Welterweight Division

#46 MMA Prospect: Assan Njie

Profile:

Assan Njie has been in the sport longer than most would have expected. He got his start way back in 2002 as an 18-year old amateur. He struggled for most of his early career, mustering up just a 5-5 overall amateur record. Njie was primarily competing as a Middleweight and eventually turned pro in 2006. He lost his first career fight, but soon bounced back with a surprising 7-fight win streak, including wins over European prospects Alex Makhonin and Florent Betorangal.

Njie’s winning streak would soon come to a halt as he dropped a decision to European veteran Robert Jocz. Njie rebounded once again, winning his next 3 fights via finish before making the official move down to Welterweight.

Njie has since extended his winning streak to 6 overall as he won his last 3 fights over some of Europe’s top Welterweight fighters including the likes of Beslan Isaev, Steven Ray, and Morten Djursaa. Njie also captured the Zone FC Welterweight championship in his most recent fight, but has yet to defend the title in over a year. Njie has not fought since May of 2012. He had supposedly signed an exclusive contract with an upstart Scandinavian promotion named Royal Combat in late 2012, but nothing every came to fruition.

Camp/ Country:

Njie trains out of GBG MMA, which is located in Sweden. The gym has lost some of its most notable names recently, including Akira Corassani, but it’s still considered one of the better camps in Sweden. Sirwan Kakai, who was featured in the Bantamweight Prospects Report also trains out of GBG. They aren’t well known outside of Europe, though they have found recent success sending a few of their fighters to The Ultimate Fighter tapings.

Career Forecast

I am a bit mystified as to why Njie has not received more opportunities to fight in bigger promotions across Europe. Though he recently got a shot in Cage Warriors FC, it looks as if he wasn’t signed to a long term deal. Njie has struggled to find fights as of late, but he needs to stay active to remain on the UFC’s radar. The UFC will likely be making an annual trip to Sweden due to Alexander Gustafsson’s success, so Njie should be one of the top contender to be signed if he can continue to rack up wins. It’s been over a year since Njie’s last fight, so he needs to somehow find a way to stay active, even if it means facing lackluster competition for smaller paydays.

I was very impressed by what I saw on tape of Assan Njie. He was dangerous on the feet with good knees and powerful punches. Njie has previously trained at Golden Glory and Chute Boxe, which should explain his aptitude for striking. Not to be overshadowed, but his takedowns and overall grappling looked much better than what was previously advertised, and he has an excellent guillotine that has quickly become his go-to move.

Njie’s conditioning is still somewhat of a mystery. He has a very aggressive style and though he usually achieves the early finish victory, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him struggle in the latter rounds. Njie’s ground game has improved tremendously over the last couple of years. Yet, part of me still has concern as to how Njie would fair against UFC-level competition. Njie loves to use his guillotine, but he will likely need to diversify his submission game in order to not become a one trick pony.

Njie is 29 years old and likely in the prime of his career. He needs to stop wasting time and start racking up a few wins to get his record to around 16-2, which should bring him some needed attention and possibly some stateside suitors. Should he sign with the UFC, I could see him finding immediate success against the bottom half of the UFC’s Welterweight roster. I am still a bit hesitant to claim he could beat Top 25 competition, but his aggressive style should lend itself towards making him a fan favorite immediately. Hopefully, once the UFC returns to Sweden in 2014, Njie will receive the call he has been waiting for.

Statistics

Videos

Video 1: Njie vs. Beslan Isaev (2011)

Video 2: Isaev Highlights

Other Links

Twitter: None
Sherdog Profile: http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Assan-Njie-6858

Welterweight Division

#47 MMA Prospect: Myung Ho Bae

Profile:

Myung Ho Bae is the reigning Legend FC Welterweight champion. He was also offered a UFC contract in 2012, but was forced to turn it down due to his Legacy FC contract. This has obviously left Bae very upset and with military obligations keeping him home until 2015, the window could be closing on Bae’s opportunity to fight stateside.

