UFC on ESPN 13 breakdown: Bad style matchup in the main event, but for whom?
MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main event for UFC on ESPN 13.
UFC on ESPN 13 takes place Saturday at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. The event airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.
Calvin Kattar (21-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC)
Staple info:
Height: 5’11” Age: 32 Weight: 145 lbs. Reach: 72″ Last fight: Knockout win over Jeremy Stephens(May 9, 2020) Camp: New England Cartel (Massachussetts) Stance/striking style: Orthodox/kickboxing Risk management: GoodSupplemental info:
+ Regional MMA titles
+ Wrestling base
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt
+ 11 KO victories
+ 2 submission wins
+ 10 first-round finishes
+ KO Power
+ Good feints and footwork
+ Accurate shot selection
^ Works well off of left hand
+ Solid wrestling ability
^ Defensively and offensively
+ Shows serviceable grappling
^ Positional awareness and fundamentals
Dan Ige (14-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC)
Staple info:
Height: 5’7″ Age: 28 Weight: 145 lbs. Reach: 71″ Last fight: Decision win over Edson Barboza(May 16, 2020) Camp: Xtreme Couture (Las Vegas, NV) Stance/striking style: Orthodox/kickboxing Risk management: GoodSupplemental info:
+ Regional MMA titles
+ Wrestling base
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
+ Judo brown belt
+ 3 KO victories
+ 5 submission wins
+ 5 first-round finishes
+ Aggressive pace and pressure
+ Solid feints and footwork
+ Improved boxing ability
^ Variates well to the body
+ Strong inside the clinch
+ Scrambles and wrestles well
^ Works best from top position
Point of interest: Body blows and bodybags
The main event for UFC on ESPN 13 features a fun featherweight fight between two men who quietly go to the body in trying to take out their opposition.
An aggressive, forward fighter, Dan Ige embodies a lot of the hallmarks of a Hawaiian fighter.
Typically the shorter man, Ige does well when utilizing feints to help freeze up his opposition. In recent fights, Ige has done even better when pairing said fakes to his footwork, taking more advantageous angles to his approach.
Demonstrating a steadily improving boxing game, Ige can enter space with either hand, often slipping off of jabs while doing so. Once working his way inside the pocket, the 28-year-old talent stays poised as he looks to either change levels to the body or come up high with his patent heavy hooks.
Ige is also good about mixing in uppercuts into his repertoire, whether he is launching them from the clinch with a collar tie attached or using them in close while coming off an angle. And though his uppercuts and bodywork will likely serve him well against a fighter who has a propensity to shell, Ige’s stylings arguably open him up to similar weapons.
Enter Calvin Kattar.
Quietly crafting his tools in and out the regional scene for roughly a decade, Kattar steps in with some fundamentally sound striking and well-earned hype. Whether he is coming forward or sticking and moving, Kattar does a great job of keeping his feet underneath him, occasionally shifting stances when he finds his groove.
Typically working behind a high guard, Kattar maintains solid shoulder and head position, protecting his chin from the majority of hard punches that come his way. Kattar, who trains with a lot of pro boxers, also does well at diversifying his shot selection from a boxing perspective.
From slipping offline to changing his level, he offers options to both the body and the head. Wielding a stinging jab (both defensively and offensively), Kattar will either use it to disrupt his opponent’s striking rhythms or allow it to help set up punishing hooks and crosses once establishing his range.
Although there will only be an inch difference in reach on paper, Kattar will be the taller and longer party, as I see jabs layered with uppercut threats being some of the more reliable weapons for him in this fight. The New England native has also shown an improved defense and awareness to leg kicks in his last outing, but his borderline boxing-centric guard and stance can still offer targets of the level-changing variety.
Next point of interest: Shutting down the scrambling: