A Lytle Goes a Long Way

If a lesson can be taken from Chris “Lights Out” Lytle’s last outing, it’s simply this; don’t be fooled by the numbers. In any professional sport, an athlete that crosses the “30s” age threshold is placed on the downward spiral of his/her career. In some cases, that notion is justifiable. The one sight that bothers fans, family, friends, teammates and coaches alike, is the one where an athlete is a shell of his/her former self. This scenario, just like any other, has its exceptions.

An example of such an exception took place back at UFC 119. Lytle went into his battle with former Welterweight champion Matt “The Terror” Serra with unfavorable numbers on his side. In addition to being 36 years old, his career record was 39-17-4, while Serra was 17-6. Looking at the surface of both histories, it was all but unanimous that Serra would win this fight. Unfortunately, “at-a-glance” research results in missing the bigger picture. While Serra is a former champion and has fewer losses, he went into UFC 119 losing his last two of three bouts. Lytle, on the other hand, was on a three-fight winning streak. Another factor that was grossly overlooked is Lytle’s need to win, because of his current loss total.

When a combatant imposes his will, forcing an opponent to fight his fight, that is the mark of an accomplished Mixed Martial Artist. Both fighters share common ground in submitting opponents, but Serra is the takedown artist while Lytle is the better striker of the two. In fact, he’s so much better, that he forced Serra out of his element into a three-round strike fest. This did not bode well for the former Welterweight champion as “Lights Out” outpunched Serra 153 to 124. In arguably the judges’ easiest decision of the night, Lytle took the fight unanimously with the clinic he put on at The Terror’s expense.

Now at 37 with a 40-17-4 record, Lights Out returns to the octagon at UFC 127 to face Brian “Bad Boy” Ebersole, who also has a lengthy MMA career. With a record of 46-14-1, Ebersole has been around the block and back a few times himself. The former Division I wrestler has a well balanced mixed of striking, submission and takedown ability (33% strength in all categories). And while he matches Lytle with 61 career fights, the difference is Ebersole is making his UFC debut. What a way to be introduced to the lead brand in Mixed Martial Arts.

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It will be interesting to see if Ebersole is able to implement all aspects of his game in order to snap Lytle’s win streak at four. Another compelling aspect of this fight will be Lytle’s response to an attempted takedown from the “Bad Boy”, if attempted. Finally, Lights Out is the better submission artist of the two (55% strength in that area). Can Ebersole regroup if caught in a compromising position? The best strong suit(s) will be determined live on February 26 th from Sydney. Australia’s Acer Arena.

By Antoine Hoffman
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer