Takashi Sato will fight TUF 29 winner Bryan Battle at UFC Vegas 59 this weekend. Battle won the competition at middleweight. However, this particular fight is all set to take place at welterweight. While Battle is coming off two wins over the likes of Gilbert Urbina and Tresean Gore, Sato lost to Gunnar Nelson in his last fight.
Bryan Battle had a very impressive showing inside the TUF house. He beat Andre Petroski and Kemran Lachinov in the show to reach the final where he beat Gilbert Urbina to win the entire competition. But he is moving down to welterweight in order to advance his career in the UFC.
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On the other hand, Takashi Sato lost both of his last 2 fights. Following a submission loss to Miguel Baeza, he took almost 2 years off before coming back to take on Gunnar Nelson in a losing effort. The Japanese fighter has fought 5 times in the Octagon so far. However, he has only managed to win 2 fights while losing 3.
UFC Vegas 59 Prelims, Bryan Battle vs Takashi Sato: Stats
Stats | Bryan Battle | Takashi Sato |
---|---|---|
Wins | 8 | 16 |
Losses | 1 | 5 |
Height | 1.85 m | 1.78 m |
Division | Welterweight | Welterweight |
Reach | 195.6 cm | 185.4 cm |
Age | 27 | 32 |
Bryan Battle vs Takashi Sato: Fight Breakdown
After spending all his career at 185lbs, Bryan Battle will be moving down in weight for the first time. So it will be interesting to see if it has any kind of impact on his cardio or not. Cutting too much weight dents a fighter’s ability to perform at a high level. So it remains to be seen how well the young fighter really adapts to the new weight class.
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Battle has 8 wins in his career with 1 knockout and 4 submissions. So he will rely on his grappling much more. He averages 1.35 takedowns per fight with an accuracy of 22%. But he also puts put an insane striking average of 7.10 strikes per minute. Although he absorbs 4.58 strikes per minute, Battle has a really great chin.
Takashi Sato’s stats inside the Octagon has been less than desirable. He absorbs 4.16 strikes per minute while only landing 2.28 strikes. Sato also does not possess the best takedown defence either. The Japanese fighter is more of a striker who has 11 knockout wins. Hence, Battle will look to implement his grappling very early on in the fight to have the chance to get another finish.
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Although Sato is much more experienced than Battle, he will have a significant reach and height disadvantage. On top of that, Battle is much more agile and possesses more power behind his punches. Hence, ‘pooh bear’ will be the favourite to win the fight this Saturday.