K.J. Noons (right) file photo: Dave Mandel | Sherdog.com
Undoubtedly the leading candidate for “Grisliest Fight of the Night” is the lightweight tilt between Noons and Gurgel. We’re seriously talking about Paul Verhoeven levels of viscera just about any time Gurgel enters the cage. Against a surgeon like Noons … well, let’s just say Showtime’s pre-show warning of “Blood and Violence” has never been so appropriate.
There are three things you need to know about Gurgel. First is that he’s an excellent grappler. The other two are that he doesn’t know what a game plan is and fights a division above his best weight. It’s hard to even remember the last time Gurgel made a concentrated effort to consistently rely on his Brazilian jiu-jitsu in a fight, as he mostly goes out of his way to get into slugfests.
The tragedy is that Gurgel has just enough chin and skill to survive the trench wars he gets himself into. Going down that road against Noons is a guaranteed loss for him, though. Known best for his brutal razor tagging of Nick Diaz, Noons is one of the smoothest strikers in the game -- at least when he’s in shape.
It was obvious in his fight with Conor Heun that Noons didn’t have the greatest training camp ever based on his conspicuous semi-spare tire. Even with an extra bit of pudge, Noons clearly won the fight and left Heun significantly worse for wear. Basically, if Noons shows up in shape, he’ll tag Gurgel all night. If he’s not in shape, he’ll still win albeit with a bit more trouble than expected.
The wildcard is Gurgel deciding to go for a takedown, but he rarely does and he’s never been much of a wrestler anyway. Noons isn’t a free double leg, and Gurgel’s notoriously patchwork knees raise serious questions about just how capable he is of working the ground game he was once known for.
This just isn’t a good fight for Gurgel based not only on his skills but also his almost suicidal need to prove something on the feet. Fighting to your own detriment in MMA is inexcusable at this point, and Noons will hammer that point home.