Takeya Mizugaki vs. Jeff Curran
In a 135 pound showdown, two potential future title contenders will clash as Jeff “The Big Frog” Curran looks to get back to his winning ways against Shooting Gym Hakkei’s Takeya Mizugaki.
Curran, an extremely talented grappler with a prolific submission game, has all the tools on the ground to be a top contender at 135 pounds. For whatever reason, though, he has been unable to get the job done recently, dropping his last three fights, albeit against the last two Featherweight champions and top contender Joseph Benavidez. Now that he is dropping to 135 pounds, Curran is looking to revitalize his career and make an immediate impact. The big hole in Curran’s game is standup, which could be problematic against a well rounded fighter like Mizugaki.
Mizugaki, a veteran of Shooto and GCM, is a true mixed martial artist. While his ground game is nowhere near as developed as Curran’s, he can get the job done in any range of a fight, which gives him a sizable stylistic advantage. In his debut fight with WEC, he impressed by going the distance with Bantamweight champion Miguel Torres and giving him all that he could handle in a narrow loss.
Ultimately, I think Mizugaki’s more varied skillset will be the deciding factor here. While Curran outclasses him on the ground, Mizugaki should be slick enough to avoid any submission attempts, and on the feet this will be a one-sided affair. Curran should be able to score a couple of takedowns, but I doubt he will be able to hold him down for long, much less submit him.
Mizugaki by TKO, round 2.
