Introduction
Tuesday, September12th, Brazilian heavyweight prospect Jhonata Diniz will be in action for Dana White’s Contender Series, where he will be looking continue his winning ways against Eduardo Neves. He will be looking for another win, as Diniz looks to impress the UFC brass and score a UFC contract. He represents Santa Fe Team, a lesser-known camp in MMA. Let’s take a closer look at this prospect as this week’s “Prospect Spotlight.”
Strengths
Kickboxing: Diniz has had a long career in professional kickboxing, including double digits fights for the Glory promotion. He’s stepped in the ring with guys such as Rico Verhoeven, Daniel Ghita and Hesdy Gerges, tops guys in the heavyweight division. That style has transitioned over to MMA, where he is a devastating striker with excellent technique and power. All five of his MMA fights have come by first round knockout. There should be no confusion where Diniz’s bread and butter is.
Range: Diniz is a good, long fighter with excellent range. He’s 6’4″, but he also has long arms and legs, which helps him fight on the outside. He has a good jab and long kicks, which keep him at a distance from his opponent. Some tall fighters have a hard time adjusting to their own size on the feet; Diniz is not one of those guys.
Needs Improvement
Wrestling Question Marks: Diniz having such a long track record in the professional kickboxing world means that his grappling chops are going to be a big question mark. He can’t have the hours put in that most MMA guys, especially wrestlers, have on the mat. All of his fights are in Brazil, which isn’t exactly known for the type of wrestlers you see in the United States or Russia. He could be decent here, but we just don’t know. My guess is it’s the hole in his game.
Outlook
UFC Midcarder: Diniz has the benefit of fighting in the heavyweight division, which is notorious for being shallow on talent and constantly in need of skilled fighters. Seeing as he’s already proven himself a talented kickboxer, I think his transition to the UFC should be an easy one. There are already a good number of heavyweights on the roster Diniz could beat somewhat easily. The problem will be once he gets to fighting high level wrestlers, seeing as he’s got limited wrestling experience. I think Diniz will be a solid addition to the UFC.
MMA Intel 