MMAjunkie Radio co-host and MMAjunkie contributor Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main event for UFC on ESPN+ 1.

UFC on ESPN+ 1 takes place Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. The main card steams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

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Henry Cejudo (13-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC)

Staple info:

Height: 5’4″ Age: 31 Weight: 125 lbs. Reach: 64″ Last fight: Decision win over Demetrious Johnson (Aug. 4, 2018) Camp: Fight Ready MMA (Arizona) Stance/striking style: Orthodox/kickboxing Risk management: Good

Supplemental info:

+ UFC flyweight champion
+ Olympic wrestling gold medalist (U.S.)
+ Bronze Gloves boxing champion
+ Regional MMA title
+ 4 KO victories
+ 1 submission win
+ 4 first-round finishes
+ Solid footwork
+ Improved overall striking
^ Coming forward or off of the counter
+ Hard kicks and knees
+ Strong inside the clinch
^ Solid grips/hand-fighting
+ Excellent wrestling ability
^ 100 percent takedown defense rate

T.J. Dillashaw (16-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC)

Staple info:

Height: 5’6″ Age: 32 Weight: 125 lbs. Reach: 67″ Last fight: Knockout win over Cody Garbrandt (Aug. 4, 2018) Camp: The Treigning Lab (California) Stance/striking style: Switch-stance/kickboxing Risk management: Good

Supplemental info:

+ UFC bantamweight champion
+ 3x NCAA qualifier (wrestling)
+ “The Ultimate Fighter” season 14 finalist
+ 8 KO victories
+ 3 submission wins
+ 5 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Consistent pace and pressure
^ High-volume striker
+ Superb feints and footwork
^ Effectively switches stances
+ Pulls and returns punches well
^ Often punctuates combos with hooks
+ Excellent wrestling ability
^ Solid scrambler/transitional grappler

Point of interest: Two of a kind

The main event in Brooklyn pairs together two fighters who like to apply pressure, but do so in different ways.

T.J. Dillashaw prefers to utilize pressure in the offense-friendly form of stance shifting.

Like many fighters who are naturally orthodox but switch to southpaw, Dillashaw typically conducts traffic off of his right hand. Whether he is setting up left crosses and power kicks from southpaw or favoring his uppercuts and overhands from orthodox, it’s Dillashaw’s right hand – which is often used in a checking fashion – that is frequently a key to his offense.

Using it to off-beat his opponent’s offensive rhythms, Dillashaw will add to the disarray by incorporating subtle but effective shifts that change the stance and, more importantly, the angle of his attacks. Nevertheless, Dillashaw’s shifting style is aggressive by nature, which means that he will be inherently at risk for the counters coming back at him.

Enter Henry Cejudo.

Initially coming onto the scene implementing somewhat of a stick-and-move curriculum, pressure has always been at the heart of Cejudo’s game. Seldom throwing himself out of position, Cejudo packs cross-hook combinations that are often punctuated with hard kicks to the body.

In his first fight back from defeat (against Joseph Benavidez), the former freestyle wrestler displayed an upgraded muay Thai arsenal from his time spent at CSA in Northern California. And in his fight with Wilson Reis in 2017, Cejudo took things to another level, coming out in a sharp karate stance that he picked up while working down in Brazil with the Pitbull brothers (Bellator’s Patricio and Patricky).

Showing off an improved sense of range, Cejudo appears more capable of timing and countering his opponents precisely with palpable speed and power, something that will serve him well on paper against the bantamweight champ. Dillashaw’s movement and angles may give him an edge in this department in most people’s books, but whether it be through caught kicks or interceptions, Cejudo will have his chances to counter.

Next point of interest: Clinch or chaos

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