Introduction
Saturday, November 15th, Canadian flyweight prospect Tommy Morrisson will be in action for Samourai MMA, where he will be looking continue his winning ways against David Perez. He will be looking for another win, as Morrisson looks to score a UFC contract. He represents Tristar Gym, a legendary camp in MMA. Let’s take a closer look at this prospect as this week’s “Prospect Spotlight.”
Strengths
Grappling: A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Morrisson does his best work when he’s on the mat with his opponents. He has excellent control and transitions when the fight becomes a mat war. He rarely makes mistakes or gives up position. While his offensive wrestling isn’t going to be confused with Bo Nickal’s, it’s solid nonetheless, as is his sprawl/defensive wrestling and grappling. He has no submission wins as a pro, but has also shown some precise ground-and-pound that scores him points.
Fundamentals: Morrisson, like many at Tristar Gym, are fundamentally sound in all aspects of the game, though outside of his jiu-jitsu prowess, nothing is a major stand out. He has solid movement on the feet and technical striking when it comes to the basics: solid leg kicks, good hand combinations and solid in-and-out/lateral movement. He is a prototypical Tristar fighter that isn’t going to have glaring weaknesses and is tough.
Needs Improvement
Lack of Finishing/Close Fights: The big knock on Morrisson, especially if he desires to make it to the UFC, is his lack of finishing fights. Though he’s undefeated, which in and of itself is impressive, he has just one finish in nine pro wins. A few of his fights that have gone to decision have been close and knowing how off judges can be, could have gone the other way if a judge had viewed the fight even slightly different. He is going to need to start looking for finishes or he’s going to be a top REGIONAL flyweight for the foreseeable future, as opposed to a big-league flyweight.
Outlook
UFC Prelim Fighter: I think Morrisson is one of the better prospects currently outside a big-three organization and just needs the opportunity to show that. His lack of finishes is definitely a deterrent on this record, but he has two things going for him: he’s undefeated and he’s Canadian, a market the UFC traditionally tries to draw talent to and for. He has a very winnable fight here against an opponent he should be able to finish. If he can do that and continue collecting wins in impressive fashion, he’ll be undeniable to the UFC ranks in the future.
MMA Intel 