MFC champion “Big Deal” Ryan Jimmo (white trunks) will bring his varied skill set and 16-fight win streak to the UFC for the first time Saturday night to test himself against MMA’s elite, starting off with Anthony Perosh. (Photo courtesy of Sherdog)
UFC 149 has been one of the most injury-riddled cards in Zuffa history. The event’s marquee bout was originally scheduled between opposing The Ultimate Fighter: Live coaches “The California Kid” Urijah Faber (26-5) and UFC 135lbs. champion “The Dominator” Dominick Cruz (19-1) to settle the score both from the show and their two previous meetings, where each competitor took one victory apiece. A knee injury sustained during TUF put Cruz and the grudge match on the back burner, and now Faber is slated to face Nova Uniao fighter Renan Barao (30-1) for the newly minted Interim UFC Bantamweight Championship. The co-main event featuring top featherweight contender “New Breed” Erik Koch (13-1) challenging “Scarface” Jose Aldo (21-1) for the 145lbs. division title was postponed due to the champion being injured, and was replaced by the UFC debut of “Lightning” Hector Lombard (31-2) as he takes on “The Barbarian” Tim Boetsch (15-4). Despite approximately another dozen changes to the line-up, the UFC has still managed to put together a promising event for MMA fans across the globe. French kickboxer Cheick Kongo (27-7) and “The Savage” Shawn Jordan (13-3) will slug it out in a heavyweight battle, preceded by “Bad Boy” Brian Ebersole (50-14) colliding with James Head (8-2) in a welterweight tilt. Opening slot honors go to “The Menace” Chris Clements (11-4) as he squares off against “Deep Waters” Matthew Riddle (6-3). But before shelling out the big bucks to watch the main card on Pay-Per-View, be sure to catch the preliminary fight excitement on FX and Facebook, which features some of MMA’s top up-and-comers, perhaps most notably “Big Deal” Ryan Jimmo (16-1).
Canadian Ryan Jimmo turned pro in 2007, making his debut in his nation’s big show, Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC), against “The Boogeyman” Adam Braidwood (1-0). He lost the fight via TKO, however, it clearly served as a learning experience for “Big Deal”, as he has since gone 16-0. After compiling a half-dozen wins within the promotion, in 2008 Jimmo tried out for the cast of The Ultimate Fighter Season 8 but lost via Majority Decision to Strikeforce fighter “The Juggernaut” Antwain Britt (11-6) in a bout that UFC President Dana White at the time hailed as being one of the more worthy fights in the tryouts. Jimmo then found himself back in the MFC, where over the past four years he has racked up another ten consecutive victories and earned the MFC Light Heavyweight Championship title. During his thus far five-year tenure in MMA, the 30-year-old Jimmo has beaten some big names in the light heavyweight stable. “Big Deal” picked up a Split Decision win against UFC veteran “The Beastman” Marvin Eastman (18-14) at MFC 22 in a fight that heavily revolved around use of the clinch from both fighters. Ryan also earned a unanimous nod on the judges’ score cards over Wilson Gouveia (14-8) and a controversial Unanimous Decision win over “The African Assassin” Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (12-10) in a title defense fight where many thought Sokoudjou pushed the pace for the first three rounds. Jimmo has earned six victories by (T)KO, two via submission, and eight by decision, showing that the Canadian is comfortable wherever the fight goes and that he can keep the fight going from the first to final bell whenever need be.
Tonight, Canada’s “Big Deal” makes his UFC debut against “The Hippo” Anthony Perosh (13-6) in the FX portion of the UFC 149 undercard. Don’t miss this fight or any of the undercard action, as one never knows what can happen with young fighters hungry to make a name for themselves and ascend the ladders of their respective division in search of UFC glory .
