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![]() Welcome to the preview of an incredible event. Since I joined Steel Penn – ICON two months ago as the interview writer, this is by far the best, most stacked event they have produced and I would like to produce a preview worthy of that billing. It will be the same structure as always; with the result predictions for the prelims, and then a little bit of analysis followed by what I think will happen in the fight. This main event is sure to produce fireworks; the rest of the card will do likewise. Here we go with some quick-fire Prelim predictions:
Main Card:
K.J Choi vs Tural Agaev
Analysis:
We kick off the main card with an exciting battle of two of the top heavyweights in the organisation, great matchmaking to start the card with a bang here. K.J Choi; at 40 years of age, is considered by many to be past his prime. These arguments have weight as he hasn’t fought for a belt in any organisation in years. However, he is coming off of two impressive first round stoppages, and with a win over former two time championship contender Tural Agaev, his stock could rise higher than it has in years, and he could put his name right in the mix as a contender in an exciting but shallow Heavyweight Division.
Tural Agaev is a stud; unfortunately, he is a stud that gets cut a hell of a lot. If he could stop getting cut, he could well have been a two time champion rather than contender. He will be out to make a statement here; he is frustrated as he just fought for the title, and probably feels he could have continued despite being stopped on his cut, he will look to win this fight decisively and ferociously.
Prediction:
K.J Choi’s best chance here is the same route to victory which he pretty much always tries to take. If he can take Agaev down and open up a cut with his ground and pound, he may be able to force a stoppage by way of cut; a proven path to victory against Agaev. However; Agaev has power; he is angry and he is out to prove a point. All of this spells trouble for Choi; whose chin has never looked particularly convincing, even in his prime. Tural Agaev will come out swinging and will finish Choi with a barrage of vicious strikes. It will be quick; it will be brutal and it will be awesome!
Agaev via TKO (Round 1)
Bach Schtrappe vs Ingemar Anders
Analysis:
Our next fight features a former two division champion; as Ingemar Anders looks to continue his forward momentum at 155lb after narrowly edging fellow veteran Alexandr Kuznetsov in a close decision last time out. Looking like he still has it, Anders will look to take one more step in his climb back to the summit of SP – ICON, with another workmanlike performance.
Bach Schtrappe is looking really dangerous recently; going 4-1 from his last 5; and all four of those fights were finishes. He is starting to make his mark on SP – ICON, and has the opportunity to do it in quite possibly the biggest challenge of his career. If he can find a way to finish; or even defeat Ingemar Anders; his career will be set alight in a huge way. He must create chaos in the cage if he wants to win this fight; with his opponent a scrappy matador with a penchant for winning decisions.
Prediction:
Not the most even fight in the world on paper, but it should make for a fun little scrap; with both fighters carrying confidence and momentum into the bout. Bach Schtrappe has a real opportunity here, beating a two division champion would be great for his career, and he does have finishing ability; but unfortunately Ingemar Anders is very tough to finish. Bach Shctrapppe will give as good as he gets in this fight; forcing his way into the pocket and landing big shots, however, Anders will be able to control the pace of the fight for the most part. His volume will ensure he wins the majority of exchanges, and proves just how much title experience counts for in a clear cut decision win.
Ingemar Anders via Unanimous Decision
Cletus Landry vs Johnny Unkown
Analysis:
This fight is a very interesting striker vs grappler matchup. Johnny Unkown is all about Jiu Jitsu; whereas Landry is a striker with both power and point fighting abilities. Unkown is a former world champion at SP-ICON and would likely be the bookmakers’ favourite. His submissions are straight up deadly; he submitted Danjie Mercado, an excellent grappler in his own right; on two separate occasions, once to defend his Bantamweight Title when he was the champion. He will definitely be looking to make it a quick night against Landry, with an early takedown and submission to put himself back in title contention.
Landry on the other hand; is a talented fighter by all accounts. He has only just joined SP-ICON; defeating Mercado by Unanimous Decision. He will be looking to finally hit his stride with some consistency; in a career where he has often alternated wins and losses going from the sublime to the ridiculous. He will be looking to thwart the takedowns of Unkown and escape to his feet when he is taken down, as he has a very clear advantage in the striking here. It is a great opportunity for Landry to score arguably the most significant win of his career.
