Jack Hermansson’s most recent loss to Marvin Vettori was due in part to impacted vision, but Hermansson is seeing 20/20 as he heads into the future.
Jack Hermansson will face Edmen Shahbazyan at UFC 262, and with both men coming off of a loss, they are likely both itching to fight. However, with Hermansson’s recent matchmaking shake-ups, he more than welcomed the fight with Shahbazyan in May as his loss to Marvin Vettori had him sidelined for a while.
“I suffered a broken orbital bone in the first round,” Hermansson told MMANews, “I basically couldn’t see for the whole fight. I had a really, really bad double vision the whole fight. So, just to see my opponent was an issue.”
While the fight did earn him and Vettori “Fight of the Night” honors for UFC Vegas 16, the injury and the loss left Hermansson in an odd place. Not just because of the time off required for the injury, but as someone that does analyze their own fights. He said in the interview that it was “hard to be happy” despite the bonus.
Oddly enough, he was originally supposed to face Kevin Holland who fought Derek Brunson at UFC Vegas 22. Holland was forced to withdraw from that bout due to a positive COVID-19 test and that is how he wound up facing Brunson. Hermansson, like many that saw the result of that fight now feels he has an idea of how he would have done against Holland.
“Kevin Holland, I see him as a guy that is; creative, explosive, fast, and he’s good at catching people off guard. But, I don’t see him as a systematical (sic) fighter you know? I don’t see him as a good game planner.”
As for his fight with Shahbazyan on May 15, it was not hard for him to take the fight as it seems matchmaking during a pandemic is difficult, and a lot of his division seems busy. But he does expect the fight to go his way in a little under two months.
“I see myself really dominating the fight, pushing forward, pressure him, and I’m gonna make him break. That’s the plan.”
What’s your prediction for the fight between Jack Hermansson and Edmen Shahbazyan on May 15?
