Featherweights
Sodiq Yusuff (9-1) vs. Gabriel Benitez (21-6)Advertisement
African talents like Kamaru Usman, Francis Ngannou and Israel Adesanya have made their way into the UFC’s championship picture, and Yusuff looks to be the latest fighter set to join those ranks. In a little over a year since his Dana White’s Contender Series win over Mike Davis, “Super Sodiq” has proven himself as one of the sport’s brightest prospects at 145 pounds. Both the Davis win and a quick drubbing of Suman Mokhtarian in his UFC debut showed off Yusuff’s powerful boxing skills, but his March win over Sheymon Moraes served as the big moment when the rest of the division was put on notice. Put against a fellow talented prospect who could match him in terms of physicality and power, Yusuff started separating himself the more the fight went on, taking the decision after a strong third round. Yusuff is still a raw enough fighter that the higher reaches of the featherweight division are probably too much for him right now, but with the improvement that the Nigerian has shown from fight to fight, it seems like only a matter of time before he is crashing the elite at 145 pounds. For now, Yusuff gets a showcase slot on pay-per-view to show off his wares, and Benitez should provide a tough veteran opponent.
Mexico’s Benitez has joined the rest of “The Ultimate Fighter Latin America” Season 1 alums in terms of outperforming expectations, so it is nice to see the UFC finally put him in a prominent position in his own right. Benitez’s solid regional career and natural charisma made him a focus of the season, and while Yair Rodriguez wound up taking the featherweight crown, Benitez continued to have success with his meat-and-potatoes style. It has been a bit baffling that the UFC has not done more with him, as his most notable fights have come in spots where the promotion has obviously seen him as a B-side for an up-and-coming prospect. Even when Benitez came through in one of those spots and ended 2017 with a win over the then-highly touted Jason Knight, it was back to the undercard for “Moggly,” whose only bout in the ensuing year and a half came against Humberto Bandenay on the prelims. With a win here, Benitez should finally be able to establish himself as more than a gatekeeper, both to his bosses and to the UFC fanbase.
Benitez has a well-put-together game, but his weaknesses have always been exploited against stronger athletes, which does not bode well in this one. Yusuff’s lone loss came in a bit of a grind, so Benitez’s wrestling and submission skill might have some surprising success, but “Super Sodiq” looks like he might manage to win those battles through sheer physical strength. Beyond that, Benitez is mostly at his best when taking advantage of wilder fighters on the feet. Yusuff is skilled enough that he should be able to counter and bring heat in response to a lot of Benitez’s probing jabs. This bout is the right progression for Yusuff, but it also looks like the type of test he will pass with flying colors. The pick is Yusuff via second-round knockout.
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