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FIGHTER SPOTLIGHT on Kenny Florian: His strengths, weaknesses, careers highs and lows, title contendership, future prospects
Aug 19, 2010 - 4:32:50 PM FIGHTER SPOTLIGHT on Kenny Florian: His strengths, weaknesses, careers highs and lows, title contendership, future prospects

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By: Dan Wyatt, MMATorch Specialist

Name: Kenny "Kenflo" Florian
Promotion: UFC
Division: 155
Height: 5 ft 10 in
Reach: 74 in
Record: 14-4
Specializes: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai

Career Summary:

It didn't take long for Kenflo to get noticed. Only four fights into his professional career he earned his way onto the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter competing as a middleweight. He fought his way into the finals but lost to Diego Sanchez via knockout in the first round. After dropping drown to welterweight, Florian made a successful TUF debut by knocking out Alex Karalexis in the second round. He fought one more time at 170 before defeating Sam Stout in his lightweight debut.

Florian was then given his chance at a belt as he was to fight Sean Sherk for the lightweight championship that had been vacant for four years. Even though Florian came into the fight with plenty of momentum behind him, he lost - only the third time in his young career. Throughout the fight Sherk pressured him, taking down at will with his superior wrestling.

Though, unlike many fighters who lost their shot at a title and begin to fade, Florian kept improving. He reeled off six straight victories, finishing all his opponents except for one. After defeating Joe Stevenson via rear naked choke, Florian came full circle and was declared the number one contender for the 155 pound belt, this time facing the seemingly invincible B.J. Penn.

Florian tried to assert himself as the aggressor in the fight, even going as far as saying to Penn, "I consider you a master, and it's time to kill that master." After the bell rang and the fight started Florian continued his strategy of trying to assert himself by coming out and putting Penn against the cage and trying to take him down, but it was to no use as Penn was able to thwart all of Kenflo's offense and submit him in the fourth round.

Since then he was able to rebound and take out Clay Guida in dominating fashion, and then we saw him outpoint Japanese sensation Takanori Gomi. He is now scheduled to take on Gray Maynard at UFC 118, the winner getting a title shot. Kenny hopes the third time will be the charm.

Strengths:

The rear naked choke. His last four fights have all ended by rear naked choke, and six of his ten submission wins have come to the same conclusion. Florian has even pointed it out, saying "Guys, don't turn your back on me. Not a good idea." His mastery of the rear naked choke is a result of his elite level of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu; Florian has become a master of the art, showing the ability to always be a danger no matter where he is on the ground.

But instead of just relying on his ground prowess, Florian has also become one of the more feared strikers in the lightweight division. He has shown off high level Muay Thai capabilities, he is described as having the most devastating elbows in the UFC, and as we saw against Gomi he is also a very good boxer. His precision on his strikes is incredible; every movement he makes is calculated and he never throws an ill-advised attack. He has become one of the most precise strikers in the game.

Weaknesses:

It seems like the only hole in his game is pressure. In both his title fights we saw him become overpowered and bullied by his opponent, against Sherk he was taken down constantly and made to fight off his back. Against Penn we saw him try and apply pressure only to have it reversed and become over powered and eventually submitted. In the Sherk fight we can attribute it to him being a fighter still in the learning stage of his career, and unfortunately Sherk was the teacher.

Against Penn it almost seemed like he was trying to be something he's not, instead of reacting to his opponent and only going for takedowns when the opportunity allowed it he would repeatedly chase the takedown, even if it wasn't there to take. He was constantly trying to apply pressure on Penn but instead saw it backfire, another way that pressure was his weakness. Florian is currently in the prime of his career, so it should be expected of his to be able to withstand an opponent constantly attacking him.

Where he stands in the division:

Kenny has gone from being the runner up on the inaugural Ultimate Fighter to earning the right to be called one of the elite lightweights in the UFC. Currently I'd put him as the third best 155 pound fighter in the UFC, behind only Penn and the champ Frankie Edgar.

What the future holds:

Kenny will be taking on Gray Maynard at UFC 118. He will enter the fight as a heavy favorite but it could be a set up fight. As previously discussed Florian has had trouble with fighters who constantly pressure their opponents. This is a strong point of Maynard's, but he isn't at the same level as Sherk or Penn. It will definitely be interesting to see how Kenny can handle Maynard's style, to see if he can defend Maynard's takedowns and if he can handle wrestling prowess that Maynard brings. On August 28th we'll be able to see if Florian has the ability to become a champion or if he'll always be on the outside looking in.

How close he is to a title shot:

There's no speculation here. If Florian's hand is raised after his bout with Maynard, he'll have a stake on the head of the Edgar vs. Penn winner. It would be his third title fight, and after being unsuccessful in his previous two, it brings to question how many more will he get? There have been fighters who have been given a lot of title shots - Randy Couture, for instance - but the difference is that Couture was winning a lot of those fights. If Florian can't come out on top in his next title if it stands to reason that he may not get another one, making it all the more important that he win his next championship fight.

On Deck for Next Week: Next Thursday I'll be profiling B.J. Penn as he tries to reclaim his title from the man who took it from him, Frankie Edgar at UFC 118.

[Art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch]