UFC 110 Preview: The Prelims

C.B. Dollaway vs. Goran Reljic

The Breakdown: Career-threatening back problems put Reljic on the proverbial shelf for nearly two full years, but a medically miraculous recovery has him back in the Octagon to take on Dollaway. Once regarded as a surefire middleweight contender in the making, Dollaway has struggled some due to his porous submission defense.

Developing a proper awareness of submissions is a challenging task, and Dollaway hasn’t been up to it thus far. Not a good weakness to have considering Reljic’s sterling submission skills and superior striking, which will have Dollaway looking for takedowns early and often.

It’s a classic fightsport catch-22. Dollaway probably doesn’t have the striking to survive on the feet with Reljic, but his lacking submission defense puts him in danger on the mat too. Dollaway’s hopes may hinge on just how healthy Reljic’s back really is.

A serious back injury is perhaps the most difficult injury to come back from. It can rob athletes of their physical explosiveness, which is a big part of Reljic’s game. If the pure athleticism is gone, it’ll be interesting to see how Reljic adapts to being a different fighter from the one his fans have grown accustomed to seeing.

The Bottom Line: Modern sports medicine keeps serious back injuries from being the athletic death knell they once were, and in terms of pure skill, Reljic is the better fighter anyway. Watch for Dollaway’s habit of carrying his hands low to cost him as Reljic scores a spectacular high kick KO late in the second round.