Bantamweight
Kasib Murdoch (8-0) vs. Rabindra Dhant (10-1)
Kasib Murdoch
Murdoch went 10-0 as an amateur and captured both IMMAF Oceania and World gold medals. On top of that, he was a youth Olympic boxer and a national champion, which makes his current style even more interesting given how heavily it leans toward grappling and wrestling. I will admit his striking has looked decent at times, but I wouldn’t expect him to have a striking background.
Murdoch is overwhelmingly a grappling-first fighter at the pro level. A lot of that may come down to his smaller frame and comfort level in exchanges, but he still flashes some useful striking traits. He does a nice job of moving off the centerline and can whip in looping hooks, with underrated body work that he mixes well into combinations. The issue is that he can get caught on entry, but he usually responds immediately by shooting and forcing grappling exchanges.
Once he’s on a leg, he’s very effective. He’s strong in the clinch, particularly when working single legs against the cage, where he can isolate the limb, trip the base, or chain into repeated low-level attacks. He also transitions well, including taking the back and hitting mat returns. At a high pace, he can wrestle with anyone.
His main areas for growth are his submission threat and his top control, which can be inconsistent. That said, he more than compensates with relentless ground-and-pound that wears opponents down quickly.
His biggest issue going forward is that his gameplan is gonna be the same every fight, and that’s to wrestle. If he can’t, his striking defense isn’t good enough to last at a higher level.
Rabindra Dhant
Dhant is a nightmare matchup stylistically because of his pressure, cardio, wrestling, and suffocating ground game. He can wrestle at a high level for three hard rounds if needed, but most opponents don’t even get that far before being overwhelmed and submitted or broken down by damage. His top game is especially punishing; once he settles into dominant positions, he unleashes constant, fight-altering ground-and-pound. He’ll trap arms, land while riding the back, and pour on shots from mount or any control position until opponents can’t defend intelligently anymore.
His wrestling itself is well-rounded and efficient. He mixes entries well, chains attempts, and reads reactions at a high level. Against the cage, he’s strong with trips and grip fighting, and in open space, he can level change, turn the corner, and complete clean finishes. He doesn’t rely on one method, which makes him difficult to prepare for.
What makes him even more dangerous is that he’s not one-dimensional. On the feet, he’s more comfortable than expected for a grappler-first fighter. He’ll throw kicks at all levels, uses takedown feints to open striking windows, and has a solid left hand at range. In the clinch, his dirty boxing and knees add another layer of offense.
Prediction:
This is the perfect example of a pick-em fight. Both guys have so many similarities. Both have excellent wrestling from many positions, good GnP, and are well-conditioned. If the wrestling cancels out, I favor Dhant, but not by much. Plus, I don’t see Murdoch giving up on the wrestling to make it a striking fight.
I’m gonna slightly lean towards Murdoch. I’ve had questions about Dhant’s takedown defense in the past, and that’s enough for me. I like Murdoch by decision just because I think he’s a slightly better wrestler with better top position.
Kasib Murdoch via Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Chungreng Koren (8-2) vs. Ryo Tajima (11-3)
Chungreng Koren
I was critical of Koren even getting this opportunity, as he was coming off a loss. To be fair, he did come in and win a fight I didn’t think he would. Still, Miyaguchi isn’t anything special, and Koren did miss weight, which should be an automatic DQ.
Koren gets most of his success through sheer work rate. He’s not technically going to beat you anywhere, but he constantly pressures forward and tries to break opponents mentally. The issue is that he’s been doing this against lower-level competition, and the one time he fought a quality opponent, he was badly dominated.
Koren wants the fight on the mat, but his lack of wrestling and jiu-jitsu is a major concern. He throws relentless ground-and-pound, though he often does it without maintaining strong positional control. He can bully some lower-level fighters along the cage, but his entries and setups are poor overall.
On the feet, he’s a liability. Koren is easy to hit and sloppy offensively. He’s essentially a marauder-type fighter: someone who relies on relentless forward pressure, ignores traditional defense, and thrives in chaotic exchanges by overwhelming opponents through aggression and attrition.
Ryo Tajima
Tajima is a long-standing JMMA staple, a former Pancrase Neo Blood Tournament winner, and the current Pancrase bantamweight champion. He’s shown he can be an all-action fighter when he chooses, but he can also lean into a safer approach built around pressure and wrestling.
The flip side is that his versatility cuts both ways. He’s capable of fighting everywhere, but he can also get exposed everywhere, depending on the night. When he opens up on the feet, he can put together solid volume and create momentum. The issue is defensive consistency; he’s often hittable in exchanges and doesn’t do a great job of avoiding return fire.
As fights progress, those defensive lapses tend to get worse. His hands can drop, and his speed noticeably fades, compounding the problem. That inconsistency has followed him throughout his career, and his record reflects those ups and downs. He’s dangerous in stretches, but not reliable enough to trust fully from fight to fight.
Prediction:
This is a fight between two undeserving guys in this spot. Koren just shouldn’t be here, and Tajima should’ve lost his opening-round fight. I didn’t think I’d pick Koren to advance to the finals coming into this tournament, but I am.
I think it’s as simple as this: Tajima struggles with TDD, and Koren can exploit that. Koren can even find success in a striking fight because he’s hard-headed and Tajima takes a lot of damage. As the fight goes on, Tajima is gonna slow down, and Koren will have even more success.
Chungreng Koren via TKO (GnP), round 3
