Osbourne came to the UFC as a fascinating but flawed bantamweight.
“The Jamaican Sensation” was capable of some impressive finishes
but found them on the back of a low-percentage style that relied on
his considerable physical gifts to suddenly turn around tough
situations. After an inconsistent start to his UFC career, it
appears a November win over C.J. Vergara
was the start of Osbourne figuring some things out. While he had a
considerable reach advantage with which to work, it was nice to see
Osbourne put together three rounds of control and coast to a steady
decision win for the first time in his UFC career. After a
blistering knockout of Zarrukh
Adashev in June, Osbourne turns around to take on a tough
veteran in Nam. A well-regarded performer for over a decade, Nam
getting the UFC call in 2019 was a bit of a shock. The Hawaiian was
certainly worthy of the shot, but at 36 years old, it seemed like
the window for the opportunity had passed. Nam has made good on the
chance, racking up two wins and otherwise being a tough out behind
his typical style. It goes against the customary flyweight
approach, but Nam is a low-output, high-power counterstriker who is
prone to stretches of inactivity but can often pounce into action
for a knockout blow. The dynamic is clear. Osbourne should be able
to set a range and pick Nam apart, but the Hawaiian only needs one
opportunity to end his night in sudden fashion. This is a coinflip,
but the bet is that Osbourne is not quite at the point where he can
stay out of trouble for 15 minutes against someone as well-honed as
Nam. The pick is Nam via second-round knockout.
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