Not much is known about Bae’s athletic background prior to entering mixed martial arts. I was able to find out that he played baseball growing up, but he never made it to the professional ranks. When he was 17 years old, his brother passed away, which ultimately fueled his desire to enter MMA. Bae started his career as a Middleweight, but struggled out of the gates to a 1-3 record.

Bae soon dropped the extra 15 pounds and upon his return as a Welterweight, he started racking up wins, 6 overall, before losing a close majority decision to Fabio Nascimento. Bae bounced back with a win in the DEEP organization and was soon offered a fight with former DREAM champion Marius Zaromskis on just 10 day’s notice. Bae accepted the fight, but he was knocked out via head kick in the opening seconds of their bout.

Bae never fought for DREAM again, but soon signed with Legend FC. He fought exclusively for them over the next 3 years, going 5-0 overall, and winning their Welterweight championship. In 2012, he was offered a UFC contract as the UFC was about to put on their first ever show in Macau. Legend FC claimed they had contractual rights that prohibited Bae from leaving their promotion, and ultimately put a stop to the UFC’s pursuit of Bae.

Bae struggled with injuries for much of 2012, and also did little to hide the facts behind his fractured relationship with Legacy FC. Bae’s career took another curveball as he was obligated to serve in the military until 2015. Since he was was obligated to stay in South Korea, Legacy FC allowed Bae to fight temporarily for the Korean-based Road FC promotion. In Bae’s 2013 Road FC debut he faced DREAM veteran and Vitor Belfort understudy Andrews Nakahara. It was a close fight throughout, and though most people had it being scored for Bae, the fight was ruled a draw. There has been no timetable set for Bae’s next fight.

Camp/ Country:

Bae trains out of Busan Team M.A.D, which is truly turning into one of the premier camps in all of South Korea. Thus far Dong Hyun Kim and Kyung Ho Kang are their lone UFC representatives, but they also have Sang Soo Lee, Nam Jin Jo, and Hae Jun Yang as a part of their stable.

Career Forecast

Myung Ho Bae was forced to experience a prospect’s worst nightmare, which is for the regional show they are competing in to deny their ability to sign with the UFC. Though it rarely happens, there have been recent evidences of this happening with Darren Uyenoyama and Yoislandy Izquierdo. In addition, now that Bae’s military requirements kicked in, it looks as if he’s going to be locked down in Legend FC for the next couple of years. Bae has to hope that Legend FC will eventually look to crown an interim Welterweight champion and let him out of his contract, but we have seen promotions like Legend FC and One FC become very protective over their fighters.

Moving on to Bae’s actual skill set, he is a very skilled grappler and fights a similar style to that of his teammate and UFC contender Dong Hyun Kim. Bae’s finishing percentage is pretty much non-existent, but that doesn’t mean he is not effective at what he does. He has a very suffocating style of grappling, and is adept at draining the will out of his opponents. His striking has improved dramatically over the last couple of years as well. He is still sloppy with his technique, but his overall timing and footwork is much better, evidenced by his willingness to exchange strikes with Andrews Nakahara. Bae likes to push the pace, and that style combined with his excellent cardio makes him a very difficult fighter to beat.

Bae’s weaknesses still revolve around his overall striking. He still sits in front of his opponents way too long and against a skilled striker, he’s going to get his head taken off, a la his Zaromskis fight. Bae lunges with a lot of his punches as well, which leaves him wide open for counters. He does the same thing with many of his takedown attempts, which should eventually lead to him getting hit with a huge knee. His gritty, hard-nosed demeanor makes up for some of these mistakes, but he will eventually run into more seasoned competition that will take advantage of these openings.

Bae has also drawn some fandom for being a bit of a sparkplug in the MMA media. He has done some modeling as well, which as we have seen, did wonders for Yoshihiro Akiyama’s popularity. Bae has an edge about him that could translate well should he be able move on to the UFC.