Prediction:
It may be a bold move; but I will go with the perceived underdog in this fight. Johnny Unkown is a great grappler and a very relevant fighter in the 135lb division. However; stylistically this is a very tough fight for him. Cletus Landry has excellent takedown defence and very strong escapes, this will make it tough for Johnny Unknown to take him down, and hold him down long enough to submit him. Cletus Landry will play it safe on the feet; landing accurate shots; slamming leg kicks into Unknowns thighs, and he will make himself very hard to takedown and submit. He will win a dominant decision and put himself right up there in the Bantamweight Division.
Landry via Unanimous Decision
Noel Contemprato vs Lamont Sanford
Analysis:
A title fight here between two guys in completely different places. An innovative way for SP-ICON to get Lamont Sanford into a fight in a big event before lining up a possible super fight. We will see what happens. Sanford is an incredible champion and one of the best P4P fighters at SP-ICON who always finds a way to hold onto his belt. He has not lost for 8 fights and has basically cleared the division. He will be a big favourite in this matchup; he will look to use his striking and his gas tank to go hard and dominate the fight for as long as he needs to.
Contemprato has not fought at Lightweight for quite some time. He has been fighting at Openweight; where he did actually win the belt, and has fought fighters who have outweighed him considerably. He has been put back to Lightweight in light of the recent changes to the SP-ICON organisation. His style is similar to Sanford’s; he is an anti-wrestler, although he puts slightly more emphasis on the finish; having finished some guys that are quite a lot bigger than him. He will look to use this to his advantage and try to test the chin of his opponent.
Prediction:
Both men have phenomenal chins; Lamont Sanford has only lost by TKO once, and that was in his first ever MMA fight. Noel Contemprato has taken shots from heavier men and managed to come out with his consciousness intact; Sanford’s power will not trouble him. However; this fight is a mismatch skill-wise. Contemprato has not won a fight at Lightweight since before he was 40 years old. This will not be close. Lamont Sanford will put the volume on Contemprato and will win dominantly; he will not lose a round. He will not get caught by a big shot, he has an excellent chin and will not get hit much. Another dominant win for the champion; let’s hope an interesting super fight can be found for him afterwards.
Sanford via Unanimous Decision
Eliah Marshal vs Moses Onchooto
Analysis:
What a fight! Our main event is a fight which could truly go either way, a true super fight within the organisation, of which there will hopefully be many more. Both the champions of their respective divisions; Marshal will look to make his most impressive title defence yet; where Moses Onchooto will be looking to unify the belts and become a two division champion.
Moses Onchooto is the smaller man coming in; however, he has serious power in his hands; feet elbows and knees. He has shown some vulnerability to submissions; however that probably won’t be a factor in this fight as Marshal is more interested in the striking game. Onchooto’s game is fast and explosive; he is very dangerous both from distance and in the clinch; where his knees and elbows really do a number on opponents. His striking defence has also improved exponentially as of late and his gas tank should allow him to go five rounds without a problem.
Eliah Marshal has established himself as one of the most dominant champions at SP-ICON; and you sense he may be on the cusp of being world renowned for his performances as a Featherweight; already ranked in the top ten of his weight class. He has been undefeated in all but one fight in SP-ICON; which was a contentious decision against Andr De Fran; a top class fighter in his heyday. Marshal seems to really have come into his own recently; his style is a little more straight forward than Onchooto’s, as he relies on strong takedown defence and excellent boxing, combined with good work in the clinch to dismantle his opposition. Marshal will be trying to use his size advantage, which will almost certainly give him an advantage in the clinch, a big area in this fight.
Prediction:
This is so evenly matched that I have been flip-flopping between both for quite some time, I feel like I may eat my words whoever I pick here. Marshal has to be the slight favourite due to his size and superior record in SP-ICON, however Onchooto is a slightly more creative fighter with his strikes; he throws more kicks and may have a slight speed advantage, which will give him the advantage at range. I think Marshal will be trying to wear Onchooto down in the clinch; won’t be landing a whole lot of clean shots but will be controlling, which will win a couple of rounds. However I believe Onchooto’s striking will come into play; he will rock Marshal late on, and whilst he won’t finish him; he will do enough to make an impression on the judges over Marshal’s likely more controlling game plan. It will be controversial, but the belts will be unified in a tremendous fight, and there will likely be calls for a rematch.
Onchooto via Split Decision to become the new Featherweight Champion
Thank you all for reading; and I look forward to providing more previews like this one once we are done with this mega event, feel free to let me know your thoughts. And PM me if you would like an interview for your fighter(s).
Chael Mir
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