2012 World MMA Bantamweight Scouting Report: #1 - Rony 'Jason' Mariano

No, but we know for a fact that he’s going to drop eventually. Word on the street is he’s shopping for a UFC contract within the confines of the bantamweight division.

His early losses were due to his green status in the sport. Genair da Silva, on the other hand, is a solid fighter, capable of beating almost any rising star in the Brazilian scene within the featherweight ranks. No shame in losing to him, but Rony has improved considerably in the last two years.

It’s possible, but Sterling has to learn the nuances of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu on top of a striking art. Rony already has all of that knowledge, and he’s developed in a scene, and with a team, that has some of the highest level strikers and grapplers in the world. Sterling could be the future, but the ‘right now’ fighter is Rony.

I think Rony at 135 lbs. is a huge threat to the top ten of the division pretty quickly. We’re talking about a 5’10" fighter with excellent grappling chops, quick transitions, huge power, and exceptional ranged striking ability.

Well, I figured most people assumed he would sit at featherweight. He’s been talking about bantamweight recently though.

Ah, I was definitely expecting to see Rony on the list, but not as a bantamweight — he’s tall for a featherweight — would he be able to cut down to bantamweight?

He’s already talked about it.

Among the names likely to appear once the show is underway, some well-known entities from the Brazilian domestic martial arts scene look to be sure things, such as Sérgio Moraes, Antonio Braga Neto, Munil Adriano, Renato Moicano, Rony Jason, Thiago Jambo and André Chatuba.

Those are some of the names heavily rumored to be getting their shot on the show.

On the other hand, how could you snub Kevin Belingon?

Pretty easily actually. Your entire argument is based on numbers. Numbers don’t cut it. Undefeated records are for the lazy not willing to do the leg work. Belingon, skill-wise, doesn’t have the chops, nor has he proved it. He’s beaten fellow undefeated fighters in a scene that is highly-underdeveloped. The Filipinon MMA scene, while definitely growing and becoming more relevant, still lacks the skilled trainers to create fighters who can compete stateside.

Horiguchi has a clear advantage over Belingon in that he possesses excellent wrestling defense, likely from training with Yamamoto. He also has one punch knockout power whereas Belingon’s style doesn’t really allow him to produce knockouts or finishes unless he catches someone on the ground.

You’re giving the Filipino scene way too much credit. Way too much. it has its fighters, but until they step up and bring in some better fighters (hopefully One FC will do that with Folayang and Belingon), I fail to see a compelling argument to include Belingon in the top ten.

Furthermore, I can guarantee Leandro Higo and Pedro Munhoz would both beat Belingon. That’s my two cents, but I think I’m right.