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They say that all humans are wired the same way, and technically we are. However, there is something that floats around the bloodlines of the Mexican and Brazilian fighters that can’t be taught, it can’t be bought, and it can’t be sold.
If you look back into the lineage of all the greatest and grittiest boxers of all time, you can’t mention a word without adding a laundry list of Mexican fighters in there. Julio Ceasar Chavez, Oscar De La Hoya, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Canelo Alvarez, and the list goes on and on. (If you haven’t seen the Barrera vs Morales Trilogy, maybe you should).
They have a certain trace element of pride and fight that many of us just can’t comprehend. However, while the Mexican bloodline was dominating boxing for decades, Brazilian pride had plans of its own — to dominate a space that they would have a very intricate injection of influence from the onset. While Mexico solidified their greatness in the squared circle, there was a new shape working its way into the combat scene, The Octagon, and the Brazilians had a firm grasp of it.
With greats such as Jose Aldo, Royce Gracie, Nog, Rua, Anderson Silva, Wanderlei, and so many others stamping the Brazilian flag under the umbrella of MMA, it’s hard to deny their supremacy in the sport we have grown to live for. Both may be very different in their place of reign, but where they are very similar, is the pride of their descent that they carry on their shoulders every time they toe the line for war.
Alex Perez
Alex Perez may not live in Mexico but it doesn’t mean that he wasn’t wireframed with the lineage of the Mexican creed to fight. Perez started his quest at a very young age wrestling with his two brothers. He would later go on to become a Regional Champion and an All-American for West Hills College Lemoore in California. After helping many friends prepare for fights with his wrestling pedigree, Perez competed in his first fight on May 6, 2011, in Tachi Palace Fights. He soon won the Vacant TPF Flyweight Championship, before losing it after one title defense.
With an overall record of 24-5, Perez has a perfectly balanced 50% finishing rate with five wins by KO, seven by submission, and 12 by decision. In his five losses, Perez has been submitted three times and KO’d once.
He uses a very balanced approach which usually leaves his opposition guessing, leaving them to defend two levels. On the feet, he has very good movement, sharp strikes, and an extremely productive and nerve-freezing leg game. Against Jussier Formiga, he utilized a perfect lower extremity attack that would hinder any entry of the high-pedigree ground ace to have any sort of explosion on his shots, even if he had a full bead on Perez’s hips.
The fight remained on the feet and he would later finish the fight by TKO of leg kicks. Since his debut on DWCS, Perez has mounted a solid 7-1 record with his only loss coming by the hands of UFC multiple-time title challenger Joey Benevidez. The fight was extremely controversial but the rightful man did win. It seemed there was a minor clash of heads and JoeB was able to gain top control and land a storm of strikes that the ref would step in and stop it, only to say “keep fighting”. Perez started to get his wits back, but would ultimately be finished in the same position shortly after.
Perez brings a very instinctual element to the game, which is the understanding when to move in to finish his opposition. He may not get the finish all the time, but his ability to sniff out when a fighter is hurt and move in to unload his clip is extremely on point. He will need to be extremely wary of his approach when facing the champion Deiveson Figueiredo, who will sit back on his heels a bit patiently, waiting to uncork his piston of a right hand.
Deiveson Figueiredo
Figueiredo comes in with a 19-1 record with nine by KO and seven by submission. He has never been finished. When the Flyweight strap hit the vacancy light, it only seemed right to have a showdown between him and JoeB. Figs missed weight and even though he won that fight by TKO, he was ineligible to take his seat on the Flyweight throne. So, Uncle Dana decided to run it back and the outcome would be the same, just in a different fashion to now claim his crown.
Figs brings a very unique and calculated style into the cage. Don’t look for heavy volume from him. He uses a very measured approach and understands range very well. His entire game is predicated on setting traps and landmines for you to walk onto before he uncorks his missile of a right hand. He will use an outreached arm to keep you measured and at bay until you either open a window or he finds a pattern that he can meet you halfway on.
He will switch stances to feed you a different look even though he is only trying to walk you onto his right hand. He also has a very good feel and vibration for knowing what you are throwing, when you are throwing it, and how to counter it with short blistering counter shots.
