Coach Sayif Saud delivers another breakdown masterpiece ahead of the Islam Makhachev vs. Dustin Poirier lightweight title fight at UFC 302.
Will [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] continue his reign of terror? Does [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag] have one more spectacular win in him on the biggest stage? These will be the deciding questions in the UFC 302 main event.
Makhachev (25-1 MMA, 14-1 UFC) will attempt to record a record-tying third consecutive lightweight title defense when he puts it up for grabs against Poirier (30-8 MMA, 22-7 UFC), who will have his third try at undisputed gold, in the headlining act of the June 1 card at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
Given Makhachev is currently No. 2 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie pound-for-pound rankings and riding a 13-fight winning streak inside the octagon, it’s going to take a major effort from No. 4-ranked lightweight Poirier to capture the belt in what he deems as his final chance.
Will the fight be one-way traffic given Makhachev’s overwhelming skillset? Or does Poirier have paths to pull off the biggest triumph of his storied career?
Fortis MMA head coach [autotag]Sayif Saud[/autotag] looked at the 155-pound title matchup from both sides in the latest edition of “UFC Breakdown,” with co-host and UFC play-by-plan man Brendan Fitzgerald.
Check out the video above for plenty of detailed analysis from Sayif ahead of Makhachev vs. Poirier at UFC 302.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 302.
Ian Machado Garry and his manager’s comments following Geoff Neal’s withdrawl from UFC 292 did not sit well with coach Sayif Saud.
UFC welterweight contender [autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag]’s head coach [autotag]Sayif Saud[/autotag] is not happy with some criticism that has followed his withdrawal from UFC 292. Specifically, the remarks coming from his formerly scheduled opponent’s manager.
Neal (15-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC) was set to take on undefeated Ian Machado Garry (12-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) at the upcoming UFC pay-per-view event in Boston on Aug. 19. Due to medical issues, Neal was forced to withdraw from the contest, which drew unsavory criticism from Garry’s manager Llyod Pierson.
“His p*ssy hurts,” said Pierson in a video Garry posted to social media while delivering the news of Neal’s withdrawal. Garry’s quote along with the video stated, “Geoff Neal has b*tched out.”
The criticism from the pair did not sit well with Saud, who has witnessed every step of Neal’s journey since being hospitalized with sepsis in 2020. According to Saud, Neal has never fully recovered from his brush with death, despite continuing his career.
“The fans know that Geoff Neal was a fast-rising star, and after that happened, he just hasn’t quite been the same, and it’s been a mystery of something we’ve been trying to solve for a long time,” Sayif told MMA Junkie. “He’s a guy that almost died. He literally almost died, and was in the ICU for nine days.”
After being cleared to compete, Neal went on to face some of the biggest names and toughest competition at 170 pounds. He has gone on to record mixed results against Stephen Thompson, Neil Magny, Santiago Ponzinibbio, Vicente Luque, and most recently, Shavkat Rakhmonov.
Neal’s most recent bout did not go off without a hitch. He was originally scheduled to face Rakhmonov in January, but had to withdraw due to a medical issue. The pairing remained intact and was rescheduled for UFC 285. It turned out to be an intense main card battle that earned the Fight of the Night award.
Considering the lineup of opponents Neal has faced since dealing with his medical complications, Saud was not pleased to hear Garry and Pierson insinuate that Neal was scared to show up for their scheduled fight at UFC 292.
“It’s just stupid to say that,” Saud said. “Geoff is the guy that tried to push through for the Shavkat fight and everyone’s like, ‘What’s wrong with this guy?’ Everyone feels it. All the fans. The guy’s just not healthy. Everyone knows this story. Are you that tone deaf that you don’t know what’s going on in the sport? Everybody knows his situation.”
Garry has since found a replacement opponent in Neil Magny, and will remain on the UFC 292 card.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.
Sayif Saud has cornered his way to more than 50 UFC wins, and now he’s using his immense knowledge of MMA to break down the sport’s elite.
[autotag]Sayif Saud[/autotag] has risen to prominence in recent years as one of the top coaches in mixed martial arts. To date, the Fortis MMA leader has seen his team achieve well over 50 victories in the UFC alone.
His resume as a lead cornerman spans from championship fight to main events to the first fight on the card, and everything in between. Doing the job at the highest level requires an abundance of knowledge breaking down fights, which Saud is now sharing with the public.
In recent months, Saud has expanded his horizons into an analyst role for the UFC’s YouTube channel. The detailed videos can be up to an hour long, and over that time Saud applies the tactics of tape study and analysis that are essential for a premier coach.
