The Film Room: Aleksandar Rakic
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Fast-rising light heavyweight prospect Aleksandar Rakic will put his 11-fight winning streak on the line in the most significant fight of his career, as he takes on Jimi Manuwa at UFC Fight Night 153 on Saturday at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm. In a division desperate for new blood, the once-beaten Austrian finds himself on the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s express train.
The latest installment of The Film Room puts Rakic under the
microscope.
To set up big punches, Rakic uses lots of feints and misdirection to get a read on the opponent’s reactions. He likes to pump out jabs and show the rear hand to get a reaction before he follows up with his wild hooks in the pocket. He can comfortably strike out of both stances but prefers orthodox and his right hand. Rakic will pump out the jab, wait for the opponent to throw one in return and then come forward with the right hand.
Standing 6-foot-5 and wielding a 78-inch reach, Rakic is usually the longer fighter and intelligently throws lots of leg kicks to take advantage of his length. He likes to open up the first round with leg kicks to slow down the opponent the later rounds and set up his wild exchanges in the pocket.
However, Rakic is not just a leading attacker and has shown he can fight from the outside and look for counters. Rakic comes from a kickboxing background in which he worked on the counter much more than he has in the UFC. He likes to catch kicks with his lead hand and then come forward with a combo, but he can also land one-shot precision counters. These counter combos add to his already aggressive style and allow him to work on the lead or the counter while still pushing the pace.
Like every young fighter, Rakic is far from perfect. Some holes in his defense have been exposed, like his tendency to drop his hands when kicking and his sloppy defensive footwork. He is not great at dealing with pressure and often takes long retreating strides while keeping his hands low, which leaves his head wide open. Manuwa is one of the best boxers in the division, and if Rakic comes forward sloppily, he will almost certainly pay for it.
Rakic is predominantly a striker, but he can take the fight to the ground if he feels he has the advantage. He dominated Justin Ledet him on the mat for all three rounds and even earned two 30-24 scorecards. Rakic was not able to finish him, but he landed 263 strikes to Ledet’s 28 and did most of his damage on the ground. Manuwa has terrific takedown defense, but it would be wise for Rakic to shoot for a few takedowns to keep the Brit off-balance.
Fast-rising light heavyweight prospect Aleksandar Rakic will put his 11-fight winning streak on the line in the most significant fight of his career, as he takes on Jimi Manuwa at UFC Fight Night 153 on Saturday at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm. In a division desperate for new blood, the once-beaten Austrian finds himself on the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s express train.
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The UFC’s return to Sweden offers a light heavyweight tournament of
sorts, with the top three fights featuring Rakic alongside five of
the Top 11 fighters in the division. It could result in a major
shakeup, and a convincing win for Rakic would perhaps create a new
contender for champion Jon Jones. A
number of the light heavyweights sport similar styles, as Rakic,
Anthony
Smith and Volkan
Oezdemir rely on their aggressiveness without being
particularly sound from a technical standpoint. Rakic stands out
among the three. While he constantly walks down his opponent, he is
not overly aggressive and is usually smart enough to come forward
with a quick combo before resetting at range. He does not throw
many filler strikes, and nearly every punch is thrown with the
intention of knocking out his opponent. Still, he takes a measured
approach, unlike the others.
To set up big punches, Rakic uses lots of feints and misdirection to get a read on the opponent’s reactions. He likes to pump out jabs and show the rear hand to get a reaction before he follows up with his wild hooks in the pocket. He can comfortably strike out of both stances but prefers orthodox and his right hand. Rakic will pump out the jab, wait for the opponent to throw one in return and then come forward with the right hand.
Standing 6-foot-5 and wielding a 78-inch reach, Rakic is usually the longer fighter and intelligently throws lots of leg kicks to take advantage of his length. He likes to open up the first round with leg kicks to slow down the opponent the later rounds and set up his wild exchanges in the pocket.
However, Rakic is not just a leading attacker and has shown he can fight from the outside and look for counters. Rakic comes from a kickboxing background in which he worked on the counter much more than he has in the UFC. He likes to catch kicks with his lead hand and then come forward with a combo, but he can also land one-shot precision counters. These counter combos add to his already aggressive style and allow him to work on the lead or the counter while still pushing the pace.
Like every young fighter, Rakic is far from perfect. Some holes in his defense have been exposed, like his tendency to drop his hands when kicking and his sloppy defensive footwork. He is not great at dealing with pressure and often takes long retreating strides while keeping his hands low, which leaves his head wide open. Manuwa is one of the best boxers in the division, and if Rakic comes forward sloppily, he will almost certainly pay for it.
Rakic is predominantly a striker, but he can take the fight to the ground if he feels he has the advantage. He dominated Justin Ledet him on the mat for all three rounds and even earned two 30-24 scorecards. Rakic was not able to finish him, but he landed 263 strikes to Ledet’s 28 and did most of his damage on the ground. Manuwa has terrific takedown defense, but it would be wise for Rakic to shoot for a few takedowns to keep the Brit off-balance.
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