Golden Opportunity Squandered
In the UFC there are times where a fighter needs to take a chance that he or she is given to make an impression.
These chances don’t come often for many fighters and so when they do arrive that fighter needs to take the chance.
That is what Yushin Okami did when the UFC called and asked him to take the main event spot in front of his home crowd in Japan.
Okami might be on the other end of his career with only a few fights left but when the biggest promotion in the sport calls you take the chance.
It was a big chance for Okami as he was going to get a shot at one of the top light heavyweights in the UFC.
A win could throw Okami’s name right into the mix in a division that just saw their champion stripped of the title.
In the light heavyweight division, the things are complicated as Daniel Cormier was given the title after Jon Jones failed a drug test.
It has left the division in a bit of a strange spot as Cormier has been one of the best champions in the UFC but there is doubt about how great he is when he never could beat Jones.
There will always be questions about Cormier and with the champion potentially moving up to the heavyweight division.
It leaves a lot of questions throughout the division and room at the top to compete especially with Cormier already beating everyone in the division.
Ovince St. Preux has never been on the losing side of a fight against Cormier and has worked his way through some of the biggest names in the division.
That has put him in the top ten of the division and with so many questions at the top, he is not far from a title.
Heading into UFC Fight Night 117, St. Preux wanted to make an impression and take a big win to move his way through the rankings.
He was set to do that against a legend in the game when it was announced that he would fight Mauricio Rua in the Saitama Super Arena.
Rua was forced to drop out though and so the UFC called Okami to ill the spot and it led to some big moments.
As much as St. Preux wanted to make an impression this was Okami’s chance at getting back into the UFC and making a legitimate run before his career finished.
It was a chance that Okami needed to take and one that he jumped at taking the short notice fight and looking to catch some of the shine from a rising St. Preux.
A win against a top ten opponent was going to be a big thing for Okami in his first fight back in the octagon.
Of course, St. Preux wasn’t about to lie down as he needed to keep winning to keep his hopes alive in the division.
Taking a win for either of these fighters was going to be big as they needed to win in order to make an impression in a wide-open division.
If Okami could take it there would be a big change in the division as a former UFC fighter would announce his return to the UFC in a big way.
He could find his way to the top of the division with one fight while t. Preux had to try to continue his rise through the ranks in the division.
When the fight started, Okami went for what he was familiar with as a short notice didn’t give him a lot of time to prepare.
He shot for a takedown immediately but St. Preux stuffed the attempt and took Okami down.
While on the mat Okami went for a choke from the bottom but it turned out to be exactly what St. Preux was planning.
OSP took full advantage and began locking in what has become a signature move putting on a Von Flue Choke.
Okami was forced to tap and take the loss ending his comeback quickly in the first round without getting much of a chance to show what he had.
The failed comeback is not going to get him very far as he might never return to the UFC although it is not impossible.
For St. Preux the win was a good one and one that was more impressive than some might think.
The Von Flue Choke is not a common finish with only five Von Flue submissions in the history of the promotion.
Out of those three of them have come from St. Preux making it a bit of a signature and an impressive signature.
The win will likely move his ranking and get him close to the title shot that he has been wanting for a while.
He might not be right there but he is certainly closer with this win in an impressive fashion.
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