LFA 130 Main Event: Ksiazkiewicz vs. Gambulino Breakdown

Middleweight Action Serves as Focus of LFA 130 Main Event

This Friday night, the LFA closes out three consecutive weekends of action as the promotion sets up shop in New Town, ND, a community that spent much of its time earlier this month digging out from a major spring blizzard that dumped several feet of snow.

A blizzard of snow in recent times will soon give way to a blizzard of competitive violence inside the cage as LFA 130 takes place live on UFC Fight Pass for a light six-fight card, capped by a nontitle showcase at 185 lbs.

In your LFA 130 main event of the evening, “The Iron Poi”, Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz (9-1 MMA, LFA debut) will travel 373 miles from his training camp in Winnipeg, MB to New Town to take on Alessandro Gambulino (12-3 MMA, LFA debut.)

As with all non-title main events in the Legacy Fighting Alliance, the LFA 130 main event will be an advertised maximum of three rounds at five minutes per round to close out the action.

LFA 130 Main Event Fighter Comparison

Heading into the LFA 130 main event this Friday night on UFC Fight Pass (9 pm ET/ 6 pm PT), Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz stands as the taller man at 6-foot-3, while Alessandro Gambulino counters with a frame of six feet even.

Ordinarily, at this point in the article, we would mention which of these two contestants has the reach advantage as per the tale of the tape, however, no such information exists for that category on the internet.

“The Iron Poi” Looks to Make Good on LFA Promotional Debut in LFA 130 Main Event This Friday

Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz has posted a record of 4-1 in his last five MMA fights, most recently scoring a first-round knockout due to punches against Graham Park in fellow UFC Fight Pass stablemate Unified MMA right before Christmas during Unified MMA 42 on Dec. 17.

This was his first appearance since missing out on a potential UFC contract on the Nov. 10, 2020 edition of Dana White’s Contender Series.

Despite this, he remains undaunted and wants to make a great first impression in the LFA during Friday’s main event of the evening.

Prior to his Contender Series appearance, Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz said the following:

“When I’m in there, I love to hurt people. I love hurting them as hard as I can. I love smashing them.”

Before defeating Park in Unified MMA 42 late last year, Ksiazkiewicz viewed a return to the regional MMA circuit as a stepping stone toward a return to major promotions, as he told MyMMANews:

“When we were talking to these bigger promotions, they were pretty much saying it’s hard to sign a guy coming off of a loss,” said Ksiazkiewicz. “Even though Dana White thought you won, that’s not enough. We need coming off a win to be signed by a bigger promotion like PFL, Bellator, or the UFC. So that’s what we’re going for. We’re going to pick up that win, get the finish, and see what opportunities come from there.”

With the LFA being a feeder league to major promotions, such as the UFC, a victory here in the LFA 130 main event on Friday night could be the seminal moment for Ksiazkiewicz to finally get a shot in the big leagues, but can he get the ninth stoppage of his career as a fighter?

Only time will tell.

Alessandro Gambulino Looks to Stretch Winning Streak to Four Fights in LFA 130 Main Event

In the other corner, Alessandro Gambulino enters the LFA 130 main event having gone 3-1 with one no-contest in his last five bouts and is currently on a three-fight winning streak,

Last time out, he scored a first-round submission via rear-naked choke against Well Oliveira last September during Future MMA 13.

This main event will be the first for Alessandro Gambulino outside of his home country of Brazil in his 17-fight MMA career.

Although he’s won three fights in a row and has scored seven victories by way of submission as a fighter, having to enter what will undoubtedly be enemy territory and win a “road game” in the biggest fight of his career to this point is a most-daunting task.

Whether or not he can handle the pressure remains to be seen, so tune in on Friday.

Analysis, Film Study, and Prediction

Although Alessandro Gambulino is going to be in enemy territory for the LFA 130 main event on Friday, the fight stylistically favors him, as he is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, compared to Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz’s prowess as a stand-up striker.

Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz Can Make Quick Work of His Opponents

In looking at the videotape of Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz’s win against Graham Park last December, his fights serve as a warning to home viewers:

“Hey, don’t make that turkey sandwich now. You’re going to miss the fight! Get back on the couch!”

He’s been known to make quick work of his adversaries, as in the first round of a scheduled three, Ksiazkiewicz connected on a vicious left-handed shot to put Graham Park down in a heap, and although he followed it up with a brief flurry of ground and pound shots, it was all over when he scored that left-handed punch.

All it will take is one well-placed, well-timed punch to connect, and Mariusz Ksiazkiewicz will come away victorious on Friday.

Alessandro Gambulino Can’t Afford to Absorb Big Punches

In the other corner, the Achilles’ heel for Alessandro Gambulino could be the big punches that his opponent could be serving up.

During a 2018 fight in BRAVE CF 11 versus Rodrigo Calvalheiro, Gambulino absorbed an outside leg kick, with Calvalheiro converting on a double-leg takedown.

From there, Calvalheiro unloaded on Gambulino, scoring with vicious elbow shots on the ground to knock Gambulino out.

Gambulino will have to counterpunch against Ksiazkiewicz, and if he is able to successfully counter, look for him to set up a takedown to begin the ground war in the LFA 130 main event.

Final Thoughts

As mentioned earlier, although this is a nontitle affair, the LFA 130 main event could prove to be a highly exciting contest on Friday night.

Don’t make those sandwiches during the fight, because you might miss everything as a result.

Prediction: Alessandro Gambulino by Unanimous Decision.

Featured Image Credits to LFA