Jack Hermansson

Marvin Vettori beats Jack Hermansson in a war at UFC Vegas 16

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Tonight the UFC returned for their sixteenth fight night inside The Apex. In the main event of the evening was a battle between top middleweights, Jack Hermansson (21-5) and Marvin Vettori (15-4).

It’s been an interesting road on getting to UFC Vegas 16 for Jack Hermansson. Originally, Hermansson was scheduled to take on Darren Till in the main event. However, Till had to pull out of the fight with a knee injury. 

Following Till was Kevin Holland. Holland had been 4-0 in 2020 and the UFC rewarded him with the Hermansson fight. However, Holland would test positive for COVID-19 which cancelled the fight. That’s when the UFC turned to The Italian Dream.

Vettori was originally scheduled to fight at UFC 256, however, he couldn’t pass up a main event opportunity. Both of these two men were looking to take another step towards the middleweight title with a win tonight.

UFC Vegas 16 Main Event Recap

Round 1

As the first round of the UFC Vegas 16 main event got underway, Hermansson opened the striking with a leg kick. Both men were holding the center of the cage as Vettori landed two crisp left hands. Hermansson was very light on his feet, but Vettori was doing well at closing the distance.

Vettori landed a nice uppercut and followed it a straight left. Hermansson countered with a great body kick, however, Vettori was still landing cleaner shots. Vettori’s pressure and speed seemed to be bothering The Joker in the first.

Halfway through the round and Vettori floored Hermansson with a massive straight shot. Vettori followed with big shots, but Hermansson did a good job of grabbing ahold of Vettori. Hermansson was able to pull Vettori into his guard.

Vettori kept looking to land big shots on the ground as the round entered it’s final minute. In his first UFC main event, Marvin Vettori looked excellent in the first round. Dominant round one for The Italian Dream.

Round 2

To start the second round of the UFC Vegas 16 main event, Hermansson opened with a big hook and pressure. Hermansson looked like he was trying to get the first round back early on. Vettori looked very composed and landed another good straight shot.

Hermansson shot in for his takedown attempt, however, Vettori did a fantastic job of defending. Hermansson got him to the ground, however, Vettori hit a nice switch and ended up on top. Hermansson started to look for submissions when he was on his back.

Vettori settled in looking to just control Hermansson on the ground. With 90 seconds left in the round, Vettori backed away to get the fight back to the feet. Once on the feet, Hermansson started to pressure Vettori but nothing was landing.

Hermansson attempted another takedown, but couldn’t land it. Two rounds to nothing for Vettori in the UFC Vegas 16 main event.

Round 3

The third round of the UFC Vegas 16 main event saw Hermansson open again with pressure. After a couple of shots failed to land, Hermansson found himself on his back foot. Vettori started opening up his striking with a couple of crisp lefts up the middle.

Hermansson ducked under a shot and timed a takedown attempt beautifully. However, Vettori was able to keep the fight standing with better defense. Vettori seemed to be tiring a little in the third round and his pace was not as high on the feet.

Hermansson started throwing and landing some cleaner shots halfway through the round. Vettori definitely seemed to be tiring as the third round went on. Vettori landed a very clean left, but his shots were getting slower and slower.

Hermansson continued to pressure Vettori in the final two minutes of the round. Hermansson landed two very big right hands and Vettori had nothing to respond with. A much better third round for Hermansson who continued to land clean in the final minute. 2-1 after three in this UFC main event.

Round 4

The fourth round of the UFC Vegas 16 main event saw Hermansson once again open with pressure. However, Vettori seemed to have his legs a little more in the fourth. Almost looked like he took the third round off.

Vettori looked much more slick in the fourth round landing a couple of clean shots up the middle. However, Hermansson was continuing to walk Vettori down in the fourth. Vettori was doing some good work with his straight left in the fourth.

Halfway through the round and Vettori looks like he caught his second wind. He was really opening up his hands and landing clean in the fourth. Hermansson continued to pressure, but he was landing much less in the fourth.

