Blind Reacting to MMA Prospects Vol. 20

Instead of doing just one prospect, I decided to do three prospects I've never watched and give my honest review.

Bantamweight, Lawrence Lui (5-1)

Pros

• Uses feints well

• Good ability to get back to his feet

• Stiff jab

• Good elbows

Cons

• Cage wrestling lacks

• Is a bit stiff

• Turtles up against extended combinations

• Head sits on the centerline

• Will load up at times

It won't be a surprise to anyone that someone from City Kickboxing is a primary striker. Lui is just that and being from that camp it's obvious his takedown defense has been tested. All and all he's struggled. He's better at defending in space because he can sprawl well. He does have in issue loading up and getting blast doubled. He struggles even more with the cage wrestling and that's not where you wanna struggle the most. The good thing for him is he does a good job of getting back to his feet. He'll push down on the head and use the cage to get back to his feet. It's happening against lesser guys so it's a concern as he fights better competition.

He has some significant gaps on the feet and it's not a good sign when that's where he wants the fight to take place. Where his best strikes come from is when he's breaking from the clinch and when he's returning punches. Apart of his game is standing in the pocket taking damage and returning of his own. His striking defense is a big gray area. He waits to get hit first and when someone presses him with punches he tends to curl up and take it. Lui has good tools and techniques to build off of. Unfortunately, he needs too much work and won't be added to my watchlist. Has potential but I can see that never coming to light.

Featherweight, Sakhi Qambari (6-1)

Pros

• Light footwork

• A lot of volume

• Athletic

• Good ground and pound

• Explosive

• Dynamic

• Submission threat

• Solid kickboxing

Cons

• Gives up his back too easy

• TDD needs work

• Questionable fight IQ

• Slows as the fight goes

Qambari lost in his pro debut and hasn't lost since winning six in a row. In that fight, he was winning handily but didn't pace himself and he gassed out. He's paced himself better since going three rounds in his next fight and looked good. I will say his last fight he went three rounds and he did slow but looked off that fight. With some cardio concerns, his biggest flaw is mental mistakes. Qambari is someone who will jump a position. He loves to go the leg locks but that's never a good idea in MMA. He's tricky and although that could work to his favor it could also be his detriment.

I'd like for him to focus more on his striking because the skill is there. I like the way he blends in his kicks and punches in combinations but he doesn't do it enough. A large part of his game is lateral movement and a lot of kicks. Qambari likes to show his dynamic ability by doing spinning stuff and loves to throw a flying knee. I'm gonna hold off adding him to my watch list because he's beaten bums. I wanna see him fight at least someone decent before I'm in or out on him.

Featherweight, Shermurat Kalilov (10-0)

Pros

• Hits hard

• Dynamic

• Scrambles bell

• Hard to read

• Good ground and pound

Cons

• Low volume/Throws single strikes

• Fights off his back foot too much

Kalilov is a hard fighter to read because he's fought trash opponents and he's got an awkward style. He's had success winning a title for the promotions Octagon out of Kazakhstan and GFC out of Georgia. Kalilov has finished 80% of his fights and has a mix of submissions and KO/TKOs. Kalilov is a striker first as he hardly initiates the ground game. He's been tough to take down for the most part and when so he does get back to his feet quickly. Kalilov does a solid job of getting his hips on the outside and scrambling back up.

Kalilov on the feet is a bit frustrating to watch. He has a unique skill set but doesn't press the pace. He does too much backpedaling and letting who he's fighting dictate the pace. Kalilov throws a lot of spinning kicks to the body and he often leaps in the air throwing an array of attacks. The most frustrating thing is he packs a punch but it comes in singles. He lacks combinations and that would put over his power even more. Kalilov is a threat but as he fights better guys he's simply gonna have to be better. I'm gonna hold off from adding him to my watch list until he fights someone with a heart beat.