Mac Danzig vs. Josh Neer
In a quality matchup at 155 pounds, long-time veteran and recent jailbird Josh “The Dentist” Neer is set to face one of the sport’s most vigorous self-promoters, Mac Danzig.
Danzig, his own biggest fan, has thusfar failed to live up to his self-generated hype, but a win against a quality opponent like Neer could go a long way toward proving that Danzig has skills to back up his copious amount of talk.
Neer, who has recently been embroiled in controversy thanks to a January 1 arrest on charges of driving while intoxicated, is nonetheless a skilled and dangerous competitor in the Lightweight division. While he is rightfully feared for his vicious knockout power and good hands, Neer also possesses a vastly underrated submission game that has been the end of many of his opponents. Relentlessly aggressive during his fights, Neer’s method is always to bring the fight to his opponent with constant pressure, regardless of where the action unfolds.
Against Danzig, he will want to keep this pressure up, and perhaps even increase it, to keep his exceedingly technical opponent off balance. In his recent loss to Clay Guida, Danzig showed difficulty dealing with an opponent who refuses to relent, so Neer needs to fight hard and nonstop to have a shot of winning this one.
Danzig, like Neer, is extremely well rounded, although perceived in the opposite fashion. Everyone knows about Danzig’s prodigious submission skills, but his striking is equally if not more deadly and is not nearly as highly regarded as it ought to be. Danzig’s greatest strength is his technique, both standing and on the ground. He is not the type of fighter who overwhelms his opponents physically or fights at a frenetic pace, he chips away at them with flawless execution before he an force the smallest opening into a fight-ending situation.
Ultimately, Danzig’s patience and technique will weather the storm of Neer’s aggression on the feet, securing a surprising TKO win for Danzig in the third.