Venue: UFC APEX
After the crazy UFC 262, the league is holding a quiet, peaceful tournament. In one of the main card bouts, Norwegian Jack Hermansson (ranked No. 7) will face American Edmen Shahbazyan (ranked No. 10). The fight will take place in the middleweight category.
Jack Hermansson: He loses the main fights
Jack only fights with the elite and that’s why he has two losses in his last three fights. But before Cannonier, he was on a four-fight winning streak and was beating some tough opponents too.But as soon as he gets close to a challenger fight, he loses right away.
Jack Hermansson’s last 5 fights
The 32-year-old Norwegian fighter has 21 wins (11 knockouts, 6 submissions) and 6 defeats (2 knockouts, 2 submissions) in an overall record.
| Date | Opponent | Event | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 05.12.2020 | Marvin Vettori (15-4) | UFC on ESPN 19 | Loss by unanimous decision |
| 18.07.2020 | Kelvin Gastelum (19-7) | UFC Fight Night 172 | Victory by submission in Round 1 |
| 28.09.2019 | Jared Cannonier (13-5) | UFC Fight Night 160 | Loss by TKO in Round 2 |
| 27.04.2019 | Ronaldo Sousa (26-10) | UFC Fight Night 150 | Victory by unanimous decision |
| 30.03.2019 | David Branch (22-7) | UFC on ESPN 2 | Victory by submission in Round 1 |
Hermansson is a tough grappler, but watching his fights you notice the punching as well. He’s got more knockouts than submissions, that’s for sure. He’s been in mixed martial arts for over 10 years, winning CWFC and WFS titles, as well as several notable wins in the UFC.
Edmen Shahbazyan: Did the defeat teach him anything?
The same guy who was on an 11-fight winning streak called a future superstar but failed his first fight against a really serious opponent. Derek Bronson just didn’t give him a chance.
I wonder if that defeat taught him anything or not. We're about to find out. He’s pretty sure it did him some good:
This was my first career defeat, and it will serve me well. I went into the cage to finish Derek, and I quickly ran out of steam because I was putting in every shot to the best of my ability. He weathered the storm, kept his composure, and in the end, the scales tipped in his favor. In that fight, I learned a lot about myself and what I needed to change. It helped me a lot and I’m looking forward to my next fight. Everybody loses at some point, and I’m glad it happened to me. I’ve made conclusions, I’ve started working even harder. No excuses. I lost in a fair fight. It was my fault that I fell behind on my stamina. No excuses.
Shahbazyan can already do a lot, despite his age (he’s 23), and if he tightens his skills on the ground, he’ll be a valuable fighter.
I want to show bright performances and become the best. And to be the best, you have to beat the best. Yes, I lost the last fight, but I made a lot of conclusions. I think stylistically it’s a great fight for me. I’ve been working on grappling a lot, so I have nothing to be afraid of. We’ll see how it goes. I’m just getting ready for a 15-minute fight, but if I get an opportunity for an early win, I’ll take it. I can’t wait to get back on a winning streak. I’ve been training hard, and I’m ready to put on a standout performance. After beating Jack Hermansson, I want to face a Top 5 opponent and continue my climb to the top of the division.
Expert Betting Tips
Hermansson has the experience, including big fights, on his side. Yes, he also looks stronger in the ground. But we believe in the young generation and we believe that Shahbazyan has worked on his mistakes. He suffered a big blow to his ego.
But Marathon Bet does not believe it, and perhaps this is good news for the bettor. It offers odds of 1.63 on the victory of Hermansson, but 2.31 on the victory of Shahbazyan.
Other predictions
