Best Prospects of Week (5/29-5/31)

After a solid weekend of regional MMA, we continue with another busy weekend in the regional MMA scene. Here are quick notes on ten prospects to look out for this weekend:

1. George Mangos (Featherweight, Australia, Road to UFC): The first of five prospects taking part in the first round of the Road to UFC tournament, Australia’s George Mangos gets his second shot at the UFC after failing to make the roster in a losing effort on last year’s Contender Series. Mangos is a very well-rounded fighter and just 22 years old, meaning that he’s this young and already this good. He has very good striking and a strong ground game. which he has used in finishing all of his wins. In the quarterfinals of Road to UFC, Mangos will fight Yuito Yanagawa.
2. Farida Abdueva (Women’s Strawweight, Kyrgyzstan, Road to UFC): Sticking with the trend of 22-year-olds, Farida Abdueva is one of the female fighters in the stacked Road to UFC women’s strawweight tournament bracket. She has pro kickboxing experience, which explains why her striking is very good and effective. She also has good offensive grappling when she’s able to work her wrestling. The former Octagon Champion will fight Road to UFC vet Xiaocan Feng in the first round of the tournament.
3. Arisa Matsuda (Women’s Strawweight, Japan, Road to UFC): A former baseball player, Arisa Matsuda has now become a top women’s prospect in the sport of MMA and now takes to the Road to UFC tournament in an effort to make the UFC roster. She combines solid striking with a strong ground game, scoring one knockout and three submissions in eight victories. She’s the current CFFC Champion, which she won by armbarring Ayan Tursyn in her biggest win to date. She had a one-off fight in the Road to UFC last year, so this is not her first exposure to the company. She fights tournament favorite Bo Meng in the first round.
4. Kasib Murdoch (Bantamweight, Australia, Road to UFC): We head back to the men’s portion of the tournament with bantamweight Kasib Murdoch, an undefeated Aussie with the knack for the finish. In fact, all but one of his wins come by way of finish, with his ground game being the cause for most of those wins. He is the Hex Fight Series Champion and has defended that belt a couple times, making him one of the more accomplished prospects currently coming out of Australia. He fights Yunosuke Minami in the quarterfinal round.
5. Joseph Larcinese (Flyweight, Australia, Road to UFC): The last Road to UFC prospect we will look at is Eternal MMA Champion Joseph Larcinese. The undefeated Australian is a strong submission grappler with good ground-and-pound. All five of his pro victories come by finish, with four taps and one TKO. His Road to UFC quarterfinal bout will be against Ryoga Arimoto.
6. Lucas Fernando (Light Heavyweight, Brazil, LFA): The LFA also has a very good card this weekend with Brazilian prospect Lucas Fernando in the headlining fight. Fernando is a fun striker to watch that mixes techniques well, as well as his strikes to the head, body and legs. He’s the reigning, defending LFA Light Heavyweight Champion and looks to defend that belt this weekend against Leon Soares.
7. Jefferson Nascimento (Lightweight, Brazil, LFA): Also on that LFA card is undefeated Brazilian prospect Jefferson Nascimento, one of the better lightweights outside of the UFC. After a two-year layoff, Nascimento returned in the third quarter of last year and kept his perfect record intact. He is very well-rounded, possessing solid striking and good submission ability. He will fight Gian Maurente this weekend.
8. Reginaldo Junior (Welterweight, Brazil, LFA): The last LFA prospect we will focus in on is Reginaldo Junior, yet another top Brazilian prospect. A Fighting Nerds rep, Junior has nasty one-punch knockout power and a good overall striking game. He also has a solid grappling acumen to go with that striking game, making him all-around dangerous. He fights Claudio Nardo this weekend at LFA.
9. Dias Erengaipov (Flyweight, Kazakhstan, Brave CF): Possibly the best flyweight outside the UFC right now, Dias Erengaipov fights for Brave CF against Ismail Khan. Erengaipov is very well-rounded and is excellent at stifling his opponents in the cage. He has a strong strength of schedule as well, showing he’s truly battle tested. He’s a guy that could compete on the UFC roster right now.
10. Alan Salamov (Welterweight, Russia, Fury FC): 25-year-old Russian welterweight Alan Salamov makes his US debut this weekend at Fury FC in the main event against Trukon Carson. While he’s officially 6-0, he’s far more experienced than his record indicates, as he has almost a dozen “modified rules” MMA fights that don’t get attributed to his record (he won all of those). He is a nasty, entertaining striker that even has two finishes by knees. He certainly has a violent style that American fans will love.

LAST WEEK’S PROSPECT RESULTS

1. Ze Machado scored the biggest win of his career in the WOW main event, scoring a TKO win over Henrique Barbosa to move to 6-0.
2. Jonathan Piersma defeated TUF veteran Diego Bianchini in the main event at LFA, scoring a TKO on the ground.
3. Richie Miranda also retained his LFA title, as he submitted Robert Varricchio with a nasty bulldog choke in the second round.
4. Patrick Habirora made mincemeat of MMA legend Benson Henderson in the PFL Brussels main event, needing just seconds to score the knockout victory.
5. Boris Atangana absolutely decimated UFC veteran Jared Gooden via TKO at PFL Brussels.
6. Asael Adjoudj scored another in his win column with an impressive knockout finish of Road to UFC vet Keisuke Sasu at PFL Brussels.
7. Baris Adiguzel took a submission loss via guillotine choke to fellow Euro prospect Gustavo Oliveira at PFL Brussels.
8. Ezra Elliott did not compete in his originally scheduled bout.
9. Jair Farias won a split decision victory in the main event of Money Moicano MMA over Ricardo de Almeida.
10. So Yul Kim was upset in her fight for Deep Jewels, falling to Nonoka Sakimoto by decision.