UFC 304 Sleeper Fight: Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Gregory Rodrigues

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To kick off our sleeper fight series, let’s draw your attention to a fight on the UFC 304 early prelims. A fight that, quite frankly, should be much higher up on the card. Expect violence early in Manchester as Christian Leroy Duncan draws his toughest task to date in Gregory Rodrigues.

In 31 combined bouts, these gentlemen have seen the judge’s scorecards just six times. Both are also coming off of back-to-back knockout victories.

Robocop vs. CLD

Duncan is a very interesting prospect. He can cause Rodrigues problems, especially on the feet, given his allusivity and length. Standing at 6’2″ with a 79″ reach, “CLD” is certainly one of the longer fighters in this division. He will have the reach advantage here against Rodrigues. In 11 of Duncan’s professional bouts, he has nine finishes, with eight of them coming by way of knockout. A victory here could catapult the 28 year old into the top 20 of the UFC’s middleweight division.

“Robocop” is stepping in on short notice to take on Duncan in his home country. This is exactly why this is the sleeper fight of the night. Rodrigues is an imposing figure that hits incredibly hard. Expect him to come out aggressive early to try and limit the movement and length of Duncan. In 15 of his professional wins, Rodrigues has finishes in 13 of them. Rodrigues should have the advantage on the mat, as he typically does in most fights. But, he rarely takes advantage of that, which is where he can run into some trouble. Though Rodrigues is a sound striker as well, he tends to leave himself open for counters. He has been knocked out in three of his five pro losses.

If You’re Betting On The Fight…

The O/U here is set at 1.5 rounds, and I do think this reaches the second. However, given the styles here, I don’t see this going to the cards. Expect a slower start in the early stages of the first round, until Rodrigues grows frustrated with the Duncan’s movement. From there, I think we see a brutal finish sometime in the middle stages of the second round.

What is your sleeper fight at UFC 304? Let us know in the comments.