Bantamweights
Nathaniel Wood (15-3) vs. Jose Alberto Quinonez (7-2)Advertisement
It seems like there is a bout between talented under-the-radar bantamweights on every card, and this one is the latest. It takes some guts to call yourself “The Prospect,” like London’s Wood, but the Brad Pickett protege has taken the moniker and run with it. The Brit’s career has been marked by a willingness to throw down, but surprisingly, it has been Wood’s grappling skills that have buttered his bread thus far in his UFC career. In his UFC debut against veteran striker Johnny Eduardo, Wood was a willing participant in standup exchanges but mostly wound up on the losing end -- until the Brazilian wandered directly into a brabo choke to hand Wood the victory. In his follow-up bout, Wood absolutely schooled Andre Ewell on the mat, showing that at the very least he can fight a smart fight if he is not getting baited into attacking like a madman. All in all, Wood is a dark horse as far as the cadre of bantamweight prospects is concerned; he does not pop with athletic upside, and it is hard to nail down one particular standout skill. However, he can do a lot of things well, and at 25, he still has a few more years until his prime.
If the intent for this matchup is to give Wood a showcase, that may not be what happens in practice, since Quinonez might be the most underrated fighter in the division relative to his success. To whoever bothered to watch the first season of “The Ultimate Fighter Latin America,” it was Quinonez, not Yair Rodriguez, who was the standout prospect on the show, as he appeared to have the talent and the charisma to become a regional star. That made it all the more disappointing when he lost the tournament final to Alejandro Perez. Quinonez has quietly rebounded since, winning his last four fights. However, the fact that he has only appeared in four fights since that 2014 defeat is a problem. While he looks improved every time out, injuries have limited Quinonez to just one bout per calendar year, preventing him from gathering any sort of momentum. At the very least, Quinonez’s success is finally earning him some prominent fights. He was briefly scheduled to face prized prospect Sean O’Malley in October, only to see that fight get scrapped, and he now gets this chance to spoil Wood’s homecoming.
This should be a corker, as Quinonez’s main goal is to overwhelm his opponent with pace, and Wood should be able to respond to that by bringing the violence. Quinonez has looked good in his bouts, but it is unclear how well his pace and pressure are going to play up a level, particularly against Wood. Rather than get cowed by Quinonez’s volume and forward movement, Wood is likely to just accept the war and get the better of things. The main hope for Quinonez is that the pace just wears out Wood and leaves the Brit tired by the latter points of the fight. There is a chance that could happen, but Wood has looked good enough that he should be able to at least win the first two rounds before that becomes a problem, particularly since Quinonez is not much of a finisher. However, Quinonez’s submission skills could become a factor if Wood is exhausted. At any rate, this looks to thread the needle of giving Wood a tough test and an underrated opponent against whom he can still look good. The pick is Wood via decision.
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