At UFC Fight Night 127: London the not so highly anticipated rematch between light heavyweights Jimi Manuwa and Jan Blachowicz took place and ended up being one of the better fights of the event. There were certainly those who didn’t feel the need to see this matchup again, but it always had the required ingredients for an entertaining fight.

In Jimi Manuwa we have a fighter who doesn’t throw a lot of different types of strikes, and you’ll seldom see him throw more than one or two in a row, but what strikes he does throw, he throws with fight-ending intent. Fifteen KO’s in his seventeen wins is all the evidence anyone needs.

On the other side of the octagon, we have Jan Blachowicz, a well-rounded fighter who can seem like a jack of all trades and a master of none. His commitment to technique and, as of late, throwing combinations makes him one of the more intriguing fighters to watch in the division.

Let’s take a look at the techniques and turning points that I thought defined each of the three rounds in this, what the Brits would call, full-blooded contest.

Time stamps correspond to official round times. Text corresponding to GIFS and images can be found under said GIFS and images.

Round 1

5:00-3:57- Round 1 started out looking very similar to the first bout between these two. The story of this fight was always going to be Jimi Manuwa plodding forward looking to land big shots, while Jan Blachowicz gave ground and waited in range to counter with his slick boxing. However, Blachowicz’s counter-boxing didn’t make an appearance until the second half of the round. The first half saw Manuwa leaping in with his favorite left hook, and rather than stay and counter, Blachowicz often chose to circle out, occasionally trying his luck with a check hook on the exit.

