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Prospects Battle: Jake Matthews vs. James Vick

The UFC returns down under for an event that will be the first of eight in consecutive weeks of UFC events (yay?). Being a fan might get tiring during this marathon. With so many fights in a row, I figure a delve into some of the important match ups (and some that are under the radar) might add a bit of interest beyond the UFC logo.

The first matchup that I want to spend time on is the opening bout of the main card this Saturday. 20 year old "Celtic Kid" Jake Matthews will take on six foot three James Vick in a battle of TUF veterans and undefeated prospects.

Half of the dozen bouts of the Adelaide card will feature TUF veterans squaring off with one another. In terms of prospects, Matthews vs. Vick is the most meaningful as both fighters are young enough to continue improving and both have the potential at making runs towards the top of the uber-talented lightweight division if brought along correctly.

Who are they?

Jake Matthews :

In 1994, the world saw the birth of the youngest fighter to record a submission victory in the UFC (at 19 years old, Jake submitted Dashon Johnson at UFC Fight Night Auckland).

After an undefeated tenure on the amateur circuit of Australia, Jake began his professional career at the age of 18. He continued his winning ways as a professional, picking up 5 victories - all by stoppage and all within his first year as a professional. Subsequently, he was selected to take part in TUF: Nations Canada vs Australia as a Welterweight representing Australia.

On TUF: Nations, fans weren’t able to view much of the skills that Jake had. Rather, viewers saw what kind of heart he possessed as he spent a majority of his lone bout on the show with eventual finalist Olivier Aubin-Mercier glued to his back. While Aubin-Mercier was able to win the decision, he was unable to finish the talented 19 year old.

Matthews was not immediately invited back to the UFC following his stint on TUF. However, following a decision victory on the regional circuits of Australia, he was invited to add some Oceania flare to the Auckland, New Zealand card. Jake faced fellow undefeated debutant Dashon Johnson in a lightweight bout. Showing high fight IQ, Jake utilized the clinch, takedowns, and submission attempts to thwart the former professional boxer’s offence. Eventually, Jake locked in a triangle choke for a third round submission victory to take away Johnson’s undefeated record. The win also made history as Jake became the youngest fighter in UFC history to win a bout via submission.

Jake made his sophomore UFC appearance in Sydney on the finish-stacked UFC Fight Night: Rockhold vs Bisping. In this bout Jake faced BJJ black belt Vagner Rocha who was making his return to the octagon after four wins on the regionals which included three by way of submission. Again showing a high fight IQ, Jake utilized a striking heavy offence of leg kicks and right hands to eventually drop the UFC veteran, Rocha. As Rocha tried to recover after being sent to the canvas from a crushing right hand, Jake was able to latch onto a rear naked choke. Rocha, the black belt, refused to tap and was eventually put to sleep by the BJJ purple belt who also didn’t have his hooks in during the choke - making the submission all the more impressive.

James Vick:

Vick came to the attention of the masses during his tenure on TUF 15 (the live season) where he was a member of Team Cruz. Coming into the show, Vick wasn’t one of the favourites to win the show. Rather, he was heralded because of how green he was and how tall he was for the lightweight division (standing 6 feet 3 inches tall). This notion stuck as he took a very tightly contested split decision from Dakota Cochrane to get into the house.

He was selected to fight in the first contest against Team Faber’s Daron Cruickshank. Vick shocked everyone in this contest by catching Cruickshank with a head kick just as Cruickshank was changing levels for a takedown for the knockout victory. Vick continued to impress on TUF, defeating Joe Proctor via decision in a bout that saw Vick utilize his length impressively.

In the semi-finals, Vick was matched up with Michael Chiesa (the eventual winner of the show). Vick appeared to be in control for the first round, utilizing strong takedown defence and long, powerful punches. However, in the second round, Chiesa was able to take Vick down and pound him out from the mount for his place in the finale and the continuation of TUF’s cinderella story.

Due to the nature of his semi-final loss, Vick was not cleared to fight at the TUF finale and instead took a year before making his official UFC debut. Vick served as the opening bout for the stacked UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs Sonnen card in Boston. In this bout, Vick faced TUF 13 runner-up Ramsey Nijem. Vick gave fans little time to see the skills he had been honing over the past year as it only took him 58 seconds to submit Ramsey with a guillotine/front naked choke off of a poor takedown attempt from Ramsey.

After less than one minute in the octagon, Vick would again take a year off before returning. In his return, he faced Valmir Lazaro at UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs Dos Anjos. Vick utilized his range and movement to take a unanimous decision from the Brazilian.

Vick showed a similar performance in his subsequent bout against "Sergeant" Nick Hein at UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs Edgar taking another unanimous decision in a bout that saw Vick’s reach be too much for the 5’ 8" German fighter.

The Bout:

Vick is the tallest fighter in the UFC’s lightweight division and obviously holds a height and reach advantage over Matthews. Up to this point in his UFC career, Vick has only shown to be a boxer with good takedown defence and good chokes from the front headlock position. For as much of a height advantage as he possesses, he acts similarly to Stefan Struve in he still finds ways to get tagged by smaller opponents (like Nick Hein)

Expect Vick to continue this trend, trying to avoid the submission chops of the talented Australian. He will most likely try to utilize a strategy of sticking his straight punches out and moving, but with the criticism for a lack of finishing instinct he has received over his last few wins, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him push the action more and try to snag a TKO finish.

Jake is the youngest male fighter on the UFC’s roster and his lack of experience hasn’t been a factor as of yet. Showing high fight IQ in his last two fights, I expect him to come with a smart game plan in this match as well. Shooting in for takedowns on Vick can be dangerous (just ask Ramsey Nijem), so expect Jake to employ a similar strategy to the one he used against Dashon Johnson - namely a clinch heavy attack, where he’ll look for trips and takedowns along the fence to employ his superior submission game and avoid the wheelhouse of Vick.

What does concern me about Jake is that he has opted to continue to train locally in Australia rather than at a larger camp. If anything has the possibility of creating a ceiling for this young talent, I think this might be it. Training at Jackson’s with his former TUF coach, Kyle Noke, and crew seems more beneficial than training with local fighters like Dan Kelly..

Prediction:

A tough fight between two young guns. I see more potential from Matthews, but right now I think Vick is able to defend the takedowns and use his long punches to take home a decision. If you have a specific fight (MMA or Kickboxing) that you would like me to break down pre or post fight, let me know in the comments section as well as who you think will win this matchup!