UFC 48: Payback Preview
Matt Serra vs Ivan Menjivar
Jun 14, 2004
MATT SERRA (Photo Gallery):
American Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighter; Renzo Gracie black belt; 1999
Pan-American Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament Champion; 1999 World
Games Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Gold Medallist; eight-man Abu Dhabi
Qualifier Tournament Winner; 2001 Abu Dhabi Submission Fighting
event "best match" award recipient; 1st American black belt under
Renzo Gracie; trains boxing and cardio with Ray Longo and with
Ricardo Almeida, Sean Alvares, Nick Serra, Renzo Gracie and the
rest of Team Renzo; with a MMA record of 12-3, making his 7th
appearance in the UFC (3-3).
HISTORY: Matt was first attracted to martial arts by watching Bruce Lee as a child. He was something of a fighter in junior high and high school but it became clear how little he knew when shown a copy of the "Gracies in Action" tape. He began fighting MMA in the Vengeance at Vanderbilt events and has put together a 12-3 record in MMA. He has yet to realize his dream of winning a UFC title (lost a decision to B.J. Penn) and currently there is no title or champion in the lightweight division.
Serra/Shonie Carter: After a minor exchange, Serra brings Carter to
the mat and passes his guard. Carter gets to his feet but is
dropped back down and must fight from Serra's guard. Matt
figure-four locks his arm and begins to turn it but Shonie stays
with him and frees himself. They continue to roll and Serra takes
Carter's back, securing an arm with his leg. Matt rolls forward to
but again Carter gets out. On the feet Serra blasts Carter with a
head kick and drops to the mat for a leg lock. Matt goes to full
mount and then seizes Carter's back but cannot sink the choke. Back
on the feet Serra nearly attempts a flying armbar and then jumps to
guard, working for a triangle. To finish the round, Carter throws a
right leg kick and pops him with a spinning elbow. The second round
opens with an exchange on the feet and Carter bringing Serra to the
canvas. They fight out of Serra's guard but are quickly back to the
feet and trade in the clinch. Serra jumps to guard and works for a
leg lock but Carter escapes and they are up and down for the rest
of the round. Shonie tags Matt again just before the bell and
appears to have evened up the fight. A weary Matt Serra jumps to
guard to start the third round. Carter is able to stifle the
submission attempts and negate most of Serra's offense. With less
than three minutes left, Serra scores a double-leg takedown and
rides it until he has Carter's back. Shonie reverses and sits in
Serra's guard. They stand but Serra looks tired and Carter seems
relatively fresh. Shonie lands a high kick, stops a shoot and takes
Matt to the canvas. With under a minute left, Serra works for a
submission but he can't sink it. Serra's late activity seems like
it might steal the win but with just seconds left they stand again.
Carter hits Serra with the same low roundhouse-spinning back
forearm combo he hit him with in the first round but this time
Serra doesn't know where he is. Shonie wins by KO with nine ticks
on the clock.
Serra/Yves Edwards: Matt took a decision from Yves Edwards at UFC 33. The ground was Serra's strength but Matt took some shots from Yves. He stood and engaged Edwards and showed confidence in his striking even when faced with a superior striker. What earned him the win was his constant pursuit of a submission.
Serra/B.J. Penn: Round one could only be described as a feeling out process. No significant time was spent on the mat and no serious damage was done by either fighter. Serra, having been told he lost the first round by his corner, comes out more aggressive in the second. Penn throws a high kick and Serra counters with a right hand. They grapple and Serra brings Penn to the mat but they are quickly up on the feet. The two exchange strikes standing but it is more of a chess match. Penn takes Serra down with less than two minutes left but they stand again. Serra heats up and lands a good strike to the head in the closing minute. Looking fairly even going into the third, Penn is the aggressor early with kicks to the head and exhibits good takedown defense. Looking all the more confident, B.J. will not go down and meets Serra's shots with strikes. Serra continues to work for the takedown and almost has one by stopping a kick from Penn but B.J. remains standing. With a minute and a half left, Penn appears impossible to takedown and Serra looks determined but discouraged at the same time. Penn had the edge on the cards and took the unanimous decision victory.
Serra/Din Thomas: Fireworks early from both fighters led to a clinch and battle for the takedown. They trade foot stomps and knees in the side of the cage and return to center. Matt works for the takedown seems to be having trouble with Din's significant height and reach advantage. With a little over a minute left in the first, Thomas begins to tee off and score to Serra's head with strikes but doesn't press him. Serra continued to shoot for the takedown but never gets it. In round two, it was all Thomas. He was even dropping his hands for much of the round. Din continued to get more confident, scoring punches to the head and avoiding the takedown. Renzo Gracie gives Serra and earful in the corner prior to round three. Serra comes out aggressive but just cannot get Thomas to the mat. In the final 30 seconds Serra jumps to guard from the clinch but cannot reel him in. With just five seconds left, Matt gets his takedown and lands inside Din's guard. To Thomas' surprise, Serra is named the winner. However, Dana White has the unenviable duty of informing Serra the tally of the score cards was incorrect and Thomas actually won the fight.
