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The UFC returns to Japan’s famed Saitama Super Arena on Friday for UFC Fight Night 117. In the headlining bout, Ovince Saint Preux faces former middleweight title challenger Yushin Okami in a light heavyweight contest. Okami steps in on short notice to replace the injured Mauricio Rua. The fight marks Okami’s first UFC bout in more than four years.
In the co-main event, two of the best the women’s strawweight division has to offer, Claudia Gadelha and Jessica Andrade, meet in a bout that’s likely to end with the victor asking for another shot at the title.
Outside of the top two fights, this card is lacking in big-name talent, That’s not necessarily a bad thing. In a situation like this, lesser-known fighters have the opportunity to kick open the door and ingratiate themselves with fight fans through memorable performances.
UFC Fight Night 117 takes place at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, near Tokyo. The card airs on FXX following a single early prelim on UFC Fight Pass.
Here are 10 reasons to watch the event.
1. He’s gotta have it
Saint Preux is better than his record suggests. Sure, he’s lost five of his 13 fights, but those defeats have come at the hands of some of the best fighters in the light heavyweight division. That’s the book on Saint Preux: He’s always competitive, but not quite good enough to break into the top five. At 34, his window to make that jump is beginning to close.
With a submission win in his most recent outing, Saint Preux (20-10 MMA, 8-5), No. 10 in the most recent USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA light heavyweight rankings, has some momentum coming into this fight. A win over Okami (34-10 MMA, 13-5 UFC), who has never competed above middleweight and whose five most recent fights took place at welterweight, won’t boost Saint Preux in the rankings, but it will help build his confidence. That might be what Saint Preux needs more than anything at this point in his career.
With the circumstances of this fight being what they are, this is a 100 percent must-win fight for Saint Preux.
2. Lookin’ for a title fight
Gadelha has two losses on her record. Both of those defeats came to current strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk, the most recent being a July 2016 “Fight of the Night” bonus-winning decision loss. Since then, Gadelha, currently ranked No. 2 in the division, has two victories – her most recent win being a June submission victory over former title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
Gadelha (15-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) faces another former title challenger in Japan, No. 3-ranked Jessica Andrade (16-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC), who enters this fight with a loss to Jedrzejczyk in her most recent outing.
With Jedrzejczyk booked to face No. 6-ranked Rose Namajunas in November, this fight could very well determine the next title challenger. That is something of which Gadelha is certainly aware.
“I think that, getting past Jessica, I won’t have anything else to prove to anyone,” Gadelha told MMAjunkie. “I had two close fights with Joanna. If I don’t deserve that title shot, I don’t think anyone else does.”
3. Swan song?
When a UFC fighter loses three straight, there’s a better than average chance he or she won’t get the opportunity to fight again for the promotion. That’s especially true if that fighter competes in a stacked division like lightweight. Sometimes there are exceptions to that rule. MMA legend Takanori Gomi happens to be one of those exceptions. Gomi (35-13 MMA, 4-8 UFC) looks to end a four-fight skid against ”Maestro” Dong Hyun Kim (14-8-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC), who enters this fight with a decision victory in his most recent contest.
Gomi’s last win came in 2014, when he earned a decision win over Isaac Vallie-Flagg. Gomi followed that fight with four straight first-round stoppage defeats.
With one no contest on his record, Gomi is fighting in his 50th pro bout. With this contest taking place in Gomi’s home country of Japan, it wouldn’t be a surprise if this fight is the last of his storied career.
4. A former kickboxing champ debuts
The UFC raised some eyebrows earlier this year when it announced the signing of former GLORY kickboxing light heavyweight champion Gokhan Saki. “The Rebel” has one MMA fight on his record, a 2004 TKO loss. His kickboxing record is an impressive 83-16, with 59 knockout wins.
Saki, known as the “Turkish Tyson,” has a fast and powerful striking game that should give him an advantage on the feet against most of the fighters in the somewhat shallow light heavyweight division. What we don’t know is anything about Saki’s takedown defense or ground game. A secondary worry about Saki is ring rust. He hasn’t fought since April 2015.
Luckily for Saki (0-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC), he faces Henrique da Silva (12-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC), who has attempted a total of three takedowns in his five UFC fights. In other words, he prefers to compete on the feet.
Saki is a much more technical striker than the brawling da Silva. All in all, this is a fight Saki should win.
5. Shore up some weaknesses
MMA fans and media sometimes get caught up in the excitement of the moment. So, when Teruto Ishihara scored two memorable knockout victories in 2016 and showed off his “colorful” personality whenever a camera and microphone were focused on him, many saw Ishihara as a featherweight star in the making. After losing his past two fights by wide margins, Ishihara has some ground to make up.
Ishihara was exposed a bit in those two losses. Artem Lobov, in his upset win over Ishihara, showed that when pressured, Ishihara’s striking game can be neutralized. Gray Maynard then revealed Ishihara’s non-existent takedown defense when he went 11-for-11 in takedowns in his decision victory over Ishihara.
