UFC 172 ‘Jones vs. Teixeira’ Preview

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Featherweights

Max Holloway (8-3, 4-3 UFC) vs. Andre Fili (13-1, 1-0 UFC)

The Matchup: In addition to owning a giggle-inducing nickname, “Touchy” Fili is a pretty solid prospect out of the Team Alpha Male camp. He performed as such in his Octagon debut, taking out fringe-UFC talent Jeremy Larsen via second-round TKO on short notice in October.

This is where it gets considerably tougher. Holloway, while not the owner of a spectacular won-lost record in the promotion, is just 22 years old and has already been in the cage with the likes of Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor, Dennis Bermudez and Leonard Garcia. He is a skilled offensive fighter capable of picking apart his opponent with precision boxing, as well as a variety of other strikes such as spinning kicks, elbows and flying knees. That skill is backed by competent takedown defense, although McGregor and Bermudez were able to gradually take control against Holloway through their wrestling.

Based on where he trains, one can expect that Fili gets plenty of wrestling work, but it is his standup that has gotten him to this point. Fili is aggressive on the feet, throws punches in combination and makes decent use of angles. While Holloway is diverse, he lacks the real knockout power to deter Fili’s forward movement.

Both fighters are tall featherweights at 5-foot-11, but Fili will have a 3.5-inch reach edge. His tendency to wade forward with his hands low could haunt him against Holloway, who is skilled at switching up his attacks between the head and body. If Fili does not shore up his defense, Holloway’s arsenal will have a cumulative effect even if he is unable to achieve a stoppage. However, if Fili can get Holloway down, he is quite active with his ground-and-pound and transitions well into submission attempts.

The Pick: It is hard to gauge Fili’s ceiling based on his debut. Holloway, already plenty battle-tested himself, figures to provide a better measuring stick. Fili wins by decision.

Last Fights » The Prelims