[ad_1]
American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez hasn’t gotten to see Johnny Eblen showcase his abilities in particular person, however primarily based on what he’s heard from different coaches he thinks the Bellator champion may very well be within the dialog for the most effective middleweight in MMA.
Virtually no fan will attempt to argue that every other promotion has an general roster that may rival the UFC, however not less than so far as champions go Bellator does have just a few of the most effective fighters on the planet. One of many promotion’s brightest stars is Eblen, who’s at the moment unbeaten and just defended his middleweight title for a second time at Bellator 299.
“Strain” is shortly making a reputation for himself with each win he provides to his file, and Mendez lately detailed how extremely a few of his friends have spoken in regards to the 31-year-old.
“Everyone that’s anyone has talked extremely about him,” Mendez stated on his YouTube channel. “And I’ve but to see anyone say completely different than what I’ve heard from high coaches that discuss him and high fighters that discuss him. However I haven’t personally seen him myself, I’ve seemed ahead to the time I get to look at him as a result of I wanna see that form of expertise and I like watching them carry out and the way they carry out.”
Javier Mendez Considers How Johnny Eblen Compares To Different Middleweights
Eblen has solely actually jumped onto the radar of most MMA followers since he claimed Bellator’s middleweight belt, however Mendez suggests he may very well be gifted sufficient to hold with any of the opposite high 185-pound fighters throughout the game.

(Lucas Noonan/Bellator MMA)
“He’s positively one of many unknown guys that ought to be recognized extra so than what he’s now, in my view. Primarily based on the speak I hear about him, he’s the actual deal. And he may very properly, simply be primary over any middleweight from what loads of guys are saying. However that we’ll by no means know till you struggle the opposite leagues…He’s the man that everyone talks about on the underground roughly, the folks within the know discuss him.”
Mendez’s suggestion about how Eblen stacks up in opposition to the most effective middleweights in promotions apart from Bellator is fascinating to think about given how the UFC’s middleweight division simply skilled a sizeable shakeup. Israel Adesanya was heavily favored to defend his title at UFC 293 in Australia earlier than being upset by Sean Strickland, and now there are a number of fighters all vying for a shot on the newly-crowned champion.
There’s an opportunity followers would possibly get to see Eblen take a look at himself within the UFC sooner or later provided that Bellator’s long-term future nonetheless appears to be up within the air, however for now the 31-year-old can take a while to take pleasure in his spectacular third-round stoppage in opposition to Edwards.
Learn Additionally: Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Coach Explains What Made Sean Strickland Different To Israel Adesanya’s Previous Opponents
Please present transcription credit score with a hyperlink to this text when you use any of those quotes.
[ad_2]
Source link