UFC 93 Breakdown: The Undercard

Martin Kampmann vs. Alexandre Barros

Martin “The Hitman” Kampmann Scouting Report
Ht/Wt: 6’0/170 lbs.
Age: 26
Hometown: Aarhus, Denmark
Fighting out of: Las Vegas
Record: 13-2

The stakes: After an impressive middleweight run that ended with a whimper, Kampmann makes his long-awaited debut as a welterweight at a time when the division is searching for fresh faces amidst the usual suspects.

If Kampmann can bring the same versatile dynamism that defined his days as a middleweight, the UFC may have found its latest welterweight phenom. All the same, Kampmann may suddenly be short on options if his decision to drop weight like a teen idol backfires.

The breakdown: Kampmann is reminiscent of vintage Hayato Sakurai in that he’ll rely on his precision striking to pick apart opponents unless they force him to do otherwise. Considering Barros fancies himself a striker, Kampmann will get a chance to ply his wares against an old-school vale tudo veteran.

While being bred during the bare-knuckle days of yore is worth infinite street cred in some circles, Barros’ striking is hardly on par with Kampmann’s and his grappling falls far short of making up the difference. In other words, don’t be surprised if this turns into a showcase for Kampmann.

Alexandre “Baixinho” Barros Scouting Report
Ht/Wt: 5’9/170 lbs.
Age: 32
Hometown: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Fighting out of: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Record: 13-5

The stakes: Besides looking disturbingly similar to a deflated Mark Kerr, Barros is as O.G. as it gets given his time in the infamous IVC promotion that gave birth to vale tudo legends such as Wanderlei Silva and Jose “Pele” Landi-Jons.

Although Barros never got that sort of rarified status, he has transitioned nicely to the modern, regulated world of MMA and it shows in a record that has gone untouched in nearly five years. Whether that is thanks to Barros’ ability or the unheralded competition of the regional Brazilian MMA scene is a question that Barros will have to answer one way or another.

The breakdown: Let’s ditch the formalities and deal with reality: Barros doesn’t have much of a chance here. Besides being woefully unprepared to take on legitimate UFC-level competition, Barros has stumbled every time he’s ever stepped out of Brazil.

Unless this is all part of a masterful ruse by Barros to lull Kampmann into a false sense of security, odds are he’ll be getting his synapses scrambled in short order.


* * *

The bottom line: In case you haven’t surmised it by now, I think I’ll be picking Kampmann to win this fight pretty easily. The long and short of it is that Barros’ sloppy striking and mediocre grappling are nowhere near enough to make it in the UFC -- a lesson that he’ll learn via knockout.

Afterward, expect Kampmann to go after John Hathaway for stealing his nickname. Things will get real ugly, though, when Thomas Hearns and Bret Hart join the fray and we end up with a freestyle tag team match headlining UFC 100. Please believe.