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Your Opinion.. What does JDS need to do in the rubber match?

3K views 26 replies 24 participants last post by  LizaG 
#1 · (Edited)
Assuming he doesn't eat another Bomb, what do you think JDS strategy should be for the next fight?

I feel using his Jitz is a bad idea.. even in zombie mode he was always able to get back to his feet. Now Cain never put the hooks in, never flattened him out, never really went for subs, but it was painfully obvious that if he had tried he probably could have sunk something in and ended the fight.

Cains immediate pressure took JDS out of his element, he never came forward with his usually explosive offense. he never had a chance to find his range. Cain made some very effective adjustments in his striking, mostly head movement and pressure.. but Cain still had holes in his game that JDS failed to see and capitalize on. A well placed knee could have changed the whole fight. however JDS looked for the Thai clinch several times but always got shut down and underhooked before he could throw any knees, this is just one example of how Cain simply outclassed him in grappling.

considering JDS was always able to get back to his feet eventually, i think his game plan should be much the same except that he should focus on keeping his hands up rather than his "defend the takedown at all costs" strategy.

if he never gets caught with a bomb, and keeps getting back to his feet he is much more likely to land a bomb of his own.

i feel like he must have had an adrenaline dumb after the first takedown because only 3 minutes into the fight he was seriously slowing down.. an adrenaline dumb would also explain why he started gaining back some pep in his step in the 4th and 5th rounds. But some of that may be due to the part where Cain punched himself out during the first 3 rounds.

JDS seriously underestimated Cains striking. he was too concerned with the takedowns and basically forgot that Cains striking, while not as fast and explosive as his own, is actually more technically sound. (at least in this fight) Plus Cain showed to have some serious power when he loads up on his shots.

P.S. i was rooting for Cain and i think he will take the next fight, i just think it will be a much closer fight if JDS makes the right adjustments...
 
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#3 ·
There were a few missed opportunities that I think if he can capitalize on he could possibly have changed the outcome of the fight.

1) Punish TD attempts - A lot of the early TD attempts were nothing more than a ploy to get him to think about the TD's, square up his hips and drop his hands. When Cain is sprawled out on the ground due to a missed TD he just walked away. Take a free shot at his side with a kick, throw a punch, something. Cain got those TD "attempts" completely free.

2) Boxing defense - This is something he actually has always been pretty poor at, just he was good enough to keep everyone at range. He isn't Anderson Silva, he isn't going to matrix dodge punches. He needs to keep his hands up, the more Cain is trying to bring them down the more they need to be up.

3) BJJ - Apparently he is good at it, he needs to know when to try and stand and when to pull guard and go for subs. He completely abandoned this portion of the game and gave Cain free top control.

I'm not saying he would win, but if he did those 3 things he could have at least made Cains job harder. I also didn't list cardio but I don't think it needs to be said.
 
#4 ·
I learned a couple things from this fight. One is JDS is not the best boxer in the UFC. He has horrible head movement. He doesn't know how to roll with punches very well or even dodge them. Also his footwork is very sloppy. He might have a good jab, a nasty uppercut and a mean overhand right. But when you pressure him, he doesn't know what to do.
 
#6 ·
in my opinion what made JDS lose to Cain beside Cain's awesome performance is that JDS didn't respect Cain on the feet. the first two minutes of the fight Cain was shooting for the takedown and Jds was defending it perfectly but he didn't strike yet, until Cain gave JDS the punch that dropped him, and since then the fight was over.

so what should JDS do ? he has to respect cain's boxing and improve his cardio, and i think he will get his belt back
 
#7 ·
Punish the takedown attempts and punish them hard. Knees on the shoot-in and clinches were already mentioned and that's a good start, but more can be done.

There were several times when Cain ended up on his knees or sprawled out on the mat after a failed takedown, and every time that happened JDS backed off and let Cain back to his feet to do it all over again. Instead, he needs to punch & knee him while he's down and keep hitting him as he tries to get back to his feet.

The next big one is staying the hell off the cage. There were several times where JDS backed himself right into the cage and then got clinched, dirty boxed, and taken down by Cain. The cage is not your friend, JDS needs to use more sideways movement to keep the center of the cage and stay off the fence as much as possible.

