Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida looks to make his highly anticipated MMA debut February 24 against Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane in ONE Championship. This is an exciting matchup, and will showcase two very promising prospects. What can MMA fans expect from the highly decorated BJJ grappler in his debut?
Chubby Cheeks, No Problem
Very few athletes transition to MMA with the same level of attention and fanfare as Marcus “Buchecha” Almeida. A Black Belt under esteemed Professor Rodrigo Cavaca, Almeida learned from some of the very best grapplers in the world. His skillset and accomplishments vault him into that prestigious group of elite grapplers himself. He holds the record for World Championships in the Absolute Division (open weight) at six. His BJJ accolades are extensive, and with impressive physical attributes, many expect Marcus Almeida to find immediate success in the MMA world.
First Challenge
Marcus Almeida begins his MMA career with a fun challenge at heavyweight. Oumar “Reug Reug” Kane is a practitioner of Laamb, a Senegalese martial art most closely related to wrestling. To be transparent, it is not a martial art I am intimately familiar with, but there are a few things that can be expected. Kane is extremely strong, likely has a solid gas tank, and will welcome ground exchanges. He is 1-0 in MMA, and his single bout resulted in a second round knockout.
Upon reviewing the limited tape, Kane looks like an extremely gifted athlete, but seems to be lacking polish on his feet. He bullied his opponent for a majority of the fight and landed some strikes, but ultimately dominated this fight on the ground. If you want to see a little bit of Kane, check out this highlight reel. He is an absolute tank of a human. He did not show the kind of striking precision, however, that should make Almeida particularly nervous.
How Will His Game Translate?
Almeida chose to prepare for his transition at Evolve MMA, a world renowned MMA gym. He has also previously trained alongside former UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. That access to excellent coaching and experience with MMA wrestling greatness leads me to believe he will be well prepared for any wrestlers coming his way. In fact, he is likely a threat to anyone who prefers the ground game because of his submission acumen. His high level BJJ should give him the grip to counter the brute wrestling strength. BJJ vs Wrestling is always an entertaining matchup. This one should be no different.
Almeida’s comfort on his feet is where the real questions come into play, as we have no idea what his striking will look like. On the other hand, in Kane’s lone MMA fight, we see him look to bring the action to the ground. His opponent attempts a kimura early and Kane muscles through it. That approach to grappling will likely lead to a very different result against Almeida because he will be well versed in dealing with brute force attempts on the ground.
Without seeing these two next to each other, it is hard to know what kind of strength difference to expect. I anticipate Kane to be a touch stronger and to have spent an entire camp working on avoiding submission scenarios. Will he be able to avoid and possibly counter the traps Almeida will be constantly setting? Will Almeida look as comfortable as many expect in his debut? Tune in on February 24 and find out.
