WEC Torres vs. Mizugaki Preview

Manny Tapia vs. Akitoshi Tamura

The Breakdown: This is going to come down to who survives the close quarters combat, as Manny Tapia loves to dig in body shots while Tamura favors the Thai clinch. The difference is Tapia’s lacking defense and Tamura’s overall technical acumen. Tapia may look great against your standard-issue brawler, but Tamura’s shoddy record belies a wealth of fistic knowledge.

The X Factor: The other clash to look out for is how Tapia works his ground-and-pound against Tamura’s surprisingly fluid guard game. If Tapia starts getting the worst of the striking, he will transition to ground-and-pound in a hurry. Whether that sounds Tapia’s death knell or signals his comeback will play heavily into Tapia’s fighting fate.

The Bottom Line: After a disappointing debut in the WEC, Tamura has been written off by many as just another failed Shooto acquisition. However, Tapia is the perfect canvas for him to display his vastly underrated skills. After some memorable disasters, a Shooto convert finally comes up big as Tamura wins a one-sided decision.