UFC 104 Preview: The Prelims

Razak Al-Hassan vs. Kyle Kingsbury

The Breakdown: No one really knows what these fighters are capable of doing inside the Octagon. Al-Hassan made a name for himself on the regional circuit by racking up submission wins but looked robotic on the feet in his UFC debut against Steve Cantwell. What’s worse, his only display of grappling consisted of him employing the go-ahead-I-dare-you-to-break-it armbar defense. Kingsbury at least showed some solid striking and takedown defense against Tom Lawlor, and he has not spent the last 10 months recovering from a broken arm.

The X-Factor: We keep hearing Al-Hassan described as a talented fighter who was tossed into the deep end of the pool way too early in his career, and that could be true. Prospects are an unpredictable lot, and Al-Hassan has the long frame and grappling background to give jiu-jitsu deficient light heavyweights pause. Whether he can find the holes in Kingsbury’s takedown defense remains the question that will likely decide his UFC future -- or lack thereof.

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The Bottom Line: While this fight seems far more manageable for Al-Hassan than the one preceding it, Kingsbury still has the style to beat him. That stiff-as-a-board, hands-way-out-in-front stance that Al-Hassan inexplicably uses is like holding up a sign that says, “Please, knock me out!” Kingsbury will eventually oblige that desire with a right cross late in the opening stanza.