Introduction
Saturday, January 17th, Polish heavyweight prospect Arkadiusz Wrzosek will be in action for KSW, where he will be looking continue his winning ways against Szymon Bajor. He will be looking for another win, as Wrzosek looks to inch closer to a UFC contract. He represents Copacabana, an unknown camp in MMA. Let’s take a closer look at this prospect as this week’s “Prospect Spotlight.”
Strengths
Kickboxing: Wrzosek is a striker by trade, given his extensive background with Glory Kickboxing. He has very heavy kicking ability to go with crisp hands, which he throws in combination well together. He has big-time power and great range, as he’s a long 6’7″ heavyweight that uses his size as prescribed. Four of his six MMA wins come by way of knockout, all but one of which came in the first round. If he’s able to keep the distance and stay out of effective shooting range, his opponents become sitting ducks.
Needs Improvement
Counter-Grappling: Given his background in kickboxing, the obvious deficiency in Wrzosek’s game is his grappling, specifically on the defensive. As we saw in his lone MMA loss to Phil de Fries, Wrzosek was quickly taken down and dominated by the English submission wrestler. It was a first-round submission in which de Fries dominated, exposing Wrzosek as he potentially takes on more wrestling-heavy fighters.
Outlook
Potential UFC Midcarder: His grappling deficiencies are always going to be problematic for Wrzosek, as he’s a career striker. As long as Phil de Fries is KSW Champion, I don’t see Wrzosek getting that belt. However, once his KSW contract runs its course, he should look to get to the UFC. He would be an exciting addition that Dana White and the crew would love given his kickboxing background. He could have a fun little career there, though any wrestler could prove a problem to the 33-year-old Pole.
MMA Intel 