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On June 21 Honor FC will be holding Honor FC 21: Relentless at the Parisian, we expect a capacity crowd of 5,250 as there is a title on the line. Vinnie "Danger Zone" Jones will face off with challenger Riley Cooper for the 155 pound belt. Before we get into the match previews we have some very exciting news, Honor FC has officially signed with Just Fight Clothing to be our event merchandise partner, Just Fight is one of the biggest and most successful clothing companies in the world. This is a true sign of the increased popularity and respect of our own organization. Now onto the fights!
Derec "The Smile" Negreanu (4-3-1) vs "The Swiss Superman" Claudio Castagnoli (0-1)
The first fight of the night is a battle in the Light Heavyweight division. Both of these guys have dynamite in their hands with Negreanu's last appearance ending in just 5 seconds via superman punch. Castognoli is a great prospect in the division and could move on to do big things because of his rare combination of power and athleticism. In my opinion his best hope of winning is on the ground with his BJJ but I see these guys wanting to stand in bang. Negreanu takes it in a slug fest.
Prediction: Negreanu via 2nd round (T)KO
Nobuhiko "Hangman" Oshima (2-2) vs Hilio " Hangman" Gracie (14-7)
Our next fight is in the Lightweight division between the relative newcomer Oshima and ultra experienced Hilio Gracie. Both men are very good on the ground with Oshima sporting a brown belt in BJJ and Gracie earning a black belt himself. Neither man is a great striker but Gracie certainly has an edge in the stand up department, he also has the wrestling ability to take Oshima down and control him on the ground. I see this being an intense ground battle with Gracie coming out on top early.
Prediction: Gracie via 1st round sub
Tim Tupy (3-3) vs Chris "The Crippler" Coryatt (11-9)
Our next fight is a battle of 205'ers. I expect this to be a close and exciting fight, both fighters have quite a few knockout victories in their careers; some losses by KO as well. These guys are evenly matched on the feet with Tupy having a slight boxing advantage and Coryatt operating better in the clinch with his superior Muay Thai. The ground offers no clear advantage either as Tupy has the better BJJ and Coryatt has a bit more wrestling experience. The winner of this fight could be the guy who comes out more aggressive and seizes the moment. Due to Tupy's struggles with his chin in striking match ups I give the edge to Coryatt, though this really could go either way.
Prediction: Coryatt via 1st round (T)KO
"The Muharib" Mohamed al Hadj (25-15) vs Kaito "Tsunami" Rin
This fight in the Middleweight division is between al Hadj and Rin. Rin has established himself as a bit of a decisionater given the fact that he has a knack for out striking and not finishing his opponents. al Hadj does have a lot of decisions to his record as well but also sports ten finishes via strikes, combine this with the fact the Kaito has been finished by strikes in two straight fights and stands little chance against the BJJ of al Hadj I expect this to be a quick fight in the favor of al Hadj.
Prediction: Mohamed al Hadj via 1st round (T)KO
Sub Norris (22-15) vs Jonathan "The Cheetah" Mvungi (9-9)
The second fight is a match up in the 145 lb division. The cheetah has all the technical ability to be a wonderful fighter but has struggled with his chin throughout his career with seven of his losses coming by KO and the other two coming via submission. This does not bode well for Mvungi because Norris is a finisher through and through with seventeen subs and two KO victories. I expect Norris to be able to finish this one either standing or on the ground. My expectation is that he takes the fight to the ground and finishes it in the second.
Prediction: Norris via 2nd round Submission
"Mangeur de bine" Adelard Desormeaux (19-19) vs "The Impaler" Vladimir Ignatov (8-3-1)
Another match up in the welterweight division here between the former champ Ignatov and well traveled veteran Desormeaux who is experiencing a bit of a revival here in Honor FC. Both men are wonderful strikers with a propensity for finishing and each bring a wealth of experience as well as a willingness to stand and trade. Not a whole lot of difference in technical ability or style here but it should be noted that Ignatov's only loss here in Honor comes from current champ Troy Lancaster. This is a huge opportunity for Desormeaux to get into the title hunt but unfortunately for him I just don't see him pulling it out against this level of competition.
Prediction: Ignatov via 2nd round (T)KO
Augustus "Deadshot" Belmont (25-12) vs "Chairman" Mao Zedong (15-4)
Our Co-Main event is between two high level strikers in the welterweight division. I expect both of these guys to come out looking to finish the fight via strikes. This is an incredibly close match up with both men boasting an impressive number of KO victories and nearly the exact same ability on the ground. However Zedong has proven to have a great chin throughout all of his stand up battles and sadly for Belmont ten of his twelve losses come via (T)KO. Because of this I give the edge to Zedong.
Prediction: Zedong via 1st round T(KO)
Vinnie "Danger Zone" Jones (11-3) vs Riley Cooper (21-6)
Our Main event is an exciting Lightweight title fight between two incredible fighters. We have the defending champ in Vinnie "Danger Zone" Jones taking on challenger Riley Cooper. Both of these men have ridden their dangerous ground games in Honor FC to reach the top of their weight class. Jones has proven time and time again to be a handful on the ground, therefore I believe that it would be wise for Cooper to keep the fight standing and use his huge stand up advantage to try to win him the fight. Despite being the champion I would actually consider Jones to be an underdog in this fight as Cooper has the ability to negate his strengths on the ground and dominate him on the feet. Look for Jones to come out shooting for take downs and aiming to control the fight against the cage as Cooper uses his take down defense and striking ability to counter. Jones has proven to be a tough customer and definitely has the ability to be one of the top fighters in the world but I don't see him getting past Cooper tonight.
Prediction: Cooper via 3rd round (T)KO
We have an incredible night of fights on the card here and I do believe that every fight has a high potential for a finish. Good luck to everyone fighting, hope you boys put on a show! Stay tuned for the post fight analysis on Sunday.
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