However, Hermansson landed a beautiful combination just as the round entered the final minute. Vettori countered with pepping Hermansson with shots up the middle. Hermansson seemed to have no answer for those straight shots. 3-1 for Vettori in the UFC Vegas 16 main event.

Round 5

As we entered the final round of the UFC Vegas 16 main event, Hermansson knew he needed a finish. However, as soon as the round started, Vettori was landing some clean shots. Hermansson fired back trying to empty the tank and landed some good shots.

However, Vettori stayed composed and started firing back at The Joker. Both men seemed content with standing in the middle of the cage and trading big shots. Vettori once again landed a massive left straight, but Hermansson countered with a big right uppercut.

Hermansson continued to pressure, but again, Vettori was getting the better of the striking. Vettori landed a clean uppercut as the fight entered the final 90 seconds. Hermansson threw a big combination, but Vettori just ate it.

Vettori clinched Hermansson and pushed him into the fence as the fight entered the final 30 seconds. Hermansson rolled for a leglock in the final seconds, but couldn’t lock it in. Great UFC main event that I scored for Vettori 49-46.

Marvin Vettori def Jack Hermansson by Unanimous Decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45)

UFC Vegas 16 Preview: Jack Hermansson – Marvin Vettori

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Tomorrow night in the main event of UFC Vegas 16, Jack Hermansson (21-5) will be taking on Marvin Vettori (15-4-1). Both of these top 15 middleweights will be looking to take another step towards UFC title contention.

Marvin Vettori is actually the third opponent for Jack Hermansson for this event. Originally, Hermansson was supposed to take on former title challenger, Darren Till. However, a knee injury forced Till of the UFC Vegas 16 card. 

After that, the UFC moved to Kevin Holland who has won four fights in 2020. However, Holland tested positive for COVID-19 last week which scrapped that fight. Now, we’ve finally landed on Hermansson taking on Marvin Vettori. 

Despite all the changes, Hermansson never wavered in his desire to fight. He said this week that his opponent simply didn’t matter. You have to love that attitude from The Joker. He’s looking to close out 2020 with his second straight win and his sixth in his last seven fights.

Back in July, Hermansson took on Kelvin Gastelum. It was expected to be a tough fight for Hermansson, but he was able to get the fight to the floor early and submit Gastelum quick. It was a major statement for the Joker.

Hermansson has only lost twice since 2017 to Thiago Santos and Jared Cannonier. Those two massive power punches caught Hermansson and finished him. Outside of them, The Joker has used his superior grappling to run through the division.

UFC Vegas 16 Prediction

One thing to know about UFC Vegas 16’s Marvin Vettori is that he’s not afraid of anything from Jack Hermansson. The Italian Dream is supremely confident and believes that this fight will carry him into title contention.

Since 2017, Vettori has only lost one fight and that was to Israel Adesanya. Outside of that, he’s looked really good in his UFC fights. He’s on three fights in a row including a dominant submission win over Karl Roberson back in June.

Vettori has a very solid overall game, but will likely need to keep it standing to get the win tomorrow. Vettori has good striking, but he doesn’t possess incredible amounts of power. He’s a good grappler, but he will be overmatched by Jack Hermansson on the ground.

When it comes to UFC Vegas 16, I think there’s a much clearer path to victory for Jack Hermansson. He’s superior on the ground and I don’t think Vettori possesses enough power in his hands to stop Hermansson. Incredible power has been the only thing to stop Hermansson so far.

When these two get in the cage tomorrow, I think it’ll be evident early on that Hermansson is the superior grappler. I think Vettori will have his moments, but over the course of five rounds, I think Hermansson’s skills will be too much.

Prediction: Jack Hermansson by Unanimous Decision

UFC: Marvin Vettori doesn’t think Israel Adesanya has proved much

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UFC Vegas 17 tomorrow night is being headlined by a great middleweight contest between Jack Hermansson (21-5) and Marvin Vettori (15-4-1). The Italian Dream has won three consecutive fights leading into the main event tomorrow.

