Chidi Njokuani certainly seems to be peaking at a most opportune time.
As Njokuani makes final preparations for his looming confrontation with Rodrigues at 185 pounds, here are five things you might not know about him:
1. Experience was bought the hard way.
Njokuani made his professional mixed martial arts debut on Nov. 3, 2007, when, at the age of 18, he brought down George Cortez with punches 90 seconds into their pairing at Fight Time Productions “Global Showdown” in Thackerville, Oklahoma. He went on to win both of the fights he took as a teenager.
2. He put all available safeguards in place.
A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and self-professed muay thai stylist, Njokuani has trained under Saeksan Janjira, Nick Blomgren and Sergio Penha. He has delivered 14 of his 22 career victories by knockout or technical knockout, and he has suffered just one submission defeat—John Salter was the perpetrator—in the last nine-plus years.
3. Scales have not been kind to him.
Njokuani has missed weight no fewer than seven times in his 30 appearances as a pro. One such failure cost him the Resurrection Fighting Alliance welterweight crown when he laid claim to a five-round unanimous decision over Gilbert Smith in the RFA 22 main event in January 2015.
4. He made sure not to leave the regional scene empty-handed.
The Janjira Muay Thai and One Kick’s Gym product was one of six men to hold the Tachi Palace Fights welterweight championship. David Mitchell, John Alessio, Nate Loughran, Ricky Legere Jr. and Max Griffin were the others. Njokuani captured the title with a split decision over Griffin at TPF 23 on May 7, 2015, then relinquished it in order to sign with Bellator MMA.
5. Quick-strike arrows line his quiver.
Njokuani has five sub-minute finishes on his resume, including one such stoppage in the UFC. He buried former two-division TKO Major League MMA champion Marc-Andre Barriault with punches just 16 seconds into his sensational promotional debut at UFC Fight Night 200 in February.