This should be an entertaining scrap for however long it lasts.
Schnell has had an interesting journey in the UFC over the last
five years and change, as he has figured a lot of things out in his
attempts to turn the corner to true contender status. Coming into
the UFC in 2016, Schnell seemed to have the offensive potency as
both a striker and a grappler to serve him well in the flyweight
division, but he wound up being betrayed by a surprising lack of
durability. With his long frame, “Danger” was able to pivot towards
a range-heavy style that kept his chin safe and often forced
opponents to pursue takedowns to close in, at which point Schnell
could unleash what quickly became a signature triangle choke. After
a four-fight winning streak, Schnell has hit a bit of a wall in his
last few fights. His more patient approach simply did not work
against Rogerio
Bontorin, and some of the Louisianan’s recent losses have seen
him revert to a more brawling style and suffer for the choice. That
includes his last bout against Brandon
Royval, and it will be interesting to see how Schnell
approaches this fight against Mudaerji. The UFC’s first Tibetan
fighter, Mudaerji has impressed thus far in his UFC career,
particularly given how ridiculously raw he was upon his 2018 debut.
A former bantamweight who was tall even at that weight class, “The
Tibetan Eagle” has been able to keep his two flyweight opponents at
bay without much trouble thanks to a counter-heavy approach, which
makes for an interesting pairing against the similarly-built
Schnell. Based on his last few fights, Schnell seems the likelier
of the two to start a brawl, at which point this could go either
way. Schnell looks to be the more comfortable fighter in an
out-and-out firefight, but his durability could once again betray
him if Mudaerji is able to land something in an exchange. The bet
is that Schnell can find his way to a club-and-sub first, though
this could go in any direction if it turns into a sprint. The pick
is Schnell via first-round submission.
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