Jean Matsumoto
Brazil
Excellent effort in split loss
Matsumoto lost to Farid Basharat via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 28-29) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
It's the third straight split decision result for Matsumoto in less than a year and the second time in which he has come up short. This one could have legitimately gone either way in what was a super entertaining bout between two rising stars at 135 pounds. The only reason it was really close was because Matsumoto turned seven successful takedowns into 4:40 worth of control time. He pressured the heck out of Basharat throughout the course of the fight and did an excellent job of landing big blows whenever the two separated. When the fight was contested at distance and things slowed down, Basharat had the edge. Still just 26 years old, the Brazilian has way more ability than his 2-2 career mark with the UFC would lead you to believe. His stock increased here despite the setback.
It's the third straight split decision result for Matsumoto in less than a year and the second time in which he has come up short. This one could have legitimately gone either way in what was a super entertaining bout between two rising stars at 135 pounds. The only reason it was really close was because Matsumoto turned seven successful takedowns into 4:40 worth of control time. He pressured the heck out of Basharat throughout the course of the fight and did an excellent job of landing big blows whenever the two separated. When the fight was contested at distance and things slowed down, Basharat had the edge. Still just 26 years old, the Brazilian has way more ability than his 2-2 career mark with the UFC would lead you to believe. His stock increased here despite the setback.
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Taking on Basharat
Matsumoto will take on Farid Basharat in a bantamweight bout at UFC Vegas 113 on Feb. 7, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Matsumoto topped Miles Johns back in August to bump his UFC record to 3-1. He'll look for a second straight win vs. Basharat, who's off to a perfect 5-0 start in the promotion.
Matsumoto topped Miles Johns back in August to bump his UFC record to 3-1. He'll look for a second straight win vs. Basharat, who's off to a perfect 5-0 start in the promotion.
Escapes with decision victory
Matsumoto defeated Miles Johns via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) at UFC Vegas 109 on Saturday.
ANALYSIS
Matsumoto started a bit slow, as Johns won Round 1 on the strength of betting combinations and a well-timed takedown. The sense of urgency picked up for Matsumoto in Round 2, where he won the frame with a 35-to-34 significant strike lead, racking up damage with his work to the body. With the fight in the balance in Round 3, Matsumoto started to pull away in terms of striking numbers with a varied attack, but he did give up three takedowns, which made him rightfully sweat a bit when the final decision was announced. In the end, Matsumoto got the nod from two of the three judges, bouncing back from his sole loss and improving to 3-1 in official UFC bouts.
Matsumoto started a bit slow, as Johns won Round 1 on the strength of betting combinations and a well-timed takedown. The sense of urgency picked up for Matsumoto in Round 2, where he won the frame with a 35-to-34 significant strike lead, racking up damage with his work to the body. With the fight in the balance in Round 3, Matsumoto started to pull away in terms of striking numbers with a varied attack, but he did give up three takedowns, which made him rightfully sweat a bit when the final decision was announced. In the end, Matsumoto got the nod from two of the three judges, bouncing back from his sole loss and improving to 3-1 in official UFC bouts.
Booked for UFC Vegas 109
Matsumoto will face off against Miles Johns at UFC Vegas 109 on Aug. 9, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Matsumoto will look to bounce back against Miles Johns in August after losing his last bout against Rob Font via split decision. The 25-year-old Brazilian fighter currently holds a 2-1 record during his time with the UFC.
Matsumoto will look to bounce back against Miles Johns in August after losing his last bout against Rob Font via split decision. The 25-year-old Brazilian fighter currently holds a 2-1 record during his time with the UFC.
Suffers first pro defeat
Matsumoto lost to Rob Font via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 28-29) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Seattle.
ANALYSIS
This fight was contested at a catch weight of 140 pounds because Matsumoto agreed to step in for the since-retired Dominick Cruz just over a week ago. He put forth a really strong showing and easily could have been awarded the decision. Almost all of Matsumoto's offensive success was the result of his wrestling game. He landed 7-of-10 takedowns, good for 6:15 worth of control time. Font landed the bigger strikes, particularly as the fight progressed. The negative result here aside, the Brazilian has an extremely bright future. Matsumoto won't be 26 years of age until September. He'll be just fine.
This fight was contested at a catch weight of 140 pounds because Matsumoto agreed to step in for the since-retired Dominick Cruz just over a week ago. He put forth a really strong showing and easily could have been awarded the decision. Almost all of Matsumoto's offensive success was the result of his wrestling game. He landed 7-of-10 takedowns, good for 6:15 worth of control time. Font landed the bigger strikes, particularly as the fight progressed. The negative result here aside, the Brazilian has an extremely bright future. Matsumoto won't be 26 years of age until September. He'll be just fine.
Filling in at UFC Seattle
Matsumoto will fight Rob Font at UFC Seattle on Feb. 22, Nolan King of USA Today reports.
ANALYSIS
The 25-year-old bantamweight will be taking the place of Dominick Cruz, who retired from professional MMA last week after suffering an injury in training. Matsumoto boasts a perfect 16-0 record (2-0 in UFC) entering his fight versus Font, but the latter will have three inches of reach and several years of experience working in his favor.
The 25-year-old bantamweight will be taking the place of Dominick Cruz, who retired from professional MMA last week after suffering an injury in training. Matsumoto boasts a perfect 16-0 record (2-0 in UFC) entering his fight versus Font, but the latter will have three inches of reach and several years of experience working in his favor.