriving middleweight division are underrated with their striking skills but I see the fight ending on the ground.
I worry about Ronaldo Souza's lack of real momentum coming into this fight, we've seen also seen the air of invincibility float away after Robert Whittaker finished him within two round . The real factor may be the Rio De Janeiro fighter's age.
The 39-year-old may has a real task on his hands with one of Europe's best talents. The momentum of the underdog will be too much for the alligator.
Hermansson via 2nd round TKO.
ONES TO WATCH
| John Lineker | vs. | Cory Sandhagen |
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