The last man to have defeated Marvin Vettori was current UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. The two men fought back in April of 2018 and Adesanya got the victory by split decision. Arguably the closest fight of Adesanya’s career.

For the last couple of years, Vettori has been asking for a rematch with Adesanya. Since that fight, Adesanya has become a superstar and captured the UFC‘s middleweight crown. Vettori has done some solid work, however, he’s still not close to another shot at the title.

Tomorrow night can of course change that. Yesterday was the UFC‘s virtual media day and the media members asked Vettori about the current champ. They asked him about his pending move to light heavyweight.

Vettori told the media, “He just thinks he can do whatever he wants. Reality, to me, he still didn’t prove much. His last fight was good, but it was more Costa beating himself. Before that, in my eyes, was one of the worst title fights ever.”

UFC’s Unproven Champ?

Let me start out by saying that I firmly disagree with Marvin Vettori. Yes, Israel Adesanya has proved a lot in the UFC‘s middleweight division. I will agree with Vettori saying the Romero fights was one of the worst title fights I’ve ever seen.

Vettori is known for being extremely outspoken and he’s not a fan of Adesanya. He believes that he won their first fight. While Vettori did do well, it’s worth noting that the vast majority of people believe that Adesanya won that fight.

Nevertheless, Vettori was more competitive with the UFC champ than anyone else outside of Kelvin Gastelum. If Vettori picks up the win tomorrow night, he might just be one fight away from a potential shot at the title.

Adesanya has made it clear that he wants to return to the UFC‘s middleweight division eventually. If Vettori picks up a couple of additional wins, I would love to see the two of them rematch to finally settle the score.

Jack Hermansson was going to fight at UFC Vegas 16 no matter who the opponent was

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It’s been a wild journey for Jack Hermansson (21-5) leading up to the UFC Vegas 16 main event. The promotion’s fourth ranked middleweight is getting his third headlining fight, but he’s had to stay on his toes on who he’d be facing.

Originally, the UFC announced that Hermansson would be taking on Darren Till at UFC Vegas 16. These two men had some fun back and forth over social media and it was a fight that the fans were really excited for.

However, Darren Till sustained an injury and he was forced to pull out of the fight. The UFC went to work and decided to have Hermansson fight Kevin Holland. Holland has made a strong case for fighter of the year going 4-0 in 2020 thus far.

Kevin Holland was nicknamed loudmouth by Dana White because he simply doesn’t stop talking in the cage. Holland was getting the biggest opportunity of his career headlining against a top UFC middleweight like Hermansson.

Hermansson had no issues taking the fight against Holland. Then, last week, Holland tested positive for COVID-19 and he was forced out of the UFC Vegas 16 main event. That is when the promotion turned to Marvin Vettori (15-4-1).

Vettori was scheduled to take on Jacare Souza at UFC 256, but the promotion wanted him to move up. Once again, Hermansson didn’t care about who the replacement was. Without even thinking about it, Hermansson accepted the fight. 

It’s just about a UFC fight for Hermansson

There has been so many cases in the history of the UFC where a fight gets scrapped altogether if one person falls out. Sometimes the UFC can’t find a replacement opponent and other times the main event fighter doesn’t want to fight the replacement.

Hermansson is not one of those guys. He appeared on Ariel Helwani’s MMA show today to talk about the wild ride leading up to this weekend. Helwani asked Hermansson about the opponent changes and if he ever thought of saying no.

“It didn’t matter who it was, you know? As long as I have a fight, I’m all good. I’m here in Vegas to fight and they can put anyone in front of me now,” Hermansson told Helwani.

If you weren’t a fan of Hermansson before, how could you not love the guy after an answer like that. One of the best middleweights in the UFC and he doesn’t care about who the opponent is, he just wants to fight.

Marvin Vettori is no joke and this fight is not expected to be an easy one for Hermansson. However, as he said, he doesn’t care about who the opponent is or how hard the fight will be. For Jack Hermansson, it’s just about getting in there and fighting on Saturday night.