One more useful tool would be taking a page from the Chuck Liddell book and get comfortable with striking while backing up, and also striking with power while on the retreat. JDS, much like CroCop, is stuck on the defensive if you can pressure him and make him back up. He doesn't have the tools to counter that pressure and depends on retreating until he creates enough distance to reset and get back on the offensive. Fix that hole and JDS won't have to keep backing up so much, helps him stay off the fence and lets him start countering a lot faster.

Then there's general tightening up of the boxing game and better footwork to setup his punches. He needs to get out to the side more so he rip his punches in on better angles. I saw a few chances where he could've used the Mike Tyson shift to really rip some punches in, but instead he backed straight off and tried to reset.
 
#8 ·
I think he needs to throw that body shot more its the only thing he had luck with, and the he had luck early defending the TD but I think the first TD Cain goes for he needs to try and counter with a big dirty knee or upper cut, even if it doesn't land and he gives up the TD at least it gets Cain uncomfortable about shooting.
 
#12 ·
Learn to move off line don't go straight back. Learn to have some offense moving backwards and throw a jab that will actually stop someone from coming in.

When Cain just took the straights to the body and kept walking after him JDS panicked.

Also set your ******* feet and stop the guy. When Cain locked up with him got him down but couldn't hold him JDS refused to set his feet and deal some punishment he just kept retreating trying to avoid a clinch. If he had set up and made Cain earn stepping in that fight would have gone differently. He just gave up all of his territory didn't work to the center of the cage and got out maneuvered until he was basically already standing against the cage.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S3
 
#14 ·
As the other posters said, he simply must not go backwards in a straight line. He should work on angles, and circling away.

Stay off the fence. He needs to keep the fight in the middle of the octagon, and he absolutely needs to control the distance. If Cain rushes to close that range, circle out while jabbing and reset in the middle.
That's where he's most effective with his boxing-style strikes.

Be very active with the jab; don't let Cain get confortable, and make him pay for rushing in.

It also appeared to me that Cain was doing too much damage while on top for JDS to implement any sort of offensive BJJ, and I suspect that wouldn't change in any potential future rematch.
So forget the BJJ; train footwork, distance, a nice long/busy jab, and keep working on that defensive wrestling.

I'd like to see 'em go at it again.

.
 
#15 ·
Use the jab more. Make Cain pay for constantly charging in. A quick jab then move. Rinse and repeat. Don't need to finish Cain with the jab. Just make Cain think twice about coming forward & give himself some offense to build off of.

Cain did a good job of cutting off the ring/cage & moving diagonally in the way Diaz might have in the Condit fight. JDS moved constantly backwards in the early rounds. Too predictable. He may have been served well in coming forwards once in awhile and feinting/threatening as if he's committing to something to make Cain think twice.

I think JDS tried too hard to avoid being taken down and having his back against the cage with Cain in the clinch. He needs more confidence in his ability to hang in those areas & some type of offence for those circumstances & to not be afraid of being put in those situations. He's approaching things more like a boxer fighting in MMA than an MMA fighter?

Eh. Clueless really. I think Cain may really have done a good job of cutting off the cage though. The ppl who complain about ppl who throw punches and run might want to take a look at how Cain didn't go straight forward & how he might have been able to nullify JDS' movement that way.
 
#19 ·
Hola from Mexico.

I think JDS cannot compete with Cain for cardio. No matter how good JDS cardio gets, Cain´s will be a step ahead because wrestling cardio will beat striking cardio.

JDS needs to make Cain pay more for takedown attempts, hurt him, get him uncomfortable about shooting in. Sprawl and brawl. I still believe JDS is a better striker than Cain, but I think that he needs to respect his striking and cardio if he is going to beat Cain.

That said, JDS has nothing for Cain. Most brazillian fighters in the UFC don´t like to get pressured, accept for Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva. They get all scared when it is not them doing the hitting.

I do believe Cain can be the next Fedor. He is destroying everybody and making them look dumb for stepping into the cage with him.

Viva la rasa Cain!
 
