Mark Eddiva Of Team Lakay Outwrestled By Opponent In UFC Fight

Last Saturday night at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, Mark Eddiva came up short against Levan Makashvili of the United States. The two fought in the undercard of UFC Fight Night Manila. The story of the fight was all about the latter's wrestling pedigree. Eddiva spent most of his time defending against takedowns and trying to figure out how to close the distance and land his strikes without being dragged to the mat.

Style-wise it was a bad match-up for the Team Lakay fighter. Eddiva is a striker. Makashvili (at least the version of himself who showed up at the Mall of Asia Arena) is a wrestler. It's possible that Makashvili's wrestling-based approach against Eddiva was a calculated move because if you watch most of his previous fights, he was a striker more than a wrestler. Eddiva himself admitted during an interview that he was surprised Makashvili preferred to wrestle more than strike with him.

If indeed this was the case, then Makashvili and his team deserve a thumbs up for a game-plan they planned and executed very well. Eddiva made the fight competitive but at the end of the day, it was Makashvili's wrestling that determined who won the fight. Throughout the duration of the three-round bout, Makashvili was able to score several takedowns by either slamming Eddiva to the mat or dragging him down using the fence as leverage.

Eddiva had his moments when the fight was on their feet. Right off the bat, he started throwing leg kicks with bad intentions. Most of these, however, hit nothing but air as Makashvili quickly moved out of the way whenever Eddiva throws a kick.

Eddiva has decent takedown defense but this wasn't enough to ward off Makashvili's persistent attempts to drag him to the ground. Eddiva even looked like he was the stronger fighter as he was able to muscle Makashvili whenever the latter goes for a clinch. The difference was Makashvili's better wrestling technique during a clinch. Thus he was able to either slam or drag Eddiva to the mat.

With the loss, Eddiva's record drops down to 6 wins and 2 losses. Both losses are in the UFC. Makashvili, on the other hand, improves his record to 7 wins and 1 loss. His tussle with Eddiva was his debut in the UFC. He was also a late replacement for Alex White who pulled out of his scheduled bout with Eddiva after suffering an injury.

Eddiva wasn't the only Team Lakay fighter to see action that night. His team-mate RoldanSangcha-an fought Jon Delos Reyes of Guam in an exciting encounter which earned the honors as the Fight of the Night. Delos Reyes submitted Sangcha-an in the second round via a rear-naked choke. For their performance, both fighters were awarded $50,000 each as bonuses on top of what was promised them in entering the Octagon.

UFC Fight Night Manila was headlined by a featherweight showdown between Uriah Faber and Frankie Edgar. The latter took home the victory.