UFC 149: Hector Lombard vs. Tim Boetsch Head-to-Toe Breakdown

A plethora of recent injuries has forced the UFC to make adjustments to a few of its high profile matchups this summer.  

One of the most notable shake-ups includes a new opponent for former Bellator Middleweight champ Hector Lombard, as he is now set to make his UFC debut against Tim Boetsch at UFC 149.

Lombard was originally slated to take on Brian Stann at UFC on FOX 4 in August, but an injury forced Stann off the card.  Meanwhile, Boetsch also lost an opponent due to injury as he was set to face Michael Bisping at UFC 149.

Now that this bout is hopefully set in stone—injury pending, of course—let's take a look at the head-to-toe breakdown of this upcoming middleweight clash.

Striking

Just looking at Lombard's muscled-out physique, it's no surprise that the former Bellator champ has 17 knockout wins to his credit.

Known for his heavy hands, Lombard likes to swarm his opponents standing up and keep pressure on them as he controls the center of the cage.

Not the most technically sound puncher, Lombard is nevertheless an explosive and unrelenting striker.

Boetsch has proven to be a resilient force inside the Octagon, coming back from what would have been a lopsided decision defeat at the hands of Yushin Okami to knock out the Japanese star in his home country in the final frame of their fight at UFC 144.

"The Barbarian" is a decent striker, but Lombard's power and heavy hands give him the edge.

Advantage: Lombard

Submissions

Lombard first made his name in the martial arts world as an Olympic judoka, earning many international awards for his grappling skills in the process.

A black belt in both judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Lombard has great submissions and isn't afraid to finish the fight on the ground.

Lombard's most recent submission win came over former UFC vet Jesse Taylor last September, a second-round heel-hook win that earned Lombard the inaugural Australian Fighting Championship middleweight title.  The finish can be viewed in the video on this slide.

Boetsch is a decent submission artist with five career wins coming via tapout.  However, with two of the subs coming via strikes, Boetsch really only has three submission victories, with none of them occurring during his time with the UFC.

Because of Lombard's world-class ground skills and history of tapping out former UFC vets, he takes this one.

Advantage: Lombard

Grappling

In terms of pure grappling, again Lombard has the edge.

Boetsch is a good wrestler who also has judo skills, so he can hold his own on the ground.  

But Lombard's long history with judo and the grappling arts puts him years ahead of Boetsch in terms of experience as well as skill.

Advantage: Lombard

Strength

A chiseled and buff 185er, Lombard is an imposing figure inside the cage.

A powerful and explosive fighter, Lombard has viciously put the hammer down on past opponents, whether it is landing huge ground-and-pound strikes or simply slamming a foe down with a huge take down.

Boetsch is going to have a tough time just contending with Lombard's sheer strength advantage.

Advantage: Lombard 

Conditioning

Since dropping down to 185, Boetsch has yet to taste defeat, most likely due to his improved conditioning at middleweight.

With all three of his bouts at 185 having gone to a third round, Boetsch will definitely be prepared to go the distance if the fight goes that long.

Lombard is no stranger to going into the later rounds, having fought well into the championship rounds when he held the Bellator title.

I don't expect either fighter to gas, but that's if the fight lasts that long.

Advantage: Even

Variables

Boetsch

The UFC vet's biggest strength is his never-say-die attitude.

On the brink of defeat in the last round of his UFC 144 bout with Yushin Okami, Boetsch somehow was able to turn the table around and pull out the TKO win.

Boetsch shouldn't try the same act against Lombard, who has immensely more power than Okami and won't let him recover.

This is a huge fight for Boetsch, as a win over Lombard would catapult him into the upper echelon of the division, but it's going to take more than heart to defeat this middleweight powerhouse.

Lombard

The keys to victory for the former Bellator champ are to keep doing what he does best.

An avid counter-puncher, Lombard will look to draw Boetsch in and land some huge strikes, but he should be weary of being too flat-footed like his last bout against Trevor Prangley.  

If Boetsch is too tentative, however, expect Lombard to swarm and put pressure on Boetsch next to the fences.

No matter where this fight goes, I don't see Lombard having a problem.

Prediction

This fight should be an easy win in his UFC debut for Hector Lombard.

Having an advantage in almost every category, Boetsch just doesn't have a diversified enough skillset to compete with the former Bellator champ.

If Lombard looks to counter-punch Boetsch, expect huge strikes from Lombard that will force Boetsch to look for the take down.

Unfortunately for "the Barbarian," Lombard has great takedown defense and will likely land on top of Boetsch.  From there, all Lombard will need is a few ground-and-pound strikes before he either finishes via submission or the referee stops the bout for a TKO.

Prediction: Lombard via TKO (second round).

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