UGD 60: Bailey vs Pulkinnen III – Phillip Gallagher vs Hiroshimo Sakamoto In Depth Preview

[Slice]

When is it? 3^rd June 2017
Where is it? London
The event name? UGD 60
Where can you find it? http://www.mmatycoon.com/orgupcomingeventpublic.php?EvID=885903

 

Background:

So this fight will feature 2 of the best in Underground’s 155lbs division battling it out for a no.1 contender’s spot. We will start with the more experienced Hiroshimo Sakamoto here.

 

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Hiroshimo Sakamoto

241551

 

Record: 26-12-1 Wins: 9 TKO/KOs 3 Submissions 14 Decisions Losses: 3 TKO/KOs 2 Submissions 7 Decisions

 

Accomplishments: Former Death Squad 170lbs &155lbs & 145lbs Champion. Former Havoc 155lbs Champion (2 Defences) Former Underground 155lbs Champion.

 

This guy is a bit of a veteran; at just 30 years of age, he has already been involved in an EPL tournament, won belts in 3 different weight classes at Death Squad, and comes to us now one fight removed from losing his Underground Lightweight Championship. He is a tough scrapper with a high volume striking game which always seems to do him favours with the judges; it is unlikely anyone in the org can best him over a 25 minute period, such is his cardio and experience. He also has an excellent grappling game in his back pocket which he used to score some submission victories early on in his career. Sakamoto is notoriously tough to finish; with thee only times he’s been taken out due to submissions or cuts, he recovers incredibly well when he is hurt, often finding second, third or fourth winds and coming back to win the fight more often than not. He has shown grit and determination throughout his career; and honestly it would not be a surprise to see him wearing a belt again at some point soon. He is a handful for anyone; and will be looking to add another win to his record in this fight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Phillip Gallagher

270823

 

Record: 17-11-0 Wins: 12 TKO/KOs 5 Decisions Losses: 8 TKO/KOs 3 Decisions

 

Accomplishments: Former 2 time Underground 155lbs Champion (2 Defences)

 

Phillip Gallagher has been with Underground almost his entire career; and has been pretty darn successful as well. He is a former 2 time Underground Lightweight Champion, with 2 defences in his 2^nd reign in the org. He has more knockout power than his opponent; having finished most of the fights in his career. Gallagher is also good in the clinch; controlling the action there and punishing opponents with an assortment of punches and knees from the thai plum. His wins over Loke Westlund have proved his competence in striking and his finishing ability; and he will definitely be looking to finish this one, as it does not seem as though the scorecards would favour him here. He recently snapped his 3 fight losing streak by avenging his loss to Charlie Wax in a decision victory, then most recently he beat Westlund for a second time. A win over Sakamoto puts him right back in the mix.

 

 

Bleacher Report Style Head To Toe Breakdown:

Striking:

This category is probably the closest one of the fight; and may very well be where the fight is ultimately decided. Phillip Gallagher has a high percentage of finishes; many of them from the clinch, he definitely has the power advantage in the fight. He landed big punches both from the outside and in the clinch against Loke Westlund, a good showcase of what he can do on a good night. Hiroshimi Sakamoto has the volume advantage; throwing many leg kicks and straight punches, a bit of a technical marvel. He likes to move forward and hit his opponent more times than they hit him, some may call it point fighting, others would call it effective MMA Fighting. Both guys are diverse and like to throw punches and kicks; both are excellent boxers, and it should be a good battle on the feet. This one is too close to call.

Advantage: Even

 

Wrestling:

Phillip Gallagher has been an excellent clinch fighter, he digs underhooks and lands good shots to the body and to the head. However; he has never shot in for a takedown in his career, and no-one has tried to shoot on him for a very long time, so it is hard to know where he is at in terms of his overall wrestling ability. Sakamoto is an extremely good wrestler; he had an excellent amateur background which has translated relatively well into MMA. He has rarely; if ever been taken down in his career, and has always taken opponents down as a Plan B if his striking is not working. His takedowns have been defended a lot as of late, but it remains a weapon in his Arsenal if he wishes to use it, for that reason, he gets a decisive edge here.

Advantage: Sakamoto

 

Ground Game/Submissions:

Neither man is known for any kind of prolific submission ability. Gallagher has never been submitted; because his fights never really go to the ground, hence he has not submitted anybody else either. His ground game is an unknown entity; but I think it’s safe to say he’s no submission wizard. Sakamoto has some submission victories from earlier in his career; but his grappling has always been his backup plan rather than what he uses to win a fight. There is no significant advantage as neither man is likely to submit the other on the ground here; however Sakamoto gets the slight advantage as he is more likely to have a positional advantage on the ground, making it more likely for him to land GNP and Submissions.

 

Keys to Victory – Hiroshimi Sakamoto

Use leg kicks: Sakamoto has used leg kicks to slow opponents down and chip away with the judges to score points. It will be a solid tactic here against his more dynamic opponent.

Shoot for TDs: Gallagher’s TDD is relatively untested; so if Sakamoto can test this ability early, he could be able to control the tempo from the get go.

Avoid the Clinch: Phillip Gallagher’s biggest chance would be to use the clinch to his advantage, if Sakamoto can avoid the fight going there, it takes away a big path to victory for his opponent.

 

Keys to Victory – Phillip Gallagher

Open up cuts: Every time Sakamoto has been TKO’d it’s been due to cutting; he gets cut pretty easily, if Gallagher can use some elbows/knees early to cut him, he may have a chance of forcing a stoppage.

Establish the Clinch: Gallagher has finished many fights in the clinch; you would think he must have the advantage here, so it would be smart to take advantage of this aspect of the fight.

Killer Instinct: Gallagher needs to press forward and try to end this fight early; if it goes to decision it is likely that Sakamoto’s volume will get the nod, so Gallagher must try to put him down.

 

Preview and Prediction:

So who will become the next no.1 contender? It is a tough one to call, but as has been explained in the preview this one will come down to power vs volume. Sakamoto will be looking to avoid being hit as much as possible and to out strike his opponent. Gallagher will be looking to rough up his opponent and finish him here. Look for Sakamoto to establish leg kicks early on in the fight; whilst Gallagher looks to box and fight in the clinch. Sakamoto is also likely to mix in a couple of takedowns in order to get some top control and test Gallagher’s ground game; a tactic I believe will be mildly successful, as Sakamoto gets a few takedowns and stays on top of Gallagher in a couple of the rounds. Gallagher will have his moments with his clinch game; but unless he can tag Sakamoto and knock him out Sakamoto will run away with the fight with his boxing and leg kicks, his volume will simply be too much. Sakamoto has never really been knocked out before; he has only been stopped on cuts before, I struggle to see that Gallagher will change that in this fight. It will be close, but ultimately Sakamoto will have just a little bit too much.

Hiroshimi Sakamoto via Unanimous Decision

[GBK16]

Top notch preview man

[thb]

excellent preview and very detailed

[Rambo]

I like it. Good job.

[Guest]

Thanks for the time and effort you put into this mate, i never expected such a high level of detail and analysis....nice one !!!

[Slice]

Thanks for all the feedback guys!