UFC on Versus 2: Okami edges out Munoz
Yushin Okami and his corner must have got a look at the judges' scorecards before the third round against Mark Munoz at UFC on Versus 2 because he came out firing. Okami looked fresh enough to make you think this was the first round, not the final five minutes.
Okami won the third round, and that proved to be the difference as Okami won by split decision. All three judges scored the bout, 29-28. Presumably, Munoz won the second round thanks to a knockdown.
Okami stuffed almost every shot from Munoz throughout the bout. The first round was close, with not much action happening. Munoz had a takedown in that round, but two judges scored it for Okami.
As impressive and professional a third round as it was from Okami (26-5), it still makes us wonder: Is Okami overrated?
He's 11-2 in the UFC, with those losses coming against Chael Sonnen and Rich Franklin. Seems like whenever he's in a big fight, he loses. So why is it that people speak in reverent tones about Okami?
A look at Okami's wins in the UFC: Munoz, Lucio Linhares, Dean Lister, Evan Tanner, Jason MacDonald, Mike Swick, Rory Singer, Kalib Starnes and Alan Belcher.
Of that list, you might highlight wins over Swick and Belcher. But that was Belcher's first fight in the UFC and Swick has shown he's vulnerable by losing his last two bouts.
This is not to say that Okami isn't a good fighter. But to put him in the discussion of middleweight title contenders must mean the 185-pound division is rather weak at the moment.
