UFC Fight Night 146: Lewis vs. Dos Santos - Predictions and Picks

#4 Blagoy Ivanov vs. Ben Rothwell

Blagoy Ivanov will look for his first UFC win against Ben Rothwell

This Heavyweight fight could be a ton of sloppy fun, or it could end up being totally painful to watch. Essentially, it all comes down to how long it goes. If Ivanov or Rothwell can connect on a big shot early on then it’ll be fun, if not, expect two big, tired dudes lumbering around throwing bombs at one another until one potentially falls down.

A legend in the world of combat sambo, Ivanov made his UFC debut last July coming off a run as the PFL/WSOF Heavyweight champion, but I found his fight with Junior Dos Santos a little disappointing – outstruck by the Brazilian, he just wasn’t able to get his clinch or ground game going and the fight ended up resembling JDS’s win over Rothwell, coincidentally enough.

With that said, the Bulgarian did show a ton of toughness, was never rocked by JDS, and was able to bust the former champion up with his clubbing blows. At 5’11” he’s not the tallest Heavyweight, but he’s built like a barrel, perhaps resembling the great Fedor Emelianenko more than any other modern fighter, in a physical sense at least.

Interestingly enough, that loss to JDS was the last time we saw Rothwell inside the Octagon. That fight was April 2016, and while he was booked to fight Fabricio Werdum in October 2017, he failed a drug test for elevated testosterone levels and was banned by USADA for two years. The positive test was his second for the same infraction, as he was also suspended in 2013 for the same reason.

Prior to the ban, Rothwell had looked pretty good, surprisingly using his ground game to submit Matt Mitrione and Josh Barnett to put him on the cusp of a Heavyweight title shot. Now 37 though – and likely not in the same shape he once was due to being unable to use testosterone supplements – who knows how much he has left?

In his prime, Rothwell was a dangerous striker with a sneaky, underrated ground game, but he always had serious issues with his cardio – his 2011 fight with Mark Hunt showed a fighter about as tired as humanly possible inside the Octagon – and while his durability was incredible, his loss to Dos Santos showed a fighter very vulnerable to a better technical striker.

Ivanov probably isn’t that technical striker, but I suspect over the course of 15 minutes, the Bulgarian will probably be able to do more damage to his larger foe, particularly if he can drag him to the ground. I just can’t trust a guy who hasn’t fought in three years, especially as Ivanov looked very durable in his own fight with JDS. Rothwell probably needs a knockout to win here and I simply can’t see him getting it.

The Pick: Ivanov via unanimous decision