Nicolas Dalby
From: Denmark
Age: 30
Record: 13-0
Division: Welterweight
It was only a matter of time until this Danish welterweight was snapped up by the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and he’ll make his debut against fellow first-timer Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos at UFC Fight Night 67 in Brazil on 30 May.
Dalby, who’s only the second fighter from Denmark to join the UFC, has been competing professionally since 2010, having come to MMA via karate. That background is clearly evident when you watch ‘The Sharpshooter’ in action, as he overwhelms his opponents with his high-output striking, combining a wide variety of kicks and punches to form an approach which is never dull to observe.
He’s already 30-years-old so Dalby is by no means a young novice, and he moves to the UFC after vacating the welterweight title at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship — a belt which was held previously by Ireland’s Cathal Pendred.
Dalby can win by any means — whether it’s KO, submission or decision — and he showed his stamina in his last outing when he dominated the highly-rated Mohsen Bahari over five rounds in London last November. However, taking centre stage on his highlight reel is the head-kick KO that saw him win the CWFC title at the expense of Sergei Churilov…
Islam Makhachev
From: Russia
Age: 23
Record: 11-0
Division: Lightweight
That he’s a training partner of popular UFC lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov is as good a reason as any to be excited about seeing Islam Makhachev in the octagon, but the Dagestani fighter has all the necessary tools to become a star in his own right.
As you’d expect of a Russian fighter, Makhachev’s foundation is mainly combat sambo-based, but the 23-year-old has shown himself to be comfortable in all ranges. He inflicts most of his damage with aggressive takedowns and ground-and-pound, and although he’s not the most technically accomplished striker, the southpaw’s timing is good and there’s enough power in his hands to keep his opponents at bay.
Submission is Makhachev’s most common method of victory, and he has already been successful with M-1 and ProFC — two of Europe’s top organisations. Mansour Barnaoui and Ivica Truscek are two of Europe’s top non-UFC lightweights, but Makhachev has beaten them both, as well as BJJ black belt Rander Junio, who was previously undefeated.
Makhachev, who last year was tipped as a potential future UFC champion by BloodyElbow.com, has been training alongside Khabib Nurmagomedov at AKA (American Kickboxing Academy) and his eagerly-anticipated debut will take place at UFC 187 in Las Vegas on 23 May when he faces Leo Kuntz, who’ll also be experiencing his first taste of the octagon.
Tom Breese
From: England
Age: 23
Record: 7-0
Division: Welterweight
It says a lot about how highly the UFC rate Tom Breese that he was signed to the organisation despite fighting just once in the last two-and-a-half years. Having endured a long lay-off due to an ACL knee injury, Breese returned to action last November with a submission win over Thibaud Larchet for Cage Warriors. Breese had been due to face Ireland’s Philip Mulpeter that evening but an injury forced the Laois fighter out of the bout.
Hailing from Birmingham but based at the Tristar Gym in Montreal alongside Donegal’s Joseph Duffy, Breese is spoken of extremely highly by many other high-profile fighters and training partners. For example, legendary ex-UFC welterweight champion Georges St Pierre brought the Englishman in as one of his main sparring partners ahead of his 2013 bout against Nick Diaz.
At a bulky 6’3″, Breese is an enormous welterweight so he’s never likely to be over-powered. He’s well-rounded in all disciplines, but Breese has a wrestling background and was a British junior champion. He has taken all seven of his professional wins inside the distance — six submissions and one KO. His submission offence is adventurous and creative but the southpaw is also a very proficient striker.
Luiz Jorge Dutra Junior will have home advantage when he welcomes Tom Breese to the octagon at UFC Fight Night 67 in Brazil on 30 May.
Jonavin Webb
From: USA
Age: 26
Record: 8-0-0-1
Division: Welterweight
An accomplished grappler who possesses a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Webb has been handed a tricky challenge for his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut tonight in Australia. The 26-year-old is in Adelaide to take on seven-fight UFC veteran Kyle Noke in his octagon bow at UFC Fight Night 65.
Webb’s striking is still in the development stages and he uses it mainly to set up takedowns. The New Jersey native is always extremely active when the fight hits the mat and has taken half of his wins by submission. One of his two (T)KO victories came against two-time UFC veteran Daniel Stittgen.
Being paired with 35-year-old Kyle Noke in his first UFC bout might seem like a tall order for Jonavin Webb, but this is a very winnable fight for the American against a recognisable name. Webb is undoubtedly the superior grappler, and while he’ll certainly pursue submissions whenever there’s an opening, getting the nod from the judges seems a likely outcome.
