Hamill vs. Ortiz Prediction
One of the featured bouts of Saturday’s UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez is a light heavyweight contest between Tito Ortiz and Matt Hamill.
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Ortiz coached Hamill on the third season of the Ultimate Fighter, but now the two will meet with each needing a win to remain among top contenders in the light heavyweight division. Hammil is the favorite according to online sports book BroburySports.com with a betting line of -170 while Ortiz has a line of +140. Here is a closer look at both fighters heading into this bout, which will take place from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California at 10PM ET on Pay Per-View.
Matt Hamill (9-2):
Strengths: Hamill is a very solid wrestler who uses that as his base for his fighting. Over the years he has developed improved striking, including kicks, but his bread & butter is taking opponents down and using ground and pound to finish them.
Weaknesses: Hamill is relatively small for the weight class, as he could possibly fight at middleweight if inclined. This also is the biggest fight of his career since fighting Rich Franklin, which he stated was mentally tough for him because of their friendship. He is also close with Ortiz, which means he could be tentative in the fight.
Tito Ortiz (15-7-1):
Strengths: Ortiz is a lot like Hamill, where his strength is wrestling. He was once a dominant UFC champion due to his ability to take opponents down and lay down big strikes and elbows from the ground. Ortiz also tends to have good cardio, which allows him to push a fast pace throughout the fight.
Weaknesses: Ortiz hasn’t really evolved his style to the new generation of MMA. His striking is still pretty tame and his takedown effectiveness isn’t what it used to be. Ortiz hasn’t won a fight since 2006 and needs a win on Saturday to remain relevant in MMA, but in terms of what he thinks he is and what he has actually accomplished, Ortiz is a bit overrated.
Who will win: If Hamill is of the right mindset, I see him winning a decision over his buddy. But, he has to be aggressive and keep Ortiz back on his feet so he can’t have explosive shots. Hamill can take Ortiz down or beat him on his feet and I think you will see a well-rounded Hamill take a decision over Ortiz.
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