Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida

Anthony Johnson’s athleticism is on par with George St. Pierre’s. That’s not a compliment to be dolled out lightly. However the dude has earned it. He’s also got striking skills on par with Thiago Alves. Johnson’s wrestling is good too. It’s not clear how his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has developed, but…who cares about that grappling stuff anyway?

Well, perhaps Yoshiyuki Yoshida does. No matter how much energy it takes, he has to take the fight to the ground. Anthony is way too explosive to strike with. So, Yoshida should wait for a time to employ his judo skills. He could always consider using Dong Hyun Kim’s backpack strategy. Even if Yoshida struggles to get things to the mat, he’ll have at least nullified Anthony’s strengths.

At least, that’s how it will work in theory. In reality, I expect Johnson to get the victory. If Josh Koshceck can knock the hell out of Yoshida, Johnson can too. Yoshida might have been crafty enough to submit a younger version of Anthony Johnson. At this point in time, the only thing that can derail Johnson is a freak injury.

Or, maybe another poke to the eye. Hopefully, he’s developed a defense for that one.

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