Fight Study 163 – UFC 310: For the Hardcores (Uncut + Transcript) (Patreon)

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Sam recaps some notable fights from UFC 310. Fight Study is essential listening for thoughtful martial arts fans.

Transcript

[Note: Transcripts are autogenerated and may contain errors.]

UFC 310 was a card for MMA hardcores, the ones who watch for stylistic match-ups rather than personalities. Part of the intrigue for this event was how would Rizin bantamweight champion Kai Asakura do in the UFC? He was supposed to get a ranked opponent to put himself in line for the flyweight title, but no one wanted to fight him other than the champion Alexandre Pantoja.

If Asakura is that dangerous and likely a possible future contender, it makes strategic sense to fight him early when he's dropping down a division and fighting in the Octagon for the first time.

Asakura did well, all things considered, but Pantoja also made it look easy. Both things are true. What makes Pantoja unique is the tremendous psychological pressure he puts on his opponents. It's not only his striking or grappling but also his attitude. There is no other fighter that puts all three elements together. His cardio is a wildcard because he is known to look winded, but he still doesn't stop.

Asakura stung Pantoja as he was walking in a few times but seemed very unfamiliar with the dimensions of the Octagon. After taking a few shots, rather than being overly aggressive, Pantoja inched toward Asakura, sometimes backing up to draw Asakura into the range of his attacks. When Asakura was within the ballpark of the fence, Pantoja would be more aggressive. Backing up and firing would make Asakura trip against the fence. Even his counters would cause enough instability for Pantoja to set up takedowns. Once Asakura's balance was off, Pantoja capitalized. Even when Pantoja failed on a trip, he used that moment of instability to start his back-take sequence. Pantoja's psychological pressure is based on proximity, volume, the dilemma of his takedowns and strikes, and not allowing resets. He doesn't operate on turns but on rounds. It's just one long, continuous exchange until the round is over, which is part of why he gets so tired. Fighters reset not to give their opponents a break but to give themselves a break. For Pantoja, his confidence comes from knowing that if he can turn the fight into a breath-holding contest, he can win.

Once Pantoja had the back, there was no waiting and seeing for an opening. He constantly attacked Asakura's neck until Asakura's neck fatigued and his chin lifted. It was momentary, but that's all Pantoja needed.

Currently, the UFC pound-for-pound rankings are Islam Makhachev at number 1, Jon Jones at 2, and Alex Pereira at 3. In my list, Makhachev is 1, and Pantoja is 2.

For this breakdown, I'm not going to cover every fight, just the ones I found notable.

In the co-main event, Shavkat Rakhmonov faced fellow undefeated welterweight and former training partner Ian Garry in a title eliminator. Rakhmonov had the confidence to close the distance, while Garry would kick and give up space. Even in how Garry defended, he would step away or lean away, giving up space. However, combined with Rakhmonov's reach and timing, he still caught Garry with the harder shots. By mixing in the clinch, pushing Garry against the fence, and getting takedowns, Rakhmonov secured a decision win. Garry found his confidence later in the fight, but by then, it was too late.

Being well-rounded in MMA is not just about skills but just as much about confidence. Imagine you're a professional kickboxer in your first Brazilian jiu-jitsu class. Despite being humbled, you have the confidence to know that you could beat everyone there if this were kickboxing. Imagine if you're a world champion grappler in your first kickboxing class. You'll carry that same confidence. Now imagine you were good at both. That's the kind of confidence that Rakhmonov has, which not only allows him to finish fights but also win rounds.

In a heavyweight rematch, Ciryl Gane faced Alexander Volkov. In my eyes, it looked like Volkov outstruck Gane and also did more on the ground, but the judges gave it to Gane in a controversial decision.

Unlike their first fight, Volkov was on the attack, finding a hole in Gane's open side. Gane found success at heavyweight because the wrestling is weak, fighters load up on punches, and the volume is low. When the opponent mixes in wrestling and volume, whether this fight or against Jon Jones or Francis Ngannou, Gane has trouble.