Serra/Jeff Curran: Serra was the aggressor here and his weight advantage over the smaller Curran played a major role. Matt was able to set the pace and keep Curran on the defensive. Jeff played solid defense from the bottom and kept Matt at bay. The second round was more of the same with Serra executing a body lock and dominating position from side control and mount. The pace slowed in the third round but Curran's striking was more of a factor and Jeff had a guillotine choke in his sights. Serra took the win via a unanimous decision victory.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES: Matt is good on the floor with multiple submission wins but he's not afraid to stand and strike. He showed good striking abilities in the bout with Yves Edwards. Matt's main weakness seems to be a mental one. He gets frustrated when his techniques are countered and he compromises his game. Stamina all seems to be a factor in past bouts as Serra's explosion often fades in the second and third rounds.
HOW HE CAN BEAT MENJIVAR: On the ground. Matt will need to have solid takedowns and commit to bringing his opponent to the canvas. He showed he could do that with Curran, Dulanty and some others. If Matt can control the pace, keep Ivan responding to his actions, and eventually catch him in a mistake on the mat.
IVAN MENJIVAR (Photo Gallery): El Salvadorian-born Canadian submission fighter; Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner; boxer; wrestler; Muay Thai stylist; UGC Super Lightweight Champion; Universal Combat Challenge/TKO veteran Maximum Fighting Championships veteran; World Freestyle Fighting Championships veteran; HOOK'n'SHOOT/AFC veteran; Ultimate Generation Combat veteran; trains with Georges St. Pierre, Angelo Exhakos, Firass Zahabi Victor Silberman and the rest of the fighters at the Tri-Star Gym and is managed by Scott Scrosati and Nathan Short under Aristeia Management; with a 13-2-0-1 record in MMA making his 1st appearance (0-0) in the UFC.
HISTORY: Canadian resident Ivan Menjivar played soccer as a boy in El Salvador. He started martial arts at the age of 16 when he took up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and began fighting MMA at 19 in the Universal Combat Challenge. He expanded his training to include boxing and wrestling. Menjivar competed in the UCC's regular show and also smaller show (like PRIDE: Bushido) called UCC: Proving Ground. Ivan has a 9-1-1 (1 NC) record overall in the UCC. He took part in other Canadian promotions including the Maximum Fighting Championships, Ultimate Generation Combat and a World Freestyle Fighting Championships event held there, Ivan's only previous trip to the U.S. resulted in rare loss. He fought Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro in the HOOK'n'SHOOT Absolute Fighting Championships and lost by decision. In recent action, Ivan beat Mike French by armbar at the UGC 6 show in December.
Menjivar/Georges St. Pierre: Discussed under the Georges St. Pierre bio.
Menjivar/Jason Black: This was Ivan's only submission loss. Miletich Fighting Systems' Jason Black was able to overpower the smaller fighter and wound up submitting him via front choke at UCC 8.
Menjivar/Jeff Curran: A hard fought three-round battle took place at UCC 10. A rematch was scheduled for UCC 12 (featured Ludwig/Pulver, Loiseau/Fryklund and Black/Alessio) but it never took place and neither fighter was on that card.
Menjivar/Jay R. Palmer: This bout didn't last long as Menjivar performed a stunning German suplex to slam the SuperBrawl veteran to the mat and render him helpless just one minute into the fight.
Menjivar/Vitor Ribeiro: This was another last-minute bout for Menjivar and he came to bang. The bout went the distance and "Shaolin" took the win at the HOOK'n'SHOOT AFC 4 show in July of 2003.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES: Ivan's ground skills are very sharp, with wins by armbar, kneebar and rear-choke, but his forte is to stand and bang. He likes to finish people with strikes and doesn't often go the distance (only twice in 16 bouts). A weakness isn't easy to determine. He simply got caught by Jason Black and he went the distance with Ribeiro in a bout on short notice. He's also been in there with big names so there likely will be no butterflies when facing Serra in the UFC.
HOW HE CAN BEAT SERRA: Standing. Serra can strike but he relies on his ground game and jiu-jitsu is an intricate part of all of his wins. If Menjivar thwarts his pressure to go to the ground and forces Serra to stand, he'll leave himself open to be finished on the feet.
