William Knight and Marcin Prachnio are slated to face off against each other at UFC Fight Night 219 after their original November bout was canceled. Both fighters are looking for comeback wins after Prachnio suffered a decision loss to the Brazilian Philipe Lins and Knight coming off of a two-fight skid after a decision loss to Maxim Grishin and a brutal knockout by Devin Clark. The two are both powerful strikers with extremely polarizing styles, with Knight being a powerful and brutal boxer who could put his opponent out at any given moment and Prachnio being a technical karate/kickboxer with quick and diverse kicks.
Betting Odds
Despite being knocked out in his last appearance, Knight enters this fight as an extremely narrow favorite.
- William Knight: -120
- Marcin Prachnio:Â +100
Fight Breakdown
Knight enters this fight at a massive 6-inch height disadvantage, however, it is nothing he is not used to as a 5’8″ light heavyweight. Prachnio also sports a one-inch reach advantage, however, that’s mostly irrelevant given that he doesn’t aim for ranged punches too often. Aside from that, both fighters are 34 years old and are coming off at least one knockout loss since 2020.
The defining factor in Knight’s game is most definitely his abundance of power, which has carried both his striking and his grappling as he’s risen through the UFC. The American fighter has used his immense strength to secure double legs, land brutal right hands, and put forward devastating pressure both on top of his opponents as well as against the cage in clinches. However, whereas he has power in spades, he lacks sufficient technicality which often puts him in precarious positions. He overextends on many of his shots and overexerts himself sometimes in order to secure takedowns, which has gassed him out and gotten him either knocked out in the third, as was seen in the Devin Clark fight, or lost him decisions such as his fight against Maxim Grishin and Da Un Jung, two fights where he made critical mistakes in the first round which shut down any momentum going forward.
Marcin Prachnio plays a completely different game from Knight, using his karate style to chip away at his opponent’s legs and body, which sets up his punches to the head. This is well-complimented by his fairly sharp jab which often keeps his opponents away. When this fails, however, he is often put in very dangerous positions as his opponents pressure him into clinches or shoot for takedowns. This will likely be Knight’s strategy, to pressure Prachnio into the fence while weathering oncoming kicks, and using his immense strength to either takedown or clinch Prachnio into a finish. If Knight is not careful, however, he could very well get caught by fight-ending or altering strikes, as he often leaves his hands down and his chin up when aggressing forward or refuses to check leg kicks.
Prediction and Betting Guide
Overall, as stated before, Knight’s success in this fight is contingent on pressing Prachnio into the fence and initiating clinch positions without getting reversed. I believe this would be difficult, at least to land damaging shots in the clinch, given Prachnio’s height. As well as this, Knight has gotten caught with knees when initiating clinches and Prachnio has defended against many clinches with heavy body knees which, given Knight’s shorter stature, will make the fight fairly difficult for him. With that being said, if Knight were to win, he’d likely need a takedown and some heavy ground-and-pound or even a submission in order to exhaust or finish Prachnio, but even then, Prachnio seems fairly adept at getting back to his comfort zone on the feet. In conclusion, Prachnio by decision would be a fairly safe bet, but a knockout is more likely, as the heaviness of his shots and Knight’s lack of defense dictates that he’ll land at least one or two solid shots that could change the fight.
Bet:Â Marcin Prachnio by to win by knockout (+240)