Kevin Holland rebooked against Jacare Souza at UFC 256

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Kevin Holland

It’s turned out to be a game of middleweight musical chairs in the UFC today. Originally, Kevin Holland (20-5) was set to take on Jack Hermansson next weekend in the card’s headliner.

However, it was reported today that Holland tested positive for COVID-19. Thus, the UFC had to move in a different direction. Marvin Vettori was originally scheduled to fight at UFC 256 against Jacare Souza (26-8, 1 NC).

The promotion went to Vettori and asked him to substitute for Holland. After both fighters agreed, the UFC booked a new headliner for next weekend featuring Vettori and Hermansson. However, that left Souza and Holland without opponents.

Well, on tonight’s UFC Vegas 15 broadcast, the promotion announced that Holland will be fighting Jacare Souza at UFC 256. So in the end, Vettori and Holland just ended up swapping places to keep the fights together.

UFC 256’s new matchup

Kevin Holland is on the shortlist of guys who could make the claim that they are fighter of the year. Holland has won all four of his UFC fights in 2020. He’s looked sensational and he’s knocking on the door of the top 15.

A win at UFC 256 over Jacare would put him at 5-0 in 2020 while giving him the biggest win of his career in terms of name. The PPV will be the first time that we’ve seen Jacare since he lost a split decision to Jan Blachowicz last November.

Souza decided to move up to light heavyweight and had a competitive fight with the now champion. However, Souza decided that he wanted to move back down to the UFC‘s middleweight division.

At 40 years old, there’s no telling on how many fights Jacare has left. One thing is for sure and that is that he’s hungry to snap his two fight losing streak. Jacare only has one win in his last four and that was his knockout over Chris Weidman.

 

Marvin Vettori replaces Kevin Holland in UFC Vegas 16 headliner

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Earlier today it was announced that Kevin Holland had tested positive for COVID-19 and was out of his UFC Vegas 16 headliner. Jack Hermansson (21-5) was going to remain in the headliner, but an opponent hadn’t been finalized.

Ariel Helwani was reporting that the UFC was leaning towards Marvin Vettori (15-4-1) as the replacement. Vettori was scheduled to take on Jacare Souza at UFC 256 in just a couple of weeks. However, bout agreements hadn’t been sent out as of this morning.

Well, MMA Junkie is now reporting that the proposed matchup is finalized. The UFC has booked Marvin Vettori against Jack Hermansson in the main event of next Saturday’s UFC Vegas 16 card.

In many ways, this fight is better than the original matchup with Kevin Holland. Unlike Holland, Vettori is in the top 15 of the UFC‘s middleweight division. This is the third proposed opponent for Hermansson for his headliner next weekend.

UFC Vegas 16’s New Main Event

Vettori will go into next weekend as the UFC‘s 13th ranked contender at middleweight. The only man to have gotten the better of Vettori over his past five fights is the current middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya.

This is a massive opportunity for The Italian Dream. Vettori was already scheduled for a big bump up in competition, but getting a headlining spot was something that Vettori simply couldn’t pass up. It also will earn him more props with the UFC.

As mentioned above, this is the third scheduled opponent for Jack Hermansson. Originally, The Joker was supposed to take on Darren Till. This was a huge fight, but it fell through after Till suffered an injury. 

That is when the promotion shifted to the Kevin Holland fight. Holland is a fighter of the year contender having gone 4-0 in 2020. However, today’s news of the positive COVID test has thrown that off.

You have to respect Hermansson for being willing to take on any challenger in his UFC main event. Hermansson is looking to pickup his second consecutive win after dominating Kelvin Gastelum over the summer.

Kevin Holland out of UFC Vegas 16 Main Event

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Kevin Holland

The UFC hits from COVID just keep on coming. Yesterday, we found out tonight’s main event fell out at the last minute due to a positive test with Curtis Blaydes. Now, we have found out that next week’s main event has lost a headliner.