One issue that I see playing into the hands of Perez here is how Figs leans very heavily on that lead leg. This is something that Perez will look to expose right out of the gate. He will look to chip away at that lower leg in hopes that it will take some of the movement away, allow Perez to close space a little quicker but most importantly, to take some of the sting off Figs power. However, Figs does hold a Brazilian JiuJitsu Black belt and even though he doesn’t use it as much as he probably could or should, he knows that he has that ace in the back pocket if Perez decides to challenge his grappling chops in the sandbox.
The Matchup
I like Perez as a fighter and I think he has all the chops to get it done here, but the matchup, outside of Figs watching that lead leg, really does fit his style like a puzzle piece. Perez is a volume hunter. He tossed up 170 Strikes in one round against Shorty Torres, 90 of them significant. However, when you throw that much volume, you are bound to open some windows along the way.
This is where Figs will look to capitalize by timing patterns, shapes, and movements that Perez is constructing. When you have a clash in styles, depending on how seasoned and composed the patient fighter is, they have a much more clear vision of finding those windows to jump through.
I am expecting Perez to get off to a quick start — firing leg kicks, moving laterally, throwing fully committed strikes, and ultimately not giving Figs the ability to lay a bead on him early. So the first round or second round could be in favor of Perez. However, eventually, I think Figs gets his timing down and start throwing at a higher pace and landing at a higher percentage clip. It only takes one uncorking from Figs to make you second guess your pursuit. It acts as a warning shot and can change the entire complexion of what you do next.
The only other area I see Perez stealing the belt here is if this goes five rounds and he can keep his volume steady and tight, due to the Figs questionable tank in spots. He tends to cut a lot of weight and that can and will hamper your conditioning, reaction times, and twitch fibers. The body is made up of 60% water and when the muscles become dehydrated, they will start using glucose at a much faster rate. Once your glycogen levels start to redline, you become further dehydrated and the nerves signaling to the muscles aren’t firing at optimal levels.
This in turn can cause a multitude of issues which will tie into conditioning issues down the stretch. So keep an eye on the weigh-ins, because they can paint another chapter to this storybook. With that said, if all systems are a go, I think it will be a matter of time before Figs finds his mark and starts to hunt down Perez, retaining his belt in what should be a main event much better than people may expect.
The Pick: And Still … Deiveson Figueiredo
DFS Breakdown
Perez: DK $7,200/FD 18
Perez has never been into the fourth round with the DFS world invested. With that said, Perez has eclipsed his value in five of the last eight times he walked into the cage. In two of those dances, Perez shattered the 100 point barrier with 125 points and 142 points.
His metrics don’t tell the greatest tale of his activity rate, but he will through leather in numbers when he needs to. I am expecting this to be a little dampened due to the magnitude of this fight and the style of his opposition. He understands the power coming back down his street, so a sense of caution will be in the air. At $7,200, you need to look at the wider picture here. A live dog with steady volume and five rounds to work if he doesn’t get waxed poetically by a piston right hand over the top? Not a chance you fade him here. If he can manage to get this to the cards, things could get interesting.
On FanDuel, Perez doesn’t hold the same value. His price is a little more inflated. I would be a little more strategic in your approach on your builds.
Figueredo: DK $9,000/FD 21
While Perez utilizes much more violence in numbers to accumulate his damage, Figueredo size you up looking for that equalizer. His very measured approach seems to work more often than not with seven of his last 10 outings covering his price tag, with four of them busting the 100 mark barrier (111, 131, 115, and 125).
Despite his measured approach, people tend to thinking that he needs a finish to really serve value. This is false. Figueredo beats to his opposition’s drum. He will either sit back with you or engage with you; it is all predicated on how you approach him.
Against Alexander Pantoja, who is known to bring pressure, Figs won a three round decision, hitting his value with 90 points. With Perez calling for engagement with his style, the volume will be there even if he sends it to the apron for the judges to handle. However, the upside for a finish is very real as well.
Conclusion: Both men are in play, but I will have about a 65%-35% split on Figueredo for the DraftKings lineups I construct with these two combatants. On FanDuel, as stated above, I’ll pull back the reigns on Perez a bit due to his slightly inflated pricing.