MY PICK: Menjivar. This bout was originally supposed to take place at UFC 46. Now Ivan finally gets his debut and he'll make the most of it. His pre-fight attitude seems to be laid back and he's ready to fight. Having gone the distance in four out of five, Serra will likely want to try and finish this one early. That could be exactly what Menjivar needs to play his own game. I feel it will be Menjivar by TKO from strikes in the 2nd Rd.
DOWN THE ROAD:
Serra/Marcus Aurelio: Zuffa would be lucky to score "Maximus" before K-1 MMA or Pride can sign him. If they ever actually bother to put another title in this division (as of now, Yves Edwards-Josh Thomson is non-title folks), he would surely wear the belt. And it would take someone like Genki Sudo to take it away from him.
Serra/Rich Clementi: "No Love" is 5-2-1 since losing to Edwards. He made it to the final of the ZST Grand Prix (fighting three times in one night) and certainly deserves another look.
Menjivar/Yves Edwards: If Yves gets past Thomson, this would make a great stand-up war.
Menjivar/Rich Crunkilton: "Cleat" is supposed to be healthy after a year away from fighting and everyone remembers his performance against Hermes Franca. Time for a second shot in the cage.
HISTORY: Matt was first attracted to martial arts by watching Bruce Lee as a child. He was something of a fighter in junior high and high school but it became clear how little he knew when shown a copy of the "Gracies in Action" tape. He began fighting MMA in the Vengeance at Vanderbilt events and has put together a 12-3 record in MMA. He has yet to realize his dream of winning a UFC title (lost a decision to B.J. Penn) and currently there is no title or champion in the lightweight division.
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Serra/Yves Edwards: Matt took a decision from Yves Edwards at UFC 33. The ground was Serra's strength but Matt took some shots from Yves. He stood and engaged Edwards and showed confidence in his striking even when faced with a superior striker. What earned him the win was his constant pursuit of a submission.
Serra/Kelly Dullanty: At UFC 36: World's Collide, Matt tangled with
Frank Shamrock student Kelly "Psycho" Dullanty. Matt was able to
showcase his BJJ skills in one of the most exciting bouts of the
night. Serra's transitions were ultra impressive. Although Dullanty
was a very game opponent and escaped some serious trouble, he
couldn't overcome the constant pressure applied by Serra and fell
victim to a triangle choke.
Serra/B.J. Penn: Round one could only be described as a feeling out process. No significant time was spent on the mat and no serious damage was done by either fighter. Serra, having been told he lost the first round by his corner, comes out more aggressive in the second. Penn throws a high kick and Serra counters with a right hand. They grapple and Serra brings Penn to the mat but they are quickly up on the feet. The two exchange strikes standing but it is more of a chess match. Penn takes Serra down with less than two minutes left but they stand again. Serra heats up and lands a good strike to the head in the closing minute. Looking fairly even going into the third, Penn is the aggressor early with kicks to the head and exhibits good takedown defense. Looking all the more confident, B.J. will not go down and meets Serra's shots with strikes. Serra continues to work for the takedown and almost has one by stopping a kick from Penn but B.J. remains standing. With a minute and a half left, Penn appears impossible to takedown and Serra looks determined but discouraged at the same time. Penn had the edge on the cards and took the unanimous decision victory.
Serra/Din Thomas: Fireworks early from both fighters led to a clinch and battle for the takedown. They trade foot stomps and knees in the side of the cage and return to center. Matt works for the takedown seems to be having trouble with Din's significant height and reach advantage. With a little over a minute left in the first, Thomas begins to tee off and score to Serra's head with strikes but doesn't press him. Serra continued to shoot for the takedown but never gets it. In round two, it was all Thomas. He was even dropping his hands for much of the round. Din continued to get more confident, scoring punches to the head and avoiding the takedown. Renzo Gracie gives Serra and earful in the corner prior to round three. Serra comes out aggressive but just cannot get Thomas to the mat. In the final 30 seconds Serra jumps to guard from the clinch but cannot reel him in. With just five seconds left, Matt gets his takedown and lands inside Din's guard. To Thomas' surprise, Serra is named the winner. However, Dana White has the unenviable duty of informing Serra the tally of the score cards was incorrect and Thomas actually won the fight.
Serra/Jeff Curran: Serra was the aggressor here and his weight advantage over the smaller Curran played a major role. Matt was able to set the pace and keep Curran on the defensive. Jeff played solid defense from the bottom and kept Matt at bay. The second round was more of the same with Serra executing a body lock and dominating position from side control and mount. The pace slowed in the third round but Curran's striking was more of a factor and Jeff had a guillotine choke in his sights. Serra took the win via a unanimous decision victory.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES: Matt is good on the floor with multiple submission wins but he's not afraid to stand and strike. He showed good striking abilities in the bout with Yves Edwards. Matt's main weakness seems to be a mental one. He gets frustrated when his techniques are countered and he compromises his game. Stamina all seems to be a factor in past bouts as Serra's explosion often fades in the second and third rounds.