Regarding Bae’s success had he signed with the UFC, I could have envisioned him holding his own with the bottom half of the UFC’s Welterweight roster. I think he would struggle against some of the better strikers and wrestlers, but based off the recent success of Dong Hyun Kim, Bae has a chance to be a real player in the UFC if he can somehow break free of his Legacy FC contract.

Statistics

Videos

Video 1: Bae vs. Andrews Nakahara (2013)

Video 2: Bae Highlights

Other Links

Twitter: None
Sherdog Profile: http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Myung-Ho-Bae-15046

Welterweight Division

#48 MMA Prospect: Mike Rhodes

Profile:

Mike “Biggie” Rhodes had no plans of being a mixed martial artist growing up. He simply wanted to get his degree and play basketball at a 4-year college. Yet, as fate would have it, Rhodes was unable to secure a scholarship and ended up joining a local kickboxing gym to get in shape. Those early workouts soon changed his life as Rhodes began to fall in love with the sport of MMA.

Rhodes grew up in a rough neighborhood. Luckily, he had a knack for basketball, and that combined with his good grades allowed him to get his degree at Northern Iowa University. Rhodes began training in MMA while in school, but upon graduation moved full-time to Roufusport.

Rhodes began his amateur career in 2011 as a Heavyweight. He slowly dropped the pounds and by the time he made his pro debut a year later, he was down to 185 lbs. Rhodes won his first 2 fights at Middleweight before dropping down to his current weight class of 170 lbs. Rhodes won his next 2 fights via finish, improving his overall record to 4-0. His first true test came in the blink of an eye as signed on with the Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA) as a last minute replacement to face top-level prospect Brandon Thatch.

Thatch was on the verge of signing with the UFC heading into their bout, while Rhodes was still trying to get his feet wet in the sport. It showed come fight night as Thatch was able to submit Rhodes in just under 3 minutes. It wasn’t a complete loss for Rhodes though as he showed some brief fortitude early in their fight and seemed unafraid to engage with Thatch.

Despite the loss, Rhodes was now a part of RFA’s roster, which is considered to be one of the top feeder leagues into the UFC. Rhodes made his return to the RFA cage a few months later, finishing fellow prospect Benjamin Smith via 1st round TKO.

Camp/ Country:

Rhodes trains out of Roufusport, home to some of the top MMA fighters in the sport such as Anthony Pettis, Ben Askren, Erik Koch, and Alan Belcher. Rhodes has talked about the daily improvements he has made training wrestling with Askren and striking with the likes of Koch and Pettis.

Head coach Duke Roufus has made it known that he believes Rhodes is ready for bigger and better things at this point in his career. Placing him in a fight with Thatch was a calculated risk they were willing to take because it not only got Rhodes on the radar of MMA media and fans, but it gave them a chance to see what improvements Rhodes still needs to make in order to get to Thatch’s level of fighting.

Career Forecast

Mike Rhodes showed a lot of promise based off the available fight footage I could find. He has great size (6’0), movement, and overall power in his hands. The fact that he trains out of Roufusport only enhances his prospect status. At just 23 years old, Rhodes still has time on his side to get the training he needs to hopefully one day compete at the UFC level.

Rhodes is a former heavyweight, but don’t let that fool you, he is quite light on his feet for a former big man. He also has power in his hands and his reach is a huge asset in creating the necessary distance for controlling the pace. Rhodes’ wrestling has continued to improve in recent months ever since Askren’s recent arrival to Roufusport. Prior to getting swept and submitted by Thatch, Rhodes was the one who scored with the takedown. He may not have elite level wrestling, but he has just enough to make his opponents worry about the possible threat.