Ishihara has a good camp around him, and there’s no doubt they’ve worked on these weaknesses. Now it’s Ishihara’s (9-4-2 MMA, 2-2-1 UFC) time to show he’s not a one-trick fighter. Ishihara faces Rolando Dy (8-5-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in Japan. Dy’s most recent fight ended in a doctor-stoppage loss.
6. Looking for a win outside of Boston
Charles Rosa was a perfect 9-0 when he joined UFC in 2014. Three years into his run with the promotion, Rosa’s record is now 11-3. Two of Rosa’s losses came outside America and all have taken place outside of his native Boston. However, Rosa hasn’t exactly disappointed in his three defeats. He earned “Fight of the Night” bonuses in each of those setbacks.
Rosa is an aggressive, fast-paced fighter, with an excellent ground game. He also can also fight at distance, where he is effective in mixing up his kicks. What really stands out about Rosa is his tenacity and toughness, two intangibles which make him a rough out for anyone in the featherweight division.
Rosa (11-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) attempts to earn his first win and first performance bonus outside America when he meets Mizuto Hirota (18-8-2 MMA, 1-3-1 UFC), who badly missed weight.
7. Time to dust off that black belt
Former Legacy FC welterweight champion Alex Morono saw his seven-fight unbeaten streak come to an end in February when he was knocked out by Niko Price. Morono (13-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC) looks to get back on the winning track against Keita Nakamura (32-8-2 MMA, 2-5 UFC), who also enters this fight following a loss. Nakamura dropped a decision to Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in October.
Morono is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, but we haven’t seen much of his grappling game during his UFC tenure. Instead, Morono tends to use his somewhat reckless striking to earn his victories. That could change against Nakamura. Nakamura struggles on his feet, but he’s very effective at taking the back and locking on a rear naked choke. Nakamura has 15 career wins via rear-naked choke; included in that number are each of his last four victories.
8. Staying alive
Jussier Formiga has been slugging it out in the UFC since the earliest days of the flyweight division. Five years into his run with the promotion, Formiga has been unable to get a shot at the title. He’s been close – each of the four fighters who have beaten him have moved directly into a title fight – but he’s been unable to get over that hump. Now ranked No. 7 in the division, Formiga is at risk of being tagged with the dreaded gatekeeper status.
Formiga is excellent on the ground. In fact, he’s never lost a UFC fight where he’s scored a takedown. On the flipside, he has zero takedowns in his four UFC defeats. The good thing for Formiga (19-5 MMA, 5-4 UFC) is his opponent, the unranked Ulka Sasaki (20-4-2 MMA, 3-3 UFC), has weak takedown defense. The bad thing is Sasaki has a decided height and reach advantage over Formiga, which could make getting the fight to the mat difficult.
9. A ‘Queen’ joins the UFC
Don’t expect UFC newcomer Syuri Kondo to be awed by the octagon. Kondo has plenty of combat sports experience. She began her career as a pro wrestler in 2008. In 2009 Kondo added kickboxing to her resume. She made her MMA debut in 2016.
Now 5-0 in MMA, Kondo won the Queen of Pancrase strawweight title in her most recent bout. In that fight, Kondo earned a five-round unanimous decision win over Kinberly Tanaka Novaes. Kondo was excellent in the clinch against Novaes, landing numerous knees to the head, body and legs of Novaes.
Kondo (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) meets Chanmi Jeon in Japan. Jeon’s most recent fight was a one-sided unanimous-decision loss to J.J. Aldrich in June. Jeon (5-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) took the fight on short notice and came in two pounds overweight. It’s going to be interesting to see what Jeon brings to the octagon with a full camp. She was very active on her feet against Aldrich, attempting 252 total strikes.
10. Oh, and there’s a ‘King’ as well
If you’re looking for a sleeper pick for “Fight of the Night,” the welterweight matchup between Hyun Gyu Lim and Daichi Abe is your fight. Despite a 1-3 record dating back to 2014, Lim, a huge 170-pounder, is always game for a brawl. Abe is a smaller fighter with less experience, but he’s no neophyte. In his most recent bout, Abe knocked out former WEC welterweight title contender Hiromitsu Miura. The win, Abe’s fourth knockout victory, earned him the King of Pancrase welterweight title.
Abe (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) is a powerful, aggressive striker with fast hands. When he does hurt his opponent, he has excellent finishing instincts. Abe’s kickboxing background will come in handy against Lim (13-6-1 MMA, 3-3 UFC), who has a five-inch reach advantage over the UFC newcomer. Lim is on a two-fight losing streak.
On paper, this looks like an excellent opening fight, one that could very well end early and violently.
For more on UFC Fight Night 117, visit the UFC Rumors section of the site.
Filed under: Featured, News, UFC