Middleweights
Edmen Shahbazyan (11-3, 4-3 UFC) vs. Dalcha Lungiambula (11-5, 2-4 UFC)Shahbazyan still has plenty of potential and time to improve, but he could badly use a win. “The Golden Boy” likely got his shot on Dana White’s Contender Series thanks to his connections—he was managed by Ronda Rousey and essentially had not fought any actual professional competition to that point—but Shahbazyan took advantage of the opportunity and became one of the UFC’s hottest prospects. A decision win over Darren Stewart aside, Shahbazyan went on a run of sharp first-round knockouts, and after a quick finish of Brad Tavares to cap 2019, the call was made to test him out as a potential contender. Shahbazyan got his first main event against Derek Brunson and managed to put together another hot start, but Brunson survived, wore out Shahbazyan and made the Armenian-American fighter’s life an absolute hell. By the time the third round came, the eventual finish and Brunson victory seemed academic. Each of Shahbazyan’s fights in 2021 played out much the same way. He gassed badly after a hot start but survived to the final horn against Jack Hermansson, and a subsequent bout against Nassourdine Imavov resulted in another late loss. Still just 25 years old, Shahbazyan has taken the last year or so to retool and finally gets a long-overdue step back in competition against Lungiambula, who has had much the same issues. Born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lungiambula was a standout on the South African scene thanks to his athleticism and one-shot knockout power. However, it quickly became apparent that Lungiambula could not rely on his finishing ability at the UFC level, and “Champion” has struggled to adjust. Lungiambula at least has some judo skills to fall back on, but his explosive approach has led to some clear cardio issues. To his credit, Lungiambula has obviously done a better job of pacing himself in recent fights, but it is unclear to what end. It feels like he is now at a point of being both a bit too cautious while still defensively open for his opponents to attack. This could be a fight where Shahbazyan once again burns himself out and gets outwrestled late, but he should be able to take this given Lungiambula’s own struggles with keeping up a pace. Even if Lungiambula takes over the fight, he should leave plenty of opportunities for Shahbazyan to mount some offense or turn things around in a wrestling exchange. Shahbazyan could also just spark Lungiambula to start things off, but the bet is that the fight turns absolutely grimy and the Glendale Fighting Club rep gets an opportunity to work through his issues. The pick is Shahbazyan via decision.
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