Light Heavyweights
Luke Rockhold (16-4) vs. Jan Blachowicz (23-8)Advertisement
Middleweights never die; they just become light heavyweights. Rockhold’s 2015 middleweight title win over Chris Weidman looked like the start of a dominant reign for the California native. His only loss of any note was at the hands of an enhanced Vitor Belfort, and his combination of powerful strikes and a smothering grappling game figured to dominate any opponent. Naturally, things went awry soon after, as Michael Bisping -- a man Rockhold had dominated just a year and a half earlier -- authored one of the most memorable upsets in UFC history, starching him in the first round of their rematch to gum up the middleweight title picture. Since then, Rockhold’s questionable chin has begun to define his career. After a year-plus layoff, Rockhold returned against David Branch in a bout that laid his strengths and weaknesses bare. Rockhold eventually managed to dominate a reliably tough grappler in the clinch and on the mat but not before getting tagged on the feet to a surprising degree. In Rockhold’s most recent bout against Yoel Romero, he did well to pick apart the 2000 Olympic silver medalist. However, the idea of Romero ultimately cracking him and putting out his lights felt like an inevitability, and it played out in vicious fashion in the third round. A move to light heavyweight has been teased for a while, but injuries have pushed back Rockhold’s debut at 205 pounds. It finally happens here, but the former middleweight champion does not get a tune-up fight in his new weight class, as Blachowicz represents a tough first test.
Through the first six fights of his UFC career, Poland’s Blachowicz looked like a bust. He debuted with a stunning knockout of Ilir Latifi, but followed it with four losses in five outings, and a 2016 decision over Igor Pokrajac did not exactly stand out as a major win. Blachowicz theoretically had a ton of different skills with which to work, but nothing seemed to come together. He was out of his depth against stronger athletes in a division full of them, and on the occasions in which Blachowicz could get something done, his gas tank quickly betrayed him. An October 2017 submission of Devin Clark stopped the bleeding, and a quick-turnaround b out two months later saw Blachowicz’s game fully click into place. Against Jared Cannonier, the Pole suddenly flashed a solid fundamental boxing game that kept his opponent at bay and even more importantly managed to sustain it over 15 minutes. His winning streak continued until he lost to Thiago Santos in February, but in a division that has seen newcomer after newcomer quickly plateau, it has been nice to see Blachowicz develop and give his career a second life.
This is a massive proof-of-concept fight for Rockhold’s move to light heavyweight. It will be a solid test to see how Rockhold’s grappling holds up against stronger opponents. Rockhold is obviously skilled, but he was also helped by being a gargantuan middleweight, so trying to control someone his own size could wind up being a more difficult challenge; and if his issues with striking defense persist after this long layoff, Blachowicz is the perfect opponent to pick apart Rockhold and disincentivize him from getting much done. Even after the Santos loss, Blachowicz’s game feels like it is clicking in a way that Rockhold’s simply is not. It seems like the former middleweight champ is trying to adjust based off of what cost him his title against Bisping, but the approach did not work against Romero and may cause him to be even more tentative moving forward. It is a bit of a flier, but the pick is for Blachowicz to mostly neutralize Rockhold and earn a decision.
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