I watched Brock Larson submit Mike Pyle at UFC 98 and couldn't help but see a lot of the traits that Matt Hughes used to have(and still does to a degree). I know Pyle took the fight on very short notice so I take nothing away from him. In fact, the UFC should give him another fight as I think he deserved a shot in the UFC regardless. Anyways, let's take a look at some of the similarities between Larson and Hughes:
- Both guys are from the Midwest
- Both are from camps that favor wrestling/gnp/submissions
- Both had many fights on the Extreme Challenge circuit
- Both have most of their wins via submission
- Both have that country boy strength and love to take the fight to the ground
Do you see where I'm going with this? Now make no mistake about it, I'm not saying that Brock Larson will become the next Matt Hughes and have a long reign over the welterweight division. However, I see a lot of skill in Larson now, that Hughes used to stay the champion for all those years. It is now evident that Hughes isn't the same fighter he was a couple of years ago. He's not as explosive and he doesn't look to be as aggressive as he used to be once the fight got to the ground. However, we see all of that in Larson now as he's only been to a decision 3 times in almost thirty fights. His only losses are to former WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit, and a decision loss to former UFC welterweight #1 contender Jon Fitch. Could Larson use the tools that Hughes used to become champion, to become a factor in the UFC welterweight division?
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