UFC 131 Fight Card: Will Shane Carwin Utilize His Wrestling Against Dos Santos?
Shane Carwin and Junior dos Santos are known for being two of the best strikers in MMA.
Both men are 12-1, make short work of their opponents and have never been knocked out.
Saturday, at UFC 131, Carwin and dos Santos look to change that. Both men have vowed to knock the other out.
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We hear this time and time again from fighters, but what makes this pair the most believable is both are primarily known for their stand up.
If Carwin gets in trouble on his feet, he could turn to his wrestling to get him out of it. Carwin is a Division II national wrestling champion.
Carwin is very confident in his stand up game and who can blame him when each of his first 12 fights has ended with a KO, TKO or submission due to strikes.
Wrestling could give him another element to his game plan.
Taking dos Santos down and keeping him there could take some of the confidence away from him. It could also keep him guessing what could come next.
A few take downs could also open Carwin's striking up some more because dos Santos would now have to work on defending take downs.
While wrestling could bring some positives, it also has its risks.
For starters, we do not know how good dos Santos' wrestling defense is. Trying to take dos Santos down could be wasted energy if he is able to stuff take downs.
Even if Carwin is able to get Dos Santos to the ground, he will have to watch out for submissions.
Although Carwin is also a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, dos Santos is a brown belt and actually has a couple submission wins by actual submissions. If Carwin does choose to take it to the ground, he will have to be careful.
This does not mean Carwin has to have a lay and pray game plan. I doubt he would be happy with not being able to pound a guy away.
But wrestling could be something he has up his sleeves.
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