John Crouch Predicts UFC 334 Co-Main Event - Paths to Victory
UFC 334 goes down this weekend and respected coach, John Crouch gives his prediction on how he thinks the co-main event goes down.
The UFC returns to New York City this Saturday for UFC 334. Taking place inside the iconic Madison Square Garden, the co-main event will see the biggest fight in women's MMA history as the reigning bantamweight champion, Kayla Harrison, returns from injury to defend her belt. It won't be an easy task as she's coming up against the consensus GWOAT, Amanda Nunes, who returns from retirement looking to reclaim the gold she never lost.
MMA Lab head coach, John Crouch, sat down with the UFC to discuss the card and he gave his opinion on each woman's path to victory in The Big Apple.
UFC 334 Co-Main Event - Paths to Victory
Kayla Harrison
Crouch believes that for the champion to retain her belt, it doesn't need to be a complex game plan. Speaking on what Harrison must for to win, he said:
"Easy — you gotta grab her, you gotta wear her down, and you gotta make her sad; it can’t be a fun fight for Amanda. She doesn’t get to stand there and pick at you, throw hard right hands, wobble you, and you come back. You get in her lunchbox and stay in her lunchbox the whole time, and Amanda has broken in fights before; she has that “Man, this isn’t fun” look on her face from time to time, and I think if Kayla can do that, that’s the way she wins."
He went on to say: "It’s such a clear-cut “striker versus grappler” thing; almost as much as any fight has ever been. I don’t think Kayla has any chance standing up. If they just did a kickboxing match, it would be trouble, where Amanda can grapple a little bit. I feel like she has a black belt in jiu-jitsu, but she’s looked a little suspect on the ground, and I don’t think she's near as strong, near as physical as Kayla in those positions. I agree with you: it’s one way or the other; it’s black or white, and if Kayla takes her time up there, it might be too much time."
Amanda Nunes
Again, John Crouch sees the way that Amanda Nunes can win is very simple, commenting, " I think it can be an ugly one for her because even at her best, she wasn’t great with people that can bully her. If Amanda can be the bully and run the thing, she’s unstoppable, so that’s really the curious part. The classic one of who is gonna dictate their will? Who is gonna make the fight go their way?"
Crouch did question how effective Nunes might be, having left ATT and having an entire training camp centred around her. He said, "What’s Amanda doing? It’s kind of a big mystery, and nobody really knows. She’s running her own thing, and historically that is not good for people because it’s like, “You know what? I’m kind of tired today, so I’m gonna stay home.” She has a great family, great situation, seems very happy, and very happy is not always great for fighters. And then Kayla’s got the best coaches and teammates in the game. You see pictures of her with all those guys that are in the gym grinding with her, and in every video, she’s talking s*** and they’re going at it…" He did note that Nunes has a woman in Larissa Pacheco in her corner, who has faced Harrison on three separate occasions.
Who do you have winning the UFC 334 co-main event?