In a featherweight fight, Nate Landwehr faced Choi Doo-ho. Landwehr was the favorite, which is shocking because the fight was so lopsided for Choi, but this is because Choi only came back to the UFC in 2023. Prior to that, he hadn't fought since December 2019. In his first UFC run, he had lots of exciting fights, but he also took a lot of damage. He lost three in a row in three brutal fight of the nights. When he came back against Kyle Nelson in 2023, he looked lackluster, and the fight was a draw due to an illegal headbutt by Choi.

Choi always had power, but what he seemed to lack in his fights was defense. However, against Bill Algeo, his defense was much improved, which had a knock-on effect of improving his accuracy. You land better shots when you can hit without getting hit. Choi credits a lot of his improvements to the Korean Zombie.

While Choi was away from the Octagon, Landwehr was working his way up the rankings. He's durable and relentless and hits hard. At least on paper, he seemed like he was someone who could beat Choi. Yet when they fought, Choi's accuracy made all the difference. Unlike before, Choi stopped trying to throw hard but instead looked to hit without being hit. The jab was especially effective, which was one of Korean Zombie's best tools. The jab and natural stiffness of Choi's punches affected Landwehr's composure, which fed into Choi's wrestling.

Choi dominated, finishing Landwehr with elbows on the ground in round 3.

In a featherweight fight, Movsar Evloev faced former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling. This was a really close fight and was mostly contested on the ground. The difference came down to energy expenditure. Sterling was looking for lifts and slams, while Evloev wasn't. Evloev looked for the path of least resistance. There were a lot of wrestling exchanges on the ground, and Sterling attacked the legs or looked for body locks. Evloev mixed upper-body wrestling and hand fighting from the knees. That efficiency made the difference in round three, which gave Evloev the edge.

Sterling initiated many wrestling exchanges, but his corner asked him to keep the fight standing. On paper, Sterling should have the striking advantage. But the reason Sterling initiated the takedowns might be because if you're not taking Evloev down, he's taking you down. Striking with Evloev might mean getting taken down. It wasn't a bad read or plan, and Sterling came close to doing it, and if he got the decision, it wouldn't have been a robbery.

When a fight is really competitive, it can come down to who makes fewer errors.

In a catchweight bout, Bryan Battle faced Randy Brown. This was Battle's toughest opponent so far, and he missed weight by four pounds. The reason this fight stood out for me is because Battle was outmatched in a lot of ways. That's how a lot of his fights are, on paper. But Battle finds a way by relentlessly chipping away at his opponents. He may not even land more significant strikes, but he'll land more total strikes. He also had tremendous cardio, but that could also be a product of his chipping style and not constantly swinging for home runs. Battle and his team probably decided to stop the weight cut rather than pushing too hard to make the weight because that would deplete Battle's stamina—his greatest strength.

So many fighters and amateur fighters think striking is about swinging hard, but it can also be about swinging a lot.

Former middleweight champion Chris Weidman was also in a catchweight fight with Eryk Anders. Weidman, like Anthony Smith, who also lost by second-round TKO to Dominick Reyes, didn't seem like he belonged in the Octagon. They both lacked the poise, fitness, and decision-making to protect themselves. MMA at the UFC level already has a lot of dangers, but Weidman and Smith are a danger to themselves in the Octagon.

The sleeper fight of the night was Joshua Van vs. Cody Durden at flyweight. Van is small, even for flyweight, but is fast and hits hard. He overcame the size disparity against Durden by staying close to him but just out of range. Van would initiate or let Durden go first. Then Van would intercept and land his power shots as Durden stepped or lunged forward. He had incredible accuracy. He avoided Durden's takedowns by making Durden shoot from too far away or by hitting Durden as he was dipping down. After a while, Durden had no sense of range. That's when Van would go first and land, relying on his speed and power.

Durden's style of striking to set up the double leg played into Van's striking strengths. Since Van got a read of Durden's takedown path, he exploited it with punches and his movements. The more punishment Durden took, the easier the fight got for Van.

If you often struggle against longer sparring partners, this fight is worth checking out. However, to use this style effectively, you must first hone your ability to keep your eyes open and on your opponent the whole time and be present. When you're at a physical disadvantage against someone in a match or a spar, the only way you can make up for it is with greater executive control. How we build executive control in the Liberation Martial Arts approach is to reduce the stakes. How commercial gyms do it is to just find someone who can already keep their cool in a firefight and focus on them and not on those who they think have no potential.