Pedro’s long-overdue return got off to a solid enough start, and it
will be interesting to see how he builds on it. Pedro was an
extremely raw prospect signed out of Australia in 2016, but he
managed to get off to a hot start with quick wins over Khalil
Rountree and Paul Craig,
mostly through his clinch and grappling skills. However, that just
set Pedro up for a push up the ladder that he was not entirely
ready for. Ilir Latifi
stalled him out, Ovince St.
Preux tapped him out and Mauricio Rua
mostly outworked him before Pedro found a late finish. It would be
almost three and a half years until Pedro made his return, which
came in April against Isaac
Villanueva. The Aussie basically picked up where he left off,
using a feint-heavy striking style while making his moments of
offense count, chopping down Villanueva’s legs before pouncing for
a knockout late in the first round. Pedro is still just 30 years
old, so it is nice to see him back on a relatively quick turnaround
against Hunsucker, who drops down to light heavyweight in search of
his first UFC win. A late-notice signing in early 2021, Hunsucker
is a fun brawler with some surprising hand speed, but he did not
have the requisite level of durability to make hay at heavyweight;
even going back to his regional career, all of Hunsucker’s wins and
losses have come within a round. At a certain level, this cut to
light heavyweight makes sense, but “The Hurricane” should still be
at an athleticism deficit, in general, along with being the smaller
fighter here. Hunsucker has a small puncher’s chance, but this
should be Pedro’s fight to lose. Even if Hunsucker can force the
issue, Pedro should be able to get it to the mat in short order,
and it might not even get that far. The pick is Pedro via
first-round knockout.
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