Arguably, the best fight of the weekend will happen in Dublin, Ireland, for Cage Warriors 200. The promotions’ featherweight champion Solomon Simon will put his title on the line against the streaking Nik Bagley. Both, to me, are high-end featherweight prospects, but who do I have winning? Read below and let’s find out.
Pros and Cons
Solomon Simon
Pros
- Chopping leg kicks
- Physically strong
- Good defensive wrestling
- Good ground and pound/Elbows
- Fast hands
- Underrated wrestling
- Good ground and pound
- Uses feints well
- Good jab
- Good head movement
- Counters well
- Solid cardio
Cons
- Loses minutes against the cage
Nik Bagley
Pros
- Strong wrestling
- Good jab
- Smooth grappling transitions
- Explosive
- Well-conditioned
- Strong positional grappling
- Damaging ground and pound
- Takedown entry timing
- Athletic
- Excellent striking variety/Mixes it up well
- Submission threat
- Strong top position
- Good TDD
- Physically strong
- Aggressive/Forward pressure
Cons
- N/A
Keys to victory for Simon:
- Feints and movement. Simon already uses a lot of feints and light footwork. Bagley is a good striker himself, but Simon is the sharper, much faster fighter. He might be able to stick the jab and move while countering Bagley as he tries to force something.
- Fight the long game. Simon needs to fight smart and not take risks. That’s sticking to the fundamentals such as defending the takedowns, staying safe if put on his back, and investing into the body. This being five rounds, Simon could likely wear Bagley down in the championship rounds, making him work.
Keys to victory for Bagley:
- Foot on the gas. What would benefit Bagley the most here is not giving Simon the space to get off anything. Simon has shown in fights that he can be held against the cage. He’s been taken down as well, but for the most part, it’s hard to get him there and, more so, to keep him down. Bagley is a different-level wrestler who could win a lot of control time.
Prediction:
Going into this fight, Simon isn’t facing anything new stylistically. Every opponent he’s fought has tried to take him down—no one wants to spend extended time striking with him. That pattern won’t change here against Bagley.
The difference is the level. This time, the wrestling and pressure are coming from a far more legitimate grappler in Bagley than Simon is used to dealing with.
I ultimately lean toward Bagley in a smothering, grinding performance. I can see him covering the space, pinning Simon to the cage, and consistently finishing takedowns. Simon should be competitive early and may hold his own across the first two rounds, but as the fight progresses, I expect Bagley to rack up control time, top position, and overall scoring.
This is a high-level matchup between two of the better prospects in Cage Warriors. One will leave as undeniable, but neither should lose much stock in the process.