Six years in the making Iaquinta and Green will finally get an opportunity to square off. Bobby Green is never one to back down from a challenge. He has a unique style and always comes to fight. The knock on Green in the past has been pulling out of fights due to injuries. When healthy he’s one of the grittier fighters in the division. During the pandemic the last year Green fought four times, holding wins over Clay Guida, Lando Vannata, and Alan Patrick. Following that Green dropped back to back fights to Thiago Moises and Rafael Fiziev.
Bobby Green has what many including Iaquinta have called a unique style. He’s a strong wrestler and brings a solid stand up game to the table with great head movement. Similar to Iaquinta he’s in great shape, usually getting stronger in the later rounds. Both fighters aren’t afraid to stand up and exchange which has the makings of an exciting match up Saturday night.
Al Iaquinta holds victories over some of biggest names in the Lightweight division including Ross Pearson, Joe Lauzon, Jorge Masvidal, and Diego Sanchez. No one ever wants to be praised for a loss, but Iaquinta has a notable one being the only fighter to take Khabib Nurmagomedov the distance (Five Rounds) during their title fight in 2018. Iaquinta comes from a strong wrestling background yet it’s his boxing and devastating knock out power that’s shined during his professional career. Iaquinta’s wrestling and ground game isn’t something thats been showcased as much as his standup. It will be interesting to see what tricks a reenergized and a more mature Iaquinta brings to the table. Training under Matt Serra Raging Al’s jiu-jitsu is something that shouldn’t be overlooked. Iaquinta enters in what many feel is the bet shape of his career. He has the skillset to inflict more damage than Green, holding an advantage with his wrestling and takedown defense as well.
On an action packed UFC 268 main card Iaquinta vs. Green has gotten the most attention on the undercard. Both fighters are hungry looking for a victory to rebound off of tough losses. During his press conference yesterday Iaquinta kept it simple. “I’m going in there to fight.” Iaquinta said. “I’m not going in there to do anything else or have a good show or whatever. I’m going in there to fight and win. I think that’s going to be the difference.”
-Matt Pellicane
Iaquinta Nation 