Coaches see the sport differently and look at the sport differently than anyone else, picking up on different things and paying attention to movements, habits, or intangible pieces that others might not notice, but that could have a significant impact on the action inside the Octagon.
Every matchup offers its own unique collection of elements that might pique a coach’s interest and get them paying a little closer attention to once the fight gets underway.
So what is that one thing in this matchup?
Madden: If I’m looking for something from Charles in particular, I would love to see him stay just a little more disciplined. When you fight a guy like Islam, one mistake can cost you the fight, so I do want to see Charles a little bit more defensively responsible.
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I know it’s his style, but every fight, he’s on his ***, he’s taking these shots, and those are going to catch up to you some day. Getting dropped is not a requirement, so I’m hoping to see if they’ve changed that a little bit; see if he’s a little more defensively responsible, a little more disciplined this fight.
Krause: I’m interested to see if Charles engages in the grappling or not. He seems to be confident that he is the best grappler in the UFC, and I think it would be a mistake on his part to really engage the grappling of Makhachev.
That’s not to say that he can’t grapple with him, but what I think might happen is that he gets tired sitting on his back, and once that power goes away on the feet, and once the sweat settles in, it’s going to be difficult to submit Makhachev. And those guys can wrestle all f****** day; they don’t get tired!
So, for me, it’s will Oliveira engage in the grappling, because I really think he should stuff the takedown and keep the fight standing, if he can. I don’t think he can, but I really don’t think you’re going to see him try to, either.
Sean Madden is an independent striking coach who spent a number of years working with the Elevation Fight Team in Denver, Colorado. Most recently, he helped sharpen Lauren Murphy’s striking ahead of her upset win over Miesha Tate.
James Krause is the head coach at Glory MMA & Fitness in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, home of veteran UFC talents like Tim Elliott, Julian Marquez, Jeff Molina, and interim flyweight titleholder Brandon Moreno.