#22 ·
A German speaking hispanic. Que bueno...¿Cómo te gusta México

Good point on wrestling cardio vs striking cardio although JDS showed he can barely keep up even weathering the storm where everybody else has wilted except for Cheick. Think Cain demolished Rothwell, Brock and Big Foot with those same shots that JDS took for all five rounds. They'll meet again soon.

He needs to be the aggressor. Cain's game is relentless, varied pressure. If JDS does the same and just tries to counter, he'll be spending most of the fight defending TD's and getting back to his feet, which makes it extremely difficult to get any sort of striking going not to mention allows Cain to surprise him with strikes because he's always worried about going for a ride.

With that sort of intensity and wrestling, it will be difficult for him because he's predictable. You never know whether Cain is going to punch you in the face, take you down, pin you against the cage or a combination of all the above. How do you fight against that? Do what Cain did, pile on the pressure and hurt him before he has a chance to get going.

JDS would be better of wading in throwing bombs and just accept that takedowns will come, because to his credit he is impossible to keep down. Cain will be far less willing to exchange if JDS is being really aggressive and hurting him.

Then he needs to hope Cormier drops to LHW because he would be as problematic.
Great post with some valid points.

My take is simple. Prepare for a five round grueling war and don't focus on just one shot even though that's what's got em there. That's the problem when all your (JDS) fights including winning the championship belt end in the 1st round. NOW, JDS knows what it's like to endure pain. I do believe JDS will return and retake the belt to end the trilogy with a varied pressured attack, utilizing BJJ, and really showing Cain how bad he wants it.

I don't think these two underestimate each other. Their championship caliber fighters who've COMPLETELY cleaned out the entire division. Every sport needs that #1 and #2 rivalry. Gotta luv it! Heck if JDS wins they may even go for a fourth...roflz!
 
#20 ·
He needs to be the aggressor. Cain's game is relentless, varied pressure. If JDS does the same and just tries to counter, he'll be spending most of the fight defending TD's and getting back to his feet, which makes it extremely difficult to get any sort of striking going not to mention allows Cain to surprise him with strikes because he's always worried about going for a ride.

With that sort of intensity and wrestling, it will be difficult for him because he's predictable. You never know whether Cain is going to punch you in the face, take you down, pin you against the cage or a combination of all the above. How do you fight against that? Do what Cain did, pile on the pressure and hurt him before he has a chance to get going.

JDS would be better of wading in throwing bombs and just accept that takedowns will come, because to his credit he is impossible to keep down. Cain will be far less willing to exchange if JDS is being really aggressive and hurting him.

Then he needs to hope Cormier drops to LHW because he would be as problematic.
 
#24 ·
He needs to be the aggressor. Cain's game is relentless, varied pressure. If JDS does the same and just tries to counter, he'll be spending most of the fight defending TD's and getting back to his feet, which makes it extremely difficult to get any sort of striking going not to mention allows Cain to surprise him with strikes because he's always worried about going for a ride.

With that sort of intensity and wrestling, it will be difficult for him because he's predictable. You never know whether Cain is going to punch you in the face, take you down, pin you against the cage or a combination of all the above. How do you fight against that? Do what Cain did, pile on the pressure and hurt him before he has a chance to get going.

JDS would be better of wading in throwing bombs and just accept that takedowns will come, because to his credit he is impossible to keep down. Cain will be far less willing to exchange if JDS is being really aggressive and hurting him.
JDS pulling a Cain on Cain.....hmmmm. That would take Cain by surprise for sure.
 
#25 ·
It's hilarious how shit changes.

I picked Cain to win, and almost no one on here thought he would. Now I'm picking JDS to win the next one and pretty much everyone has Cain winning haha.

Controversial, but I don't feel that JDS has a lot to do to win the next fight. JDS made a lot of mistakes in that fight that he won't make again, and I think that's really the biggest change in this one. Cain won't be landing much on the feet, which will allow JDS to use his TDD and counter grappling to it's highest potential. His cardio will be better, but I'd still expect him to be out of juice if it makes it to the 4th. The difference will be that he isn't being grinded down, and it's natural cardio loss and not being put against the cage. The damage won't be coming in early and JDS should be able to do little for the first round, but as the fight progresses he gets more and more active and begins countering the wreckless strikes from Cain, ultimatley ending the fight.
 
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