UFC Fight Night 57: Bobby Green vs Edson Barboza Breakdown
Bobby Green vs Edson Barboza pits two of the lightweight division’s best strikers against each other….
UFC Fight Night 57 will go down this Saturday (November 22nd, 2014) and is stacked with great fights throughout. One such bout is a lightweight co-main event, featuring dangerous strikers Edson Barboza and Bobby Green. The winner will bolster their claim for a more permanent place in the top ten at 155 pounds, which is not an easy place to hang.
So let’s see how these two strikers stack up….
Striking
There’s no doubt in my mind that this is where the fight will transpire, and it will do so for three rounds if both guys can withstand the damage. Edson Barboza is a devastating Muay Thai specialist, and has some fantastic highlight reel knockouts on his record. The most noteworthy was his spinning wheel kick against Terry Etim, that will go down as one of the greatest finishes, let alone kicks in the promotion’s history.
Opposite the Brazilian will be a smooth boxer, with excellent head movement and footwork. “King” will want to work the body and stay out of range of Barboza’s nasty kicks, which are undoubtedly his go-to weapon. For me, this comparison is all about the range; get inside and box for Green, stay outside and kick for Barboza. It’s also worth noting that Barboza is no stranger to the elbows, as a 28-fight Muay Thai veteran.
Barboza’s KO ratio is high with 10 from 14, Green has eight by strikes from 23. With the extra curricular experience, power and finishing rate, I’m giving Barboza the edge at 60-40
Takedowns
Barboza has an 84% takedown defense rate, which is pretty damn high for a striker, and is successful in 50% of his takedown attempts since joining the UFC. Green has stuffed 77% of opponents takedowns and is successful in 67% of his own under the Zuffa banner. Will the fight go to the mat? perhaps if one man is hurt, or maybe Green will try and go there from the bat?
This is MMA, and anything can happen, and it’s worth remembering that Green’s fighting life started as a sophomore wrestler, placing twice at State level. Barboza’s natural strength makes him hard to take to the canvas, but “King” has the slight advantage in experience cage work. 60-40 Green
Submissions
Another area where these two are fairly evenly matched, although Barboza outranks Green by one grade (purple to blue), “King” makes up for it with more MMA finishes. Barboza’s single submission victory as a pro is dwarfed by Green’s 9 from 23 wins. We’ve seen “King” submit Jacob Volkmann while in the UFC, and he has some pretty slick subs on the regional circuit too.
Ironically, I feel that this is the area that Green has the most likelyhood of getting a finish. Barboza got submitted by Donald Cerrone this past April, and it could well happen at UFC Fight Night 57 if he hangs around on the mat too long. Not a huge gap, but 55-45 Green
So as we await what looks to be a thoroughly exciting card in Austin, Texas, who do you think will emerge victorious from Bobby Green vs Edson Barboza? One thing is for sure, it has all the makings of a Fight of The Night winner, and that’s huge considering Frankie Edgar and Cub Swanson are fighting on the same card…