HOW HE CAN BEAT MENJIVAR: On the ground. Matt will need to have solid takedowns and commit to bringing his opponent to the canvas. He showed he could do that with Curran, Dulanty and some others. If Matt can control the pace, keep Ivan responding to his actions, and eventually catch him in a mistake on the mat.
IVAN MENJIVAR (Photo Gallery): El Salvadorian-born Canadian submission fighter; Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner; boxer; wrestler; Muay Thai stylist; UGC Super Lightweight Champion; Universal Combat Challenge/TKO veteran Maximum Fighting Championships veteran; World Freestyle Fighting Championships veteran; HOOK'n'SHOOT/AFC veteran; Ultimate Generation Combat veteran; trains with Georges St. Pierre, Angelo Exhakos, Firass Zahabi Victor Silberman and the rest of the fighters at the Tri-Star Gym and is managed by Scott Scrosati and Nathan Short under Aristeia Management; with a 13-2-0-1 record in MMA making his 1st appearance (0-0) in the UFC.
HISTORY: Canadian resident Ivan Menjivar played soccer as a boy in El Salvador. He started martial arts at the age of 16 when he took up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and began fighting MMA at 19 in the Universal Combat Challenge. He expanded his training to include boxing and wrestling. Menjivar competed in the UCC's regular show and also smaller show (like PRIDE: Bushido) called UCC: Proving Ground. Ivan has a 9-1-1 (1 NC) record overall in the UCC. He took part in other Canadian promotions including the Maximum Fighting Championships, Ultimate Generation Combat and a World Freestyle Fighting Championships event held there, Ivan's only previous trip to the U.S. resulted in rare loss. He fought Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro in the HOOK'n'SHOOT Absolute Fighting Championships and lost by decision. In recent action, Ivan beat Mike French by armbar at the UGC 6 show in December.
Menjivar/Georges St. Pierre: Discussed under the Georges St. Pierre bio.
Menjivar/Jason Black: This was Ivan's only submission loss. Miletich Fighting Systems' Jason Black was able to overpower the smaller fighter and wound up submitting him via front choke at UCC 8.
Menjivar/Jeff Curran: A hard fought three-round battle took place at UCC 10. A rematch was scheduled for UCC 12 (featured Ludwig/Pulver, Loiseau/Fryklund and Black/Alessio) but it never took place and neither fighter was on that card.
Menjivar/Jay R. Palmer: This bout didn't last long as Menjivar performed a stunning German suplex to slam the SuperBrawl veteran to the mat and render him helpless just one minute into the fight.
Menjivar/Vitor Ribeiro: This was another last-minute bout for Menjivar and he came to bang. The bout went the distance and "Shaolin" took the win at the HOOK'n'SHOOT AFC 4 show in July of 2003.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES: Ivan's ground skills are very sharp, with wins by armbar, kneebar and rear-choke, but his forte is to stand and bang. He likes to finish people with strikes and doesn't often go the distance (only twice in 16 bouts). A weakness isn't easy to determine. He simply got caught by Jason Black and he went the distance with Ribeiro in a bout on short notice. He's also been in there with big names so there likely will be no butterflies when facing Serra in the UFC.
HOW HE CAN BEAT SERRA: Standing. Serra can strike but he relies on his ground game and jiu-jitsu is an intricate part of all of his wins. If Menjivar thwarts his pressure to go to the ground and forces Serra to stand, he'll leave himself open to be finished on the feet.
MY PICK: Menjivar. This bout was originally supposed to take place at UFC 46. Now Ivan finally gets his debut and he'll make the most of it. His pre-fight attitude seems to be laid back and he's ready to fight. Having gone the distance in four out of five, Serra will likely want to try and finish this one early. That could be exactly what Menjivar needs to play his own game. I feel it will be Menjivar by TKO from strikes in the 2nd Rd.
DOWN THE ROAD:
Serra/Marcus Aurelio: Zuffa would be lucky to score "Maximus" before K-1 MMA or Pride can sign him. If they ever actually bother to put another title in this division (as of now, Yves Edwards-Josh Thomson is non-title folks), he would surely wear the belt. And it would take someone like Genki Sudo to take it away from him.
Serra/Rich Clementi: "No Love" is 5-2-1 since losing to Edwards. He made it to the final of the ZST Grand Prix (fighting three times in one night) and certainly deserves another look.
Menjivar/Yves Edwards: If Yves gets past Thomson, this would make a great stand-up war.
Menjivar/Rich Crunkilton: "Cleat" is supposed to be healthy after a year away from fighting and everyone remembers his performance against Hermes Franca. Time for a second shot in the cage.
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