Kevin Holland (20-5) announced this morning via Twitter that he is out of UFC Vegas 16. Holland was scheduled to face Jack Hermansson (21-5) in the main event. This was a massive fight for Kevin Holland.

In October of last year, Holland was submitted by Branden Allen. Since then, he’s gone on an incredible run in the UFC. Holland has won all four of his fights since May of this year. He was on the shortlist for fighter of the year.

Due to an injury with Darren Till, Holland was getting this main event shot against Hermansson. Had Holland been able to defeat Hermansson, he would have likely shot into the top ten of the UFC‘s middleweight division.

For now, his plans for advancement are on halt. However, 2020 has still been a sensational year for Kevin Holland. It’s very rare for a fighter to have the opportunity to go 5-0 in a year. Holland had that chance, but should still be proud of the incredible 4-0 year.

What is the UFC’s Plan?

As of now, the UFC is still planning on having Jack Hermansson fight in the main event next week according to Ariel Helwani. However, an opponent has not been finalized. There is talk of Marvin Vettori stepping in to take the fight.

This would be a sensational matchup for the UFC to make, and you know that Vettori would be down to take the fight. The Italian Dream is currently scheduled to take on Jacare Souza at UFC 256, but there are serious talks of him moving up.

Vettori is looking to really put himself on the map. He’s won three in a row and the last person to defeat him is the current UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. We will keep following this story.

UFC: Darren Till out; Kevin Holland steps in to face Jack Hermansson

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Kevin Holland

One of the more popular fighters in the UFC‘s middleweight division is out of his main event next month. Per ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Darren Till has been forced to withdrawal from his December 5th main event against top contender Jack Hermansson.

The fight was proving to be a pivotal fight in the fluid middleweight division. However, an injury has derailed the fight. Jack Hermansson really wanted to get another fight in before the year ended. He wanted the UFC to find him a ranked opponent after Till fell out.

However, all ranked opponents that the UFC offered the fight to, turned it down. That’s when the UFC turned to Kevin Holland. The brash middleweight has competed and won four fights since the month of May.

Holland is riding high right now and has even had some back and forth with current UFC champion, Israel Adesanya. This was an opportunity that Holland simply couldn’t pass up when the UFC called. Despite not having a ranking, Holland was willing to fight, and that’s what mattered to Hermansson.

UFC’s New Main Event

Talk about a golden opportunity for Kevin Holland. The UFC loves guys who have the attitude that they will fight anyone at anytime. That is exactly how Holland has acted in the year 2020. If he’s able to win next month, it would be his fifth win since May.

Holland has been knocking on the door of the top 15, but he hasn’t cracked the rankings just yet. He know will be jumping into the deep end of the pool when he takes on the UFC‘s fourth ranked contender in the middleweight division.

This is quite the gamble for Hermansson. Hermansson is coming off of a quick and dominant win against Kelvin Gastelum back on Fight Island. The Till fight was huge for Hermansson, but it’s obvious that the main thing Hermansson wanted to do is stay active.

It’s a very risky move to take on a hot fighter who’s not currently ranked. Hermansson really doesn’t gain a ton from winning the fight, however, he can lose a lot if Holland pulls off the upset. Should make for a very interesting contest.

UFC: Darren Till and Jack Hermansson to headline Fight Night

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UFC news is coming quick on this Friday afternoon. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto is reporting that the promotion is finalizing a middleweight contest between Darren Till (18-3-1) and Jack Hermansson (21-5) for a Fight Night on December 5th.

Darren Till took to Instagram to confirm the news that he would be headlining the December 5th UFC card against Hermansson.

Two top six UFC middleweights go to war

Darren Till is coming off of a razor close decision loss to Robert Whittaker back at UFC Fight Island 3. The fight was back and forth with Till tearing his MCL in the fight. Till came up just short against the former champion.

It was just the second fight for Till in the UFC‘s middleweight division after he had spent his career at welterweight. Till fought and defeated Kevlin Gastelum by split decision back at UFC 244 in his divisional debut.

