Thomas Petersen
The Train
USA
Headed to Rio de Janeiro
Petersen will take on Vitor Petrino in a heavyweight matchup at UFC Rio de Janeiro on Oct. 11, Guilherme Cruz of MMAFighting.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Petersen is an even 2-2 with the UFC, most recently picking up a win over Don'Tale Mayes in May. He'll now look to Petrino, who is set for just his second fight in the heavyweight division. Petersen will be at a slight disadvantage in terms of height and reach, but has the superior striking numbers, especially defensively. Both men employ a grappling-based approach, however, and Peterson happens to have the edge in takedown volume, as well as a perfect takedown defense. The latter will certainly be tested when the cage doors close.
Petersen is an even 2-2 with the UFC, most recently picking up a win over Don'Tale Mayes in May. He'll now look to Petrino, who is set for just his second fight in the heavyweight division. Petersen will be at a slight disadvantage in terms of height and reach, but has the superior striking numbers, especially defensively. Both men employ a grappling-based approach, however, and Peterson happens to have the edge in takedown volume, as well as a perfect takedown defense. The latter will certainly be tested when the cage doors close.
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Leans on wrestling in victory
Petersen defeated Don'Tale Mayes via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Des Moines, Iowa.
ANALYSIS
Knowing full well Mayes has zero grappling chops to speak of, Petersen simply leaned on his wrestling in one of the most dominating grappling performances you will ever see. He landed all nine of his takedown attempts and racked up 13:49 worth of control time -- truly insane numbers for a three-round fight. A finish would have been nice, but that's simply nitpicking. It was by far the best effort of Petersen's brief UFC run. The 30-year-old Minnesota native has now alternated wins and losses in his first four bouts with the company.
Knowing full well Mayes has zero grappling chops to speak of, Petersen simply leaned on his wrestling in one of the most dominating grappling performances you will ever see. He landed all nine of his takedown attempts and racked up 13:49 worth of control time -- truly insane numbers for a three-round fight. A finish would have been nice, but that's simply nitpicking. It was by far the best effort of Petersen's brief UFC run. The 30-year-old Minnesota native has now alternated wins and losses in his first four bouts with the company.
Scheduled against Mayes
Petersen is scheduled to compete against Don'Tale Mayes in a heavyweight fight at UFC Des Moines on May 3, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Petersen will have a chance to get back on track. The problem comes after he was knocked out by Shamil Gaziev at UFC Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1. Petersen's opponent, Mayes, is also trying to bounce back after losing his last two fights, the latest via submission.
Petersen will have a chance to get back on track. The problem comes after he was knocked out by Shamil Gaziev at UFC Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1. Petersen's opponent, Mayes, is also trying to bounce back after losing his last two fights, the latest via submission.
Finished in Riyadh
Petersen lost to Shamil Gaziev via KO (punch) at 3:12 of Round 1 at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
ANALYSIS
It's a highly disappointing performance from Petersen on multiple fronts. For starters, he landed an early takedown which he did nothing with. Facing an opponent in Gaziev who has a history of badly gassing out, Petersen ate one huge right hand midway through Round 1 which put him away in an instant. Any potential cardio edge Petersen may have had late in the fight was never given a chance to materialize. The 29-year-old Minnesota native has alternated losses and wins in his first three UFC bouts.
It's a highly disappointing performance from Petersen on multiple fronts. For starters, he landed an early takedown which he did nothing with. Facing an opponent in Gaziev who has a history of badly gassing out, Petersen ate one huge right hand midway through Round 1 which put him away in an instant. Any potential cardio edge Petersen may have had late in the fight was never given a chance to materialize. The 29-year-old Minnesota native has alternated losses and wins in his first three UFC bouts.
Booked against Gaziev
Petersen will fight Shamil Gaziev at UFC Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Petersen earned his first UFC win by taking down Mohammed Usman in his last fight, but stringing together back-to-back victories could be challenging against Gaziev, who will have a 4.5-inch reach advantage over Petersen and has only lost one fight in his professional career.
Petersen earned his first UFC win by taking down Mohammed Usman in his last fight, but stringing together back-to-back victories could be challenging against Gaziev, who will have a 4.5-inch reach advantage over Petersen and has only lost one fight in his professional career.
Picks up first UFC victory
Petersen defeated Mohammed Usman via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Petersen made his UFC debut this past February and wasn't very competitive in a unanimous decision loss to Jamal Pogues, but he appeared to make legitimate improvements in the span of just a few months. Petersen looked much more comfortable on the feet, firing off plenty of volume and keeping Usman off-balance for the duration of the fight. Nothing in Petersen's background suggests any prolonged winning streak is forthcoming here, but this victory ensures Petersen won't be fighting for his job his next time out.
Petersen made his UFC debut this past February and wasn't very competitive in a unanimous decision loss to Jamal Pogues, but he appeared to make legitimate improvements in the span of just a few months. Petersen looked much more comfortable on the feet, firing off plenty of volume and keeping Usman off-balance for the duration of the fight. Nothing in Petersen's background suggests any prolonged winning streak is forthcoming here, but this victory ensures Petersen won't be fighting for his job his next time out.