The Film Room: Al Iaquinta

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“Raging” Al Iaquinta will return to the Octagon for the first time since his upset of Kevin Lee in December, as he takes on MMA pioneer Donald Cerrone in the UFC Fight Night 151 main event on Saturday at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario. “The Ultimate Fighter 15” finalist has compiled a 2-1 record since he returned from a two-year layoff, having lost only to current Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Iaquinta’s exploits are under the microscope in this edition of The Film Room.



Before his two-year layoff, Iaquinta was 7-2 in the UFC and had become one of the smoothest counter boxers in the division. His counter-boxing style is simple but effective. He will not shock opponents with volume or anything they have not seen before, but his precise counter right hook and his ability to take a punch and keep moving forward makes him a matchup nightmare for anybody. This is an especially bad matchup for Cerrone, who struggles with counterstrikers and someone who will be in his face for all five rounds. Notice how Iaquinta mixes in single precision strikes with counter combos. Precision counterstrikers like Conor McGregor can become predictable since they generally rely on one power shot, but mixing in precision counters with full-fledged exchanges in the pocket make someone like Iaquinta less predictable.



Iaquinta is also smart enough to not sit back and work on the counter all night. He knows counter-only fighters can struggle when the opponent is not striking first, and being able to mix in counters with leading attacks is a must at the highest levels. His leading attacks are just as simple as his counters, as he usually just throws 1-2s and hooks, but his timing and perfection of the basics has led him to success. He also likes to invest in body shots early on to slow down opponents and to get them to drop their hands so he can attack the head.



Iaquinta has also shown a nice jab when the mood strikes, but he does not throw it nearly enough. When he is working off of his jab, he likes to double up on it to set up the right hand; however, his jab has largely been absent of late. As a counterstriker, the jab should be a staple of his offense since he can use it to stifle the leading attacks and set up the counter right. On the lead, Iaquinta likes to throw a wild overhand right, which could land more easily if he doubled up on the jab.



Iaquinta does his best work on the counter, but his nickname is “Raging Al” for a reason. When he feels the finish is near, he will blitz forward with a wild flurry of strikes looking for a stoppage, which he gets more often than not. Something to notice during these flurries is how he stays calm enough to mix up his attack from head to toe since he known headhunting can be dangerous. He also has above-average power for a lightweight: Seven of his 14 wins are by knockout.



Iaquinta has shown a lack of defensive grappling skills and has been dominated and finished on the ground in the past. All four of his losses have resulted from encounters with grapplers, but he did show massive improvement against Lee, as he quickly got back to his feet after being taken down three times. He was dominated on the ground by Nurmagomedov 2018, but we cannot forget that he gave the champion his toughest fight in years while taking the bout on short notice following a year-long layoff. Cerrone has been known to take down opponents and rely on his jiu-jitsu when he feels he does not have the advantage on the feet, so do not be surprised if we see “Cowboy” shooting for Iaquinta’s hips early and often.