Preview: UFC Fight Night ‘Gustafsson vs. Teixeira’

Welterweights

Abdul Razak Alhassan (7-0) vs. Omari Akhmedov (16-4)

THE MATCHUP: Alhassan made his UFC debut in impressive fashion, adding a game Charlie Ward to his list of first-round knockouts. A judoka, Alhassan displays the keen sense of distance and timing we have come to associate with practitioners of that grip-fighting martial art. Combined with his absurd athleticism and natural power, it makes Alhassan a devastating striker -- so devastating, in fact, that we have little evidence of the other phases of his game. One would assume Alhassan is a solid defender of takedowns and an able submission artist, but we simply do not know: He has never even seen the third minute of a fight.

Power alone makes him a challenging opponent for Akhmedov, who has been knocked out in two of his last three fights. Akhmedov’s experience, however, cannot be denied. In a 20-fight career, he has made the walk to the Octagon seven times and emerged victorious in four of those bouts. He is far and away the most experienced opponent Alhassan will have ever faced and well-rounded enough that he could very well drag the newcomer into deep waters if he makes it out of the first round. That Akhmedov himself has a tendency to gas likely will not matter as much as the fact that he knows what it feels like to get tired and keep fighting.

Though he lacks Alhassan’s explosiveness, Akhmedov is a powerhouse of a fighter with heavy hands, a strong clinch game and a vicious array of elbows and punches on the ground. As a judoka, Alhassan may very well have a potent, sprinting submission game, but only two men have ever submitted Akhmedov: veteran submission ace Michail Tsarev caught him in a guillotine in his second pro fight and elite grappler Gunnar Nelson did the same after knocking down the “Wolverine” with powerful strikes. Otherwise, Akhmedov has never looked out of depth on the ground, especially if he can gain top position.

THE ODDS: Alhassan (-265), Akhmedov (+225)

THE PICK: Akhmedov’s experience and well-roundedness could present challenges the likes of which Alhassan has never faced before. Even so, Alhassan is extremely aggressive and quite comfortable in exchanges, using his speed and timing to find openings in the midst of wild combinations. Akhmedov has a tendency of getting drawn into firefights, and while he is not unskilled in a wild tussle, he is slower, more mechanical and, of course, somewhat fragile. The pick is Alhassan by first-round TKO.

Next Fight » Taleb vs. Enkamp