UFC Fight Night: Dos Santos vs. Miocic

Junior Dos Santos (16-3) vs. Stipe Miocic (12-1)

Two heavyweight candidates look to get a shot at the belt on Saturday night as Junior Dos Santos and Stipe Miocic headline UFC Fight Night in Phoenix.

Dos Santos has not fought since he lost to Cain Velasquez on October 19, 2013. In that fight, he was thoroughly dominated, losing in the fifth round by a vicious slam and punch combination. He was supposed to fight Miocic in May in Brazil, but an injury forced him to miss the fight. When Dos Santos is healthy, he is one of the very best fighters in the sport. He has a victory against Velasquez, a fight in which he showed his elite knockout power. However, he is going up against a guy who has been on a tear as of late. Miocic enters Saturday on a three-fight winning streak, with his most recent match on May 31 lasting only 35 seconds against Fabio Maldonado, who filled in for Dos Santos. The 32-year-old firefighter from Independence, Ohio is a very good athlete for the heavyweight class, and his cardio is also very high for the class. Dos Santos is the more proven fighter, but MIOCIC has been on a tear as of late, and that will be enough for him to get the upset victory.

Miocic enters this fight with 12 victories in his career, with nine of them coming by way of knockout. He also has three wins by decision and zero submission victories. His biggest advantage in this fight will be his ability to take the fight to the mat, something imperative for him to do to get the victory. He has a takedown average of 2.13, while Dos Santos has a meager takedown average of 0.49. While Miocic, a former wrestler and baseball player at Cleveland State University, does not end fights by submitting his opponent, he does a great job of wearing his opponents down when taking them to the floor. If he is able get this fight on the mat, he will be in great shape to earn the win. However, if this fight turns into more of a brawl, then it will be playing right into Dos Santos’ strengths.

"Cigano" Dos Santos has 16 wins in his career, with 13 of them coming by way of knockout. He also has two wins by decision, and one by way of submission, which was a guillotine choke. While he does not land as many significant strikes (4.8) as Miocic does (5.26), Dos Santos, who has won 10-of-12 UFC bouts is a fearless striker who has the ability to end the fight in a hurry. However, if there is one weakness in his fighting style, it's that he can leave himself open to the major strike when he is attempting to deliver the knockout. Miocic has the ability to end the fight with one punch, so Dos Santos will have to pick his spots and not get crazy wild with his attempts.