The video series, which focuses on UFC pay-per-view headlining title fights, has been met with strong engagement. The majority have hundreds of thousands of views, which is a promising start to a venture Saud never expected for himself.
“It was super organic. It’s not something I ever thought I was going to do,” Saud told MMA Junkie. “I never really had a plan to do any kind of analysis or commentating, but I had done a piece with the UFC that was about the gym. … I talked to the producers and spent some time with them, and we just kind of clicked. Then I got an e-mail like six months later and they said, ‘Hey, I think you could do this. Would you come and try out and do a pilot?’ I was like, ‘All right, why not?’ That’s how it started.”
Saud is called “The General” for a reason. Anyone who’s heard him cornering fighters on a UFC broadcast is aware of his direct, cutthroat style of coaching. His passion to push fighters where he knows they can be successful is evident, and that’s because of the preparation.
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He puts the same level of effort toward breaking down fighters whom he has no association with. Whether it’s Jon Jones, Israel Adesanya, Amanda Nunes, Islam Makhachev or anyone else deemed the cream of the crop in the sport, it’s Saud’s duty to analyze the best attributes and potential flaws, then present them in a way that’s digestible for the common fan.
“I kind of really just fell in love with the process of it because I study film and do all these things anyway,” Saud said. “This is what we do. We study tape. That’s what we do. We have a pretty good idea how things are going to go, and we’re like, ‘This is 60-40 going the opponent’s way. This guy’s stronger than my guy, or this guy has better grappling and wrestling than my guys.’ I try not to make predictions. I try to show the strengths of both athletes.”
‘It’s like a real immense study session’
Saud’s preparation is nothing short of diligent. He said it’s “kind of like being back in college again and getting ready for final exams,” and he feels the pressure to deliver a high-level product. Breaking down one title bout can entail 50 to 60 hours of film study, Saud said, then it’s on him to pick specifics sequences of tape that he can highlight for the audience through video touchscreen technology.
Some of the athletes Saud breaks down have an abundance of tape to sift through – some of it relevant, some of it not. A person like Charles Oliveira, for example, has been in the UFC for nearly 13 years and has more than 30 octagon appearances across multiple weight classes. Deciphering what pieces of footage are still meaningful in present day, and could be applicable to a given upcoming matchup, is also part of the challenge.
“Look at Jan Blachowicz,” Saud said. “The guy was 2-4 (in the UFC) at one point then he really turned his career around. People hit a prime, and they hit different parts in their career. I try to look at what’s relevant or where I think they’ve taken that championship turn. Probably the last five to seven fights. It’s a lot of film, though, especially if you have a lot of decisions in there. It’s a lot of film, but I try to give a general scope of what they do and what they’re probably going to try to do in this matchup.
“It’s like a real immense study session. I don’t use any teleprompters or Q-cards. It’s just studying all the film. I put it on template and send it to the producers. It’s all stuff I’ve got to pick out, because I’ve got to explain it. I don’t have someone cutting it or sending me stuff, and that way I really know the material because I look at it through a coach’s perspective. It’s very intense work, but it’s been super rewarding.”
A worthy tradeoff
Although sharing his wealth of knowledge to the world is gratifying, Saud thinks he’s getting more back from the process than he’s giving. The owner and founder of Fortis MMA in Dallas has a strong crop of UFC fighters under his wing, from flyweight champion Brandon Moreno, who defends his title against Alexandre Pantoja in Saturday’s UFC 290 co-headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, to welterweight contender Geoff Neal, surging light heavyweight Kennedy Nzechukwu, women’s bantamweight staple Macy Chiasson, and many more.
Saud’s success as a coach hasn’t gone unrecognized, either. Fortis MMA was named MMA Junkie’s Gym of the Year for 2022, and Saud will certainly be shooting for a repeat in 2023. Coaching remains his No. 1 priority, and he said the UFC breakdown gig has directly benefitted the work with his own athletes.
“This gave me an opportunity to look at all these other fighters that I didn’t coach, and in that process I continued to learn and expand my own horizons,” Saud said. “When you’re studying just champions all the time – you’re studying Izzy, Islam, Volk, all these unbelievable athletes, it just gives you a different insight, and I can help my own fighters with some of those little tricks of the trade, the things I don’t see.
“I just did sign a new contract with the UFC for 12 more episodes. So that’s great news. I don’t really talk about it because I don’t see myself as an analyst or a commentator. I’m just doing this and taking it show-by-show. There’s a lot of value for me as a coach in the film work, and it’s making me a better coach. The sacrifices or the time it takes away, I look at it as a good tradeoff. And as long as it’s a good tradeoff, I’ll do it.”