Rhodes’ big question marks come down to his lack of grappling and experience. Rhodes is still quite green despite a 6-2 amateur career, and a 5-1 pro record. He is still in a way testing the waters in what type of fighter he wants to be. He seems to prefer looking for the knockout, but he is slowly starting to add some tools to his repertoire, which has made a more well-rounded fighter. Rhodes’ grappling still needs work. From what available footage I was able to find, he struggles off his back and that gives me concern knowing that he does not have the pedigree of some college level wrestlers or Jiu-Jitsu fighters. Rhodes has thus far gotten by with what he’s learned on the fly at Roufusport and his overall athleticism. I’m not sure if that’s going to be enough to carry him once he reaches the UFC or Bellator, so he needs to truly dedicate himself towards working on his ground game.

I think Rhodes has a solid chance at one day signing with the UFC and winning fights. If he can improve his explosiveness and overall killer instinct, Rhodes can be a beast. He still has a ways to go, but he certainly has the potential to make it.

Statistics

Videos

Video 1: Rhodes vs. Zak Ottow (2012)

Video 2: Rhodes Interview

Other Links

Twitter: None
Sherdog Profile: http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Mike-Rhodes-87296

Welterweight Division

#49 MMA Prospect: Hernani Perpetuo

Profile:

Hernani Perpetuo looks to be the next man up in Brazil’s famed Nova Uniao camp, which usually means a UFC contract is not far behind. Nova Uniao head coach Andre Pederneiras recently said that he expects Perpetuo to be the next big star from his camp. Those are bold words considering Jose Aldo and Renan Barao’s recent successes.

Perpetuo was primarily involved in kickboxing and other striking arts during his youth. He soon transitioned over to MMA and made his respective debut at age 20 in 2005. Perpetuo was still competing in various striking tournaments so his MMA career took a backseat from 2005 to 2007, where he only fought 3 times, winning each bout.

In late 2007, Perpetuo, with the support of his Nova Uniao camp, decided it was time to dedicate himself full-time towards being a mixed martial artist. He started competing in Shooto Brazil, which is overseen by his head coach Pederneiras. Perpetuo quickly raced out to 3 straight finishes before ultimately falling to fellow prospect Igor Fernandes.

Perpetuo won his next 2 fights, including a win over prospect Wendell Oliveira, but his momentum soon came to an end due to an unfortunate series of events over his next 5 fights. It all started as Perpetuo suffered an injury in his Shooto Brazil 13 bout, which not only forced the stoppage of his fight, but he was soon forced to the sidelines for nearly a year. He was able to win his return bout via KO, but soon lost via armbar to veteran Romario Silva. Perpetuo avenged the loss just one fight later, winning via decision, but the damage was already done regarding Perpetuo’s top prospect status. Perpetuo’s troubles were not over yet as he lost his next bout to Marcos Santanta due to a cut, though it was soon overturned to a no contest.

Perpetuo was able to put his string of bad luck behind him as he entered a 4-man, 1-night tournament, which showcased some of Brazil’s top Welterweight stars including PRIDE veteran Daniel Acacio, UFC vet Edilberto Oliveira, and future TUF Brazil 2 participant Viscardi Andrade. Perpetuo was one of the darkhorses, but after 6 rounds of fighting, he was the last man standing, defeating Acacio and Oliveira to win the 1-night tournament.

Though both of his wins in the tournament were ultra-close decisions, Perpetuo had reclaimed his top prospect status amongst Brazilian welterweights. He has since won his last 4 straight fights, including recent victories over respected Brazilians Andre Santos and Sergio Souza, while also capturing the Shooto Brazil Welterweight Championship.

Camp/ Country:

Perpetuo has been a fixture at Brazil’s world-renowned training camp Nova Uniao. Nova Uniao has been an ideal place for Perpetuo to round out his grappling skills and hopefully bring his game to the next level. Nova Uniao has a solid relationship with the UFC and Bellator. The only problem in Perpetuo’s case is that Nova Uniao is home to so much talent. Nova Uniao is extremely loyal to their elder fighters and a seniority system is somewhat in place. When head coach Andre Pederneiras is called by matchmakers for last minute injury replacements, he usually offers up one his veteran fighters though there have been exceptions.

