UFC Vegas 86 Main Event: Hermansson vs. Pyfer
UFC VEGAS 86 MAIN EVENT: HERMANSSON VS. PYFER – Middleweights were the center of attention last week when the UFC made its return, it is no different this week as we have a veteran looking to fan out a hot prospect.
Jack Hermansson returns from an injury layoff, looking to bounce back into the win column.
The Joe Pyfer hype train wants to continue down the tracks and pick up his fourth and most important UFC victory.
Can the veteran hand out a lesson to the youngster? Or will the scorching hot prospect smash another opponent with ease? Read on to see how these two styles clash and how we can profit from it.
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Jack Hermansson
Exchanging wins and losses over his last eight fights, Hermansson is coming off a loss to the previous-week’s main event, Roman Dolidze.
Leading up to that fight, Hermansson was on a rollercoaster with his record. However, he’s on a high after using a pedestrian approach to defeating Chris Curtis. He has been unable to secure any sort of consistency since he picked up his biggest win to date, which was a short-notice main event upset over Jacare Souza.
Unfortunately, he followed that up with a knockout loss to Jared Cannonier in front of his hometown crowd.
Hermansson is a veteran of 31 professional MMA fights. What has made him so successful is his wrestling and overall grappling game.
He is long, with gangly strength, allowing him to hit throws and trips that many opponents do not suspect. The length advantage he normally holds allows him to tread at distance and pick opponents apart without eating too much in return, as we saw in the Chris Curtis fight.
However, when he locks up with his opponents, he is very difficult to get the better of in those Greco-Roman wrestling scenarios.
Joe Pyfer
The first real look we got at Pyfer was on the 2020 season of the Contender Series. Unfortunately, that night he suffered a bad arm injury that put him out of competition for over a year.
He quickly got himself back in the win column on the regional scene after his recovery, which earned him another shot on the Contender Series. He made good on that by knocking out his opponent in the second round. Dana strapped a rocket to Pyfer’s back, largely due to the lack of contract-winning performances on that same episode.
Pyfer has finished all three of the opponents put in front of him thus far, but a lot of people question the level of opposition and if they were suited to be in Pyfer’s advantage.
Pyfer is primarily a grappler from his earlier days in the sport, but it seems since his injury, he has preferred the striking realm to knock his opponents out.
It was only in his last fight that he showed his grappling but pulling off the second-round submission victory, but he normally likes to establish his power and knockout ability, squashing opponents quickly. He’s young, has explosiveness, power, and confidence all on his side.
However, MMA is a brutal sport that cares for none of that, he needs to be completely locked in to take the step up in competition he faces this weekend.
The Pick
We see this type of matchup time and time again. The scorching hot prospect that is finishing everyone in his path against the tested veteran looking to knock off the hype.
At that point, you must play the odds. The odds significantly indicate that taking a shot on the veteran dog here is not a bad idea at all in the +230 range. Hermansson, typically, has solid durability and is great at putting opponents through the grind.
If he can avoid the early finishing power of Pyfer, he has all the tools to dismantle him late and possibly find the finish. What’s holding me from having complete confidence in that spot is the layoff and injury recovery for the 35-year-old Hermansson. Regardless, we play the odds in this game, and in this case, the veteran is a must-play.