Best Prospects of the Weekend (3/6-3/7)

After a somewhat slow week of regional MMA, we continue with another slower weekend in regional MMA scene. Here are quick notes on ten prospects to look out for this weekend:

1. Shane Collins (Featherweight, United States, 559 Fights): A1 Combat Featherweight Champion Shane Collins is looking to continue grabbing cage experience when he fights for 559 Fights this weekend. He’s quickly moving up the featherweight prospect rankings, possessing a strong all-around game and taking on increased competition. The undefeated American takes on his biggest test yet this weekend when he fights Azerbaijani Amin Gasimov.
2. Kazuki Aimoto (Featherweight, Japan, Rizin): My under-the-radar prospect to watch this weekend is Japan’s Kazuki Aimoto, an undefeated featherweight making his Rizin debut at just 25 years old. He slapped people around in the Deep promotion, using his outstanding striking skills to score stoppages in most of his nine wins. However, his Rizin debut has him in a very dangerous matchup against Vitkor Kolesnik, who could very well hand him his first “0”. Apparently, Rizin is very high on Aimoto or they wouldn’t provide him this fight.
3. John Sweeney (Bantamweight, United States, Rizin): Former LFA Champion John Sweeney lost his title on the scales his last time out, as he could not make weight for his title fight. That has lost him some favor, but he’s still a very intriguing prospect that runs with Stephen Thompson’s crew in South Carolina. He has mostly struggled against wrestling-heavy opponents, while striving when he’s able to move on the feet and bang. He takes on experienced Japanese vet Shoko Sato in his Rizin debut, which should be an advantageous matchup for the American.
4. Khurshed Kakhorov (Bantamweight, Tajikistan/Germany, Oktagon): At 33 years old, Kakhorov is getting up there in age for a prospect, but he’s no less dangerous despite approaching his mid-thirty’s. Kakhorov is a very aggressive striker with a great deal of knockout power. Since his lone loss to UFC vet to Brett Johns, Kakhorov has mashed through the competition in the PFL and even won a pro boxing bout. He has a tough test in Igor Severino, who is most infamously known for losing via DQ from biting his opponent in the UFC.
5. Shawn da Silva (Flyweight, Germany, Oktagon): Once considered a top flyweight prospect from Europe, Shawn da Silva lost that momentum in a loss to Lone’er Kavanaugh. Given we know how good Kavanaugh is, as he’s now with the UFC, I think we can safely say da Silva should still be among the top 125ers from Europe still. He’s a good, quick striker that has a solid mat game as well. He has a solid resume and is looking to add to that resume when he takes on Matheus Severino.
6. Summer Onley (Women’s Bantamweight, England, FCC): Undefeated and in an incredibly shallow women’s bantamweight division, Summer Onley is one of the few 135ers that looks like she has solid potential. She’s well-rounded with a solid kickboxing game and a strong submission arsenal. She has an extensive MMA career as both a pro and amateur. That said, she has a huge fight against her toughest opponent to date in Myllena Messias, which could be her ticket to the UFC with a win. Don’t count out Messias, though, as she’s one of the better female 135ers herself.
7. Mathilde Aschenbrenner (Women’s Strawweight, France, Hexagone): France’s recent boom in MMA has resulted in a number of prospects we are now seeing emerge in the sport, including women’s fighter Mathilde Aschenbrenner. The French fighter has just two pro bouts, but had a very extensive amateur career where she competed at a high level. She is an outstanding grapple, using the armbar as her go-to weapon. She has solid judo throws and takedowns, which is where she does most of her magic. She takes on a gimme-opponent this weekend in Alice Blackman, which will continue building her pro resume.
8. Lucas Armand (Heavyweight, United States, War at the Wex): Heavyweight prospects are hard to come by, so when a 5-0 big boy is set to fight, it grabs my attention. That’s what we have with Lucas Armand, a 6’4″, 260-pound giant that is known for his knockout ability. He’s scored two solid knockouts in his last couple fights, knocking out ONE vet Lawrence Phillips and UFC vet Braxton Smith. If he can continue winning, the UFC will not be far off as they are always looking for heavyweight talent. He takes on Lawrence Bonds here maybe looking for that UFC call or a shot on the Contender Series.
9. Kyven Gadson (Heavyweight, United States, War at the Wex): Sticking with the small “War at the Wex” show, we have another heavyweight in action in the form of 33-year-old Kyven Gadson. A late starter in MMA, Gadson is a former All-American wrestler from Iowa St. He has transferred that outstanding pedigree into mixed martial arts, where in the short time he’s been in the cage, he’s gone 1-0 as an amateur and 2-0 as a pro. His wrestling has been a big part of that, using his takedowns to transition to massive ground-and-pound and submissions. Gadson’s next opponent will be Chris Cameron, as he looks to continue his undefeated ways.
10. Moeri Suda (Women’s Atomweight, Japan, Deep): 21-year-old jiu-jitsu ace Moeri Suda has a ton of experience for a woman her age, which means she’s only going to add to her already strong skill set. While she’s coming off a loss going into her fight against Namiko Kawabata, Suda has proven herself an atomweight to watch, including her huge victory against former #1 atomweight in the world Ayaka Hamasaki. She looks to continue racking up wins using her vast submission arsenal.

LAST WEEK’S PROSPECT RESULTS:

1. Machi Fukuda led the week off early Monday morning, securing a submission win over Dan Bi Kim to keep her winning streak alive at Deep Jewels.
2. Tumelo Manyamala scored a split decision win over Ntando Zandi at EFC, further adding red flags to his prospect status.
3. Jaden Ortega scored another highlight-reel knockout over Ricardo Chavez at Combate Global, keeping his perfect record intact.
4. Julieta Martinez pushed her record to 10-0, scoring a TKO win over Jessica Solis at Lux Fight League.
5. Shuya Kamikubo hit a speedbump on his road to the UFC, falling via unanimous decision to Rafael do Nascimento in the LFA main event.
6. Theo Haig recovered from last year’s Contender Series loss, scoring a rear-naked choke win over Lance Wright in the LFA.
7. Zoe Nowicki dropped her first professional fight, falling by decision to Mariana Piccolo in the LFA.
8. Ramil Kamilov eeked out a decision victory over Romario Orozco in the co-main event of Unified MMA.
9. Javad Mahjoub moved to 5-0 with a TKO win over Pietro Gentile at Unified MMA.
10. Jasmine Favero kept her undefeated record, holding herself as one of the few women’s bantamweight prospects viable for the UFC.