Luckily, for Perpetuo he seems to be the next man up on Nova Uniao’s Welterweight roster. Nova Uniao has recently sent their oldest welterweights Luis Ramos and Amilcar Alves to the UFC, while also having Yan Cabral and Leonardo Santos participate in TUF Brazil 2. All of the elder statesmen have now been given their shot in the UFC, so Perpetuo will likely be the next name out of Pederneiras’ mouth should the UFC need an injury replacement at Welterweight.

Career Forecast

I was not blown away by what I saw on tape of Perpetuo. He didn’t seem as explosive or aggressive as I had previously thought. He seemed to lack a killer instinct and just looked very above average with his overall skill level. Perpetuo has rounded out his ground game over the years, so that should give him a better chance to succeed at the higher levels of MMA, but he will have to step up his game considerably to prove a better fate than his teammates Luis Ramos and Amilcar Alves managed (combined 0-4 in the UFC).

Perpetuo by all accounts is an outstanding striker for the Brazilian regional circuit. He has participated in a variety of kickboxing tournaments and has more than held his own. I watched some various tape of Perpetuo without MMA rules and he is a completely different fighter. He is more aggressive, throwing spinning kicks and looking to knock his opponent out.

So, either Perpetuo is hesitant to unleash his full striking arsenal in MMA fights due to being taken down or he has simply become a more patient, methodical fighter. It could be a mix of both, but the hope is that once Perpetuo takes his skills to the next level he will truly look to showcase his skills rather than hide his weaknesses.

Perpetuo just turned 28 years old, so he is entering the prime of his career. Perpetuo will likely struggle with his wrestling at the UFC level, but he does bring good size to the table and is a very cerebral fighter in knowing what it takes to win close decisions. Perpetuo is very tough with a good chin and excellent cardio.

Perpetuo’s potential success in the UFC will all come down to what type of fighter shows up come fight time. Will he be the conservative, hit and move type of fighter that is simply trying to win off points, or will he truly look to showcase his striking like Edson Barboza has done. Ultimately, it will come down to matchups, but Perpetuo has a very good shot at sticking around the UFC if he can simply turn up the volume on his aggressiveness.

Statistics

Videos

Video 1: Perpetuo vs. Romario Silva (2010)

Video 2: Perpetuo Highlights

Other Links

Twitter: None
Sherdog Profile: http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Hernani-Perpetuo-28185

Welterweight Division

#50 MMA Prospect: Chidi Njokuani

Profile:

Chidi “Chidi Bang Bang” will likely be making his way to the UFC in 2014. He’s not quite ready yet, but he is finally starting to come into his own as a fighter and he would want nothing more to fight alongside his older brother on a future UFC card.

Chidi was born in the USA after his family had immigrated from Nigeria. His elder brother, Anthony, led the way towards getting him involved in mixed martial arts at a very young age. After first getting his base in Muay Thai, Chidi moved over to MMA where he made his debut in 2007 at just 18 years old. Chidi won his first 2 career fights over the course of 2+ years before moving up in competition to face TUF 11’s Warren Thompson and future UFC vet Jorge Lopez. Njokuani lost both fights in the 1st round, signaling that there was much work still to be done in preparing him for a future career in the UFC.

Chidi was able to bounce back with 3 straight finish victories including a win over fellow prospect Alan Jouban. Njokuani soon set his sights on another top prospect, recent UFC signee Brandon Thatch. The fight did not last long though as Njokuani was finished within a minute of the 1st round.

Chidi bounced around between various mid-level promotions, Legacy FC and Tachi PF, where he was able to score 1st round finishes over Jonathan Harris and John Reedy. Midway through 2012, Chidi was offered a contract by the prospect-rich Resurrection Fight Alliance promotion. Njokuani quickly extended his winning streak to 4 as he knocked off Bobby Cooper and Phil Dace to bring his overall record to 9-3.