Speaking of Kelvin Gastelum, he was just defeated by the man who will take on Till on December. Jack Hermansson just ran through Gastelum at UFC Fight Island 2. The Joker caught Gastelum in a heel hook less than 90 seconds into the fight.

In the last two years, Hermansson is 5-1 with his only loss coming to Jared Cannonier back at UFC Fight Night 160. Had Hermansson won that fight, he might have found himself next in line for a UFC title shot.

Instead, The Joker took on Gastelum on Fight Island. After making quick work of Gastelum, he turned his sites to Darren Till. Hermansson wanted this fight, and he’s getting this fight. The winner takes another step towards UFC gold. This should be a good one in December.

Three fights to make after UFC Vegas 5

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UFC, Dana White

Last night, the UFC returned home to Las Vegas with an event at the APEX. The main card didn’t disappoint and there were several story lines that came out of last night.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at three fights the UFC should move to make following UFC Vegas 5.

Derek Brunson vs Jack Hermansson

Derek Brunson (21-7) made a massive statement last night. Everyone (including myself) thought that Brunson was going to get run over like he did against Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker.

However, Brunson was composed and put on arguably the best performance of his career in stopping Edmen Shahbazyan. Now the question becomes, what’s next for Brunson.

In looking at the rankings, a match that makes a ton of sense is a fight with Jack Hermansson (21-5). The Joker is also coming off of a big win over Kelvin Gastelum at UFC Fight Island 2.

Hermansson has been vocal about wanting to fight Darren Till next, but with Till’s injury, I think Brunson makes a lot more sense. Plus the two men are both coming off big wins.

If the UFC were to pair these two up against each other, the winner could be next in line to fight for the title. Obviously the title is booked up for a while as Adesanya fights Costa and Whittaker fights Cannonier for the next shot, but a Brunson/Hermansson winner wouldn’t be far behind.

Valentina Shevchenko vs Jennifer Maia for the UFC Flyweight Championship

Despite the impressive performance last night from Derek Brunson, the star of UFC Vegas 5 for me was Jennifer Maia (18-6-1). Maia took on JoJo Calderwood who was supposed to fight Valentina Shevchenko (19-3) for the title.

Shevchenko got hurt so the UFC title fight with Calderwood was called off. Calderwood didn’t want to wait around so she decided to take a fight against top contender Jennifer Maia. This has proved to be a massive mistake.

Maia looked tremendous last night. She was winning the stand up battle and when Calderwood took her down, it didn’t take long for the BJJ blackbelt to throw up a slick arm bar. The champion tweeted out her thoughts after the fight.

Maia poses an interesting challenge given her skills, but she will be a massive underdog against Shevchenko. Shevchenko is head and shoulders ahead of anyone in her division. However, Maia proved last night that she’s a game opponent and she’ll be willing to bring the fight to the champ.

Edmen Shahbazyan vs Ian Heinisch

Last night we saw the Edmen Shahbazyan (11-1) hype train hit a wall. The Golden Boy was being touted as the next big thing. However, after he wasn’t able to finish Brunson early, it appeared that Shahbazyan still had miles to go in development.

The UFC is in an interesting spot trying to book Shahbazyan’s next fight. He definitely needs a top 15 opponent. In looking at the rankings, I think a fun matchup could be with Ian Heinisch (14-3).

Heinisch bounced back big time after back-to-back losses back in June with a first round TKO over Gerald Meerschaert. Heinisch is currently ranked as the thirteenth best middleweight in the UFC.

These two would make sense from a rankings perspective and it would be a really fun fight for fight fans. I think the style matchup would be a lot of fun. If the UFC would rather aim lower to build Shahbazyan back up, another option could be Antonio Carlos Junior.

I believe that Shahbazyan will work his way back up eventually. He’s still extremely young and has all the talent in the world. Last night was a humbling fight and a reminder of just how special young Jon Jones was.