CBS Sportsline writer and FiveOuncesOfPain.com blogger, Sam Caplan, had an interesting article regarding his picks for some of the break out fighters that we may see in 2008. His picks were Ed Ratcliff, Neil Grove, Jon Murphy, Tim Kennedy, Aaron Meisner, Carlo Prater, Demian Maia, and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza. Those are some pretty decent picks for 2008, but there are a few that have been left out that should be looked at. Also, some of these names look to have some major roadblocks to overcome as well. Let's take a look.
Some thoughts on Caplan's picks
Ed Ratcliff is a great pick, and he brings the Karate background to his skillset that many mixed martial artists rarely have. A fighter who many people may know what has a demoralizing tactical gameplan for nearly every fight which features a karate background is Lyoto Machida. Ratcliff doesn't seem to garner the same type of patient countering as Machida, but he has crisp striking and precision kicks. Picking him over Karalexis recently was a damn good bet on my part, but Karalexis's wrestling was definitely a factor I had weighed. Regardless, Ratcliff pulled out a good win. Check out his Chuck Norris-esque spinning back kick win over Brett Cooper (Just recently beat Rory Markham at the IFL GP Final).
Tim Kennedy is definitely a nice pick. He nearly finished Jason Miller, but was ultimately defeated. Even with the setbacks, he's a warrior with good power, decent striking, and a great wrestling background. He'll be able to improve significantly as well as he has been training with The Pit, Liddell's camp.
Both are fantastic picks, but I'm not sold on the Demian Maia and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza picks for a couple of reasons. First, Maia and Souza could run into the possibility of just being punched into unconsciousness. We all know that, but my main gripe deals with grapplers in general moving to the top of the middleweight division. Both guys could make waves in a weak UFC middleweight division for awhile, but the grapplers near the top and the over talent at the top rely on some decent standup skills as well. A guy like Filho has better chances because he has huge power in his arms and has a possibility of catching his opponent. His raw power is also tough to stop on the ground. His raw power makes him dangerous in the striking even though he isn't that technically sound in it. Maia and Souza don't have that advantage.
Neil Grove didn't impress me in his last fight, and honestly, he's a typical British standup fighter. Robert Berry, who wasn't using really any technique at all in his striking, was able to actually drop him to the ground and win the round. Unbelievably, Berry gave up due to exhaustion. Grove was lucky, and he will probably be exposed in any other organization.
Some of our picks
Mike Russow, who just recently defeated Roman Zentsov in impressive fashion at Yarennoka, is definitely an up-and-comer that you should watch out for. He was derailed by Sergei Kharitonov at PRIDE 33: Second Coming, but it still remains to be his only loss. A combination of huge strength and controlling wrestling abilities on the ground could definitely help Russow make a splash in a bigger promotion than the XFO.
Nissen Osterneck is another favorite that should be considered. A 5-0 start with fantastic ground and pound, jiu-jitsu, and improving striking skills. He has been rumored to also be interested in for The Ultimate Fighter. He recently destroyed Freddie Espiricueta at HDNet Fights in December as well. Look for more from Nissen.
Andre Gusmao should make some waves as well. He's also a 5-0 prospect with two big wins over Mike Ciesnolevicz, the first matchup being only his second fight in his career. Although those two wins are the wins that stand out, his skillset definitely looks to have some major highlights. Straight out of Brazil, he has a good Muay Thai and jiu-jitsu background, but seems to want to keep the fights in a ground and pound mode or in the clinch. He has some good power, and will likely only improve with a move to a camp in the States.
Other picks include Dong Hyun Kim, who defeated Hidehiko Hasegawa in DEEP and their second bout went to a controversial draw. He should be Shooto champion as he should have been awarded the win. Look for him to make some waves toward some larger promotions. Siyar Bahadurzada is a guy I'd love to see in a bigger promotion to test his skills. He hasn't fought great competition, but he has some exciting wins. Rumors are that he may show up on the Sengoku cards. He has some good power and can produce highlight reel knockouts, and he has the added marketing story of being from Afghanistan. I'm sure someone will try to use that.
Yoshiyuki Yoshida will definitely be a Japanese fighter to watch. He climbed up the Shooto ladder and has been fighting in Cage Force recently with big wins over Dan Hardy and Akira Kikuchi. Great ground and pound techniques and power in his hands, definitely a guy who can produce excitement and show his quality skills. Jorge Santiago looks to be a re-energized fighter since he moved to American Top Team. He won the Strikeforce Middleweight tournament with big wins over Sean Salmon and Trevor Prangley. With the middleweight picture in the MMA world being considered relatively weak, he could begin getting some new interest with a few more wins. Anyone with both a good striking and ground game should be followed closely.
Lastly, Andre Dida out of Chute Box is a fighter who can be very exciting and be a force at 155. Although Gesias Calvancante defeated him by armbar in the K-1 HERO's Tournament Final in September, he impressively defeated an always tough Caol Uno and TKO'd Artur Oumakhanov inside a minute and a half. He also defeated Hiroyuki Takaya at K-1 HERO's 8. He has great striking and boxing skills with some awesome power in his hands. Undoubtedly, he has a significant Muay Thai background and some jiu-jitsu ground skills, but he mainly loves to stand. Keep an eye out on Dida, he has the potential to upset some big names.