Njokuani was ready to test himself against another rising prospect, this time accepting a catchweight (177.5) fight with Jeremy Kimball. Both fighters ended up missing weight, and the bout ended up being fought at 180 lbs. Njokuani’s grappling looked much improved in the 1st round, but he eventually was taken down and submitted in the 2nd. Kimball was supposedly offered a Bellator contract after the fight, while Njokuani’s road to the UFC will likely require a few more wins, hopefully starting with his scheduled August showdown with Bellator veteran LeVon Maynard.

Camp/ Country:

Njokuani trains alongside his brother at Janjira Muay Thai, which is home to top striking coach Saekson Janjira. The Njokuani brothers also train out of One Kick Gym and Sergio Penha’s BJJ. Stephan Bonnar and Steve Cantwell trained out of One Kick Gym for awhile, while Bellator’s David Rickels is probably the most notable name to come out of Janjira Muay Thai. As long as Njokuani is getting some type of regular exposure to high-level wrestlers, he really doesn’t have to worry about anything else. He should already have connections to most major promotions, since his older brother is a fairly well known veteran in the UFC.

Career Forecast

Chidi’s career looked to be on the upswing heading into his 2013 bout with Middleweight prospect Jeremy Kimball. Njokuani was likely on the verge of a UFC deal after an impressive 4-0 run in 2012. Yet, Chidi made a a mistake accepting the fight with a tougher than expected Kimball, especially considering it was set to be contested at a catchweight of 177.5 lbs. Though Njokuani was strong early, his grappling once again failed him as Kimball choked him out in the 2nd round.

The Njokuani brothers have very similar skills, body types, fighting styles, and weaknesses. Even though you can see the improvements in their overall grappling skills, they continue to struggle against bigger, stronger wrestlers. When Chidi can keep his fights standing, he is truly one of the most dangerous strikers in the sport. His long wingspan provides him a distinct advantage in unleashing his brutal Muay Thai and kickboxing attacks. Chidi also has a better killer instinct at this point in his career than his brother.

For him to take that next step, he is going to have to truly start working on his wrestling full-time. Chidi’s long, lean body type does not hold up well against wrestling-based opponents. Though unlikely, an eventual move to Middleweight could breathe new life into Njokuani’s career. He would keep his speed and size advantage, while also allowing himself to gain the necessary muscle and weight needed to take his game to the next level. Chidi has the ideal frame to become a beast at 185. Take Uriah Hall for example, who is 3 inches shorter than Chidi, and has pretty much became an overnight star thanks to his striking talents. Hall’s overall grappling game is not much better than Chidi’s, but Hall has made the necessary adjustments with his style and training regimen to up his game over the years. Chidi needs to adapt a similar philosophy because his Muay Thai will only take him so far.

At this point in time my expectations for Chidi are very aligned with what Anthony has done in his UFC/WEC career. I think Chidi can carve out a nice UFC career as long as he is matched up against fellow strikers, but his career will likely be plagued with inconsistency.

So, then why is Chidi still considered a Top 10 prospect if we know he’s likely going to be .500 fighter in the UFC? After watching Anthony and Chidi’s last few fights, it’s very noticeable that they are starting to make real improvements with their grappling. While Anthony is already 33 years old, Chidi is just 24. He still has plenty of time to get into the gym and truly round out his skill set in order to eliminate the inconsistency that has so far defined his career. Being a .500 fighter in the UFC is a difficult task, so knowing that is the likely worst case scenario for Chidi, I will take my chances with the potential he may one day have.

Statistics

Videos

Video 1: Njokuani vs. Jonathan Harris (2012)

Video 2: Njokuani Highlights

Other Links

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChidiBangNjoku
Sherdog Profile: http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Chidi-Njokuani-25761