The Film Room: Jingliang Li
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Jingliang Li will march into the Octagon for the 12th time when he confronts Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in the UFC Fight Night 157 co-headliner on Saturday in Shenzhen, China. “The Leech” has pieced together an 8-3 record since he joined the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2014, but this represents his first chance to crack the Top 15 and perhaps cement himself as a serious contender in the welterweight division. Li and Zaleski dos Santos have eight post-fight performance bonuses between them, so many see their encounter as a potential “Fight of the Night.”
Li provides the material for this installment of The Film Room.
When Li does decide to come forward with more than one strike, his speed and power overwhelm most opponents. The problem? He rarely throws strikes in succession often and ends up going back to his single, no-setup power strikes. Although he mixes up his attacks, he can be predictable. His go-to weapon is an overhand right-lead hook-low kick combo, but he uses it too often. Opponents like Jake Matthews took note and exploited his tendency to use the same technique over and over again.
Li’s leading attacks are what everybody remembers, but most of his success comes on the counter; and just like his leading attacks, his counters are a mix of single shots and full-fledged counter combos. The single-shot counters work well against slower-paced fighters like Zach Ottow, but his ability to counter with high-paced exchanges in the pocket is what makes him special.
Since Li relies on being the aggressor, these counter combos are the perfect way to change the pace of the fight and dissuade the opponent from coming forward. He never gets too aggressive. Unless the finish is near, he will counter with a quick three- to four-strike combo and then reset at a safe distance. He rarely crosses his feet or leads headfirst, and he tries to stay defensively responsible during moments of madness. Proper defense has never been his strong suit, so it is promising to see him recognize this fault and work on improving it.
Li’s defense is above average when striking in the pocket, but his sloppy footwork and tendency to drop his hands when evading has gotten him in trouble many times in his career. Like most aggressive fighters, he does not fare well against fellow strikers who like to push the pace. Instead of focusing on defending, he will attempt wild counter hooks while backing up, which leaves him wide open more often than not. This goes back to his aggressive nature and knack for a wild fight, but at the highest levels, this approach does not figure to hold up. Zaleski Dos Santos is also one of the most aggressive fighters in the division and does not mind trading in the pocket, so we could be in for one of the wildest battles of 2019.
Although we have not seen much of his grappling in the UFC, Li comes from a wrestling background; and five of his first eight wins were via submission. Zaleski dos Santos is also an underrated grappler, but he is rather easy to take down. We have seen Li shoot for takedowns when he fails to get the job done on the feet, but because these two welterweights are dead even in terms of skill on the ground, it seems doubtful that either of them will initiate the grappling.
Jingliang Li will march into the Octagon for the 12th time when he confronts Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in the UFC Fight Night 157 co-headliner on Saturday in Shenzhen, China. “The Leech” has pieced together an 8-3 record since he joined the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2014, but this represents his first chance to crack the Top 15 and perhaps cement himself as a serious contender in the welterweight division. Li and Zaleski dos Santos have eight post-fight performance bonuses between them, so many see their encounter as a potential “Fight of the Night.”
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Li is one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC, but his style
is a bit odd. He is aggressive but often comes forward with single
strikes, and while he likes to trade in the pocket, he arguably
does his best work on the counter. He has been known to press
forward with footwork and feints while only throwing single
strikes, mainly an overhand right. These single power shots allow
him to slow the pace a bit, and although they are easy to see
coming, he throws them at full power. If they land, the opponent is
in trouble. He also likes to mix up his attacks from head to toe,
but he tends not throw the strikes in succession. Technically, he
is throwing a leading combo, but he is taking too much time in
between strikes, which makes them easier to see coming.
When Li does decide to come forward with more than one strike, his speed and power overwhelm most opponents. The problem? He rarely throws strikes in succession often and ends up going back to his single, no-setup power strikes. Although he mixes up his attacks, he can be predictable. His go-to weapon is an overhand right-lead hook-low kick combo, but he uses it too often. Opponents like Jake Matthews took note and exploited his tendency to use the same technique over and over again.
Li’s leading attacks are what everybody remembers, but most of his success comes on the counter; and just like his leading attacks, his counters are a mix of single shots and full-fledged counter combos. The single-shot counters work well against slower-paced fighters like Zach Ottow, but his ability to counter with high-paced exchanges in the pocket is what makes him special.
Since Li relies on being the aggressor, these counter combos are the perfect way to change the pace of the fight and dissuade the opponent from coming forward. He never gets too aggressive. Unless the finish is near, he will counter with a quick three- to four-strike combo and then reset at a safe distance. He rarely crosses his feet or leads headfirst, and he tries to stay defensively responsible during moments of madness. Proper defense has never been his strong suit, so it is promising to see him recognize this fault and work on improving it.
Li’s defense is above average when striking in the pocket, but his sloppy footwork and tendency to drop his hands when evading has gotten him in trouble many times in his career. Like most aggressive fighters, he does not fare well against fellow strikers who like to push the pace. Instead of focusing on defending, he will attempt wild counter hooks while backing up, which leaves him wide open more often than not. This goes back to his aggressive nature and knack for a wild fight, but at the highest levels, this approach does not figure to hold up. Zaleski Dos Santos is also one of the most aggressive fighters in the division and does not mind trading in the pocket, so we could be in for one of the wildest battles of 2019.
Although we have not seen much of his grappling in the UFC, Li comes from a wrestling background; and five of his first eight wins were via submission. Zaleski dos Santos is also an underrated grappler, but he is rather easy to take down. We have seen Li shoot for takedowns when he fails to get the job done on the feet, but because these two welterweights are dead even in terms of skill on the ground, it seems doubtful that either of them will initiate the grappling.
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