UFC 121 Preview: The Undercard

Middleweights
Dongi Yang vs. Chris Camozzi

At 9-0, with all nine wins by stoppage, South Korea’s Dongi Yang brings an impressive record with a Mike Tyson-like budding career built on a knockout streak. Eight consecutive KO’s is a pretty impressive run for an MMA prospect, though those eight opponents have a combined record of 46-57. That’s the kind of matchmaking usually used to build boxing prospects.

Camozzi, meanwhile, has faced considerably better competition, including fellow TUF alums Jesse Forbes and Jesse Taylor, both of whom he lost to. He also holds wins over ultra-experienced veterans like Chad Reiner and Victor Moreno, fights in which a fighter can learn a lot of things that can’t be absorbed elsewhere. Camozzi took a decision win over another TUF’er, James Hamortree, in their bout at the TUF 11 finale, so this won’t be his first UFC rodeo.

Yang’s striking is aggressive, if a tad wild, and he tends to leave himself open in exchanges. Plus, first-time UFC competitors are subject to all sorts of nerves and the acclimation process. Throw in the fact that Yang is making the trip across the Pacific -- another factor which has consistently lowered expectations for debuting Asian fighters in the big show -- and is used to fighting in a ring instead of a cage, and he has a lot overcome here.

For Camozzi to win, he has to slow Yang’s attack, counter with straight shots, and turn it into a tactical game. If Yang wins, it will probably be via impressive KO, but the pick here is Camozzi by submission.