Introduction
Saturday, July 20th, Brazilian heavyweight prospect Mario Piazzon will be in action for CFC, where he will be looking continue his winning ways against Andre Vieira. He will be looking for another win, as Piazzon looks to inch closer to a contract with the UFC. He represents Galpao da Luta, a solid camp in MMA. Let’s take a closer look at this prospect as this week’s “Prospect Spotlight.”
Strengths
Grinding Style: Piazzon has a very grinding style, as showcased in his Contender Series bout with Alexander Soldatkin. In that fight, Piazzon actually surprised the Russian by being offensive in his grappling and grinding on him in the clinch against the cage. That style is brutal on his opponent’s cardio, as they have to hold his weight while he scores and gets the points advantage.
Power Striking: Piazzon has five knockouts on his record and possesses big-time power in his hands. In addition to his solid ground-and-pound, he has shown he has one-punch KO power on the feet. All five of his knockouts come in the first round, which shows he gets off to a hot start. He has solid dirty boxing in close as well.
Needs Improvement
Gas Tank: As we saw in his Contender Series bout, Piazzon has stamina issues as the fight goes on. After dominating Soldatkin in the clinch, Piazzon ran out of gas and started losing in the third round before that illegal strike ended the bout (in favor of Piazzon). Most of his fights ended in the first round, so his body is not used to three hard rounds, which could contribute.
Outlook
UFC Prelim Fighter: Piazzon is certainly a skilled enough fighter to make the UFC, though those gas tank issues could be harmful. That said, he has a fight against another top Brazilian heavyweight prospect in Andre Vieira, so this could be a second audition to make the UFC or DWCS. If he makes the roster, I think he relegates to a prelim fighter during his tenure.
MMA Intel 