One to Watch: Tarec Saffiedine vs. Jake Ellenberger

The East Coast of the USA has been battered by a relentless snowstorm this past weekend—a lucky escape for the world's premier MMA organization as UFC on FOX 18 rears its head on Saturday night. Taking place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, you can't help but think the UFC would have had to call the event off had the blizzard decided to present itself a week later than it had.

Headlined by perennial light heavyweight contenders Anthony Johnson and Ryan Bader in a sure-fire war, it's easy for fight fans to overlook the contests which feature lower down on the card. On this occasion, there are some great fights to salivate over—none more so than Tarec Saffiedine vs. Jake Ellenberger.

Despite not having fought since October 2014, a TKO loss against Canadian phenom Rory MacDonald, Tarec Saffiedine has been a constant fixture in the UFC's top 15 rankings in the welterweight division. In fact, Saffiedine has only fought twice in the UFC. But, the Belgian bruiser's credentials are significant, having held the Strikeforce welterweight strap before the organization dissolved in 2013.

The MacDonald fight aside, Saffiedine has impressed throughout the North American chapter of his career which has seen him fight in his native Europe and in Asia. The "Sponge" has had some critics in the past with a multitude of decision wins in his favor—resulting in the inevitable, stale criticism that he has an inability to finish his fights.

Saffiedine's ever-improving technical striking game was really coming to the fore before his year-long stint on the sidelines through injury in 2015, exemplified in his leg kick-heavy victories against Nate Marquardt to win the Strikeforce title and his inaugural UFC appearance against Hyun Gyu Lim.

Expectations were high when the first ever Belgian to compete in the Octagon entered the UFC fray. After all, he was the title holder with an impressive 8-1 record in Strikeforce with that one loss coming against Tyron Woodley—nothing to snort at. But, the Brussels native's aforementioned loss against MacDonald prompted him to change things up. A long-time member of Team Quest in Temecula, California alongside Dan Henderson, Saffiedine opted to ply his trade at another team: Tristar Gym in Montreal, Canada—the gym which houses his former adversary in MacDonald.

Speaking to the UFC about his change of training scenery, Saffiedine said: "I'm literally eating, sleeping and training. That's all I do. The only time I go out is to buy groceries, and it's snowing and cold here, so you don't go out too much. It's definitely kept me focused on what I need to do. It keeps me hungry, keeps me focused and gets me back to those early days when I was also just training and grinding every day. I think it's really good for me. It's what I needed."

"I needed a change in my training, my training partners and trainers as well. I have nothing bad to say about Team Quest and we didn't have any bad blood or anything like that. I just needed a change. After eight years there, I felt it was time to find new ways and learn new stuff."

While Saffiedine is most certainly motivated by both his year-long wait to return to the Octagon and his new training camp in tow, Jake Ellenberger has a different source for inspiration ahead of their fight—his UFC future.

Going 1-4 in his last five fights in the UFC, it's safe to say Ellenberger will be feeling the pressure somewhat. But, if you look at who he's fought in that run—Rory MacDonald, Kelvin Gastelum, Josh Koscheck, Stephen Thompson and current UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler—there's no shame in that less-than-perfect record.

At 30-years-old, Ellenberger has already compiled forty fights on his impressive resume, going 30-10. But, what stands out from that record is the fact he has accrued 18 knockout wins in his career so far—an imposing 60% rate. With the UFC looking to trim the fat of its bulging roster, many fighters would have already faced being released from the promotion having gone 1-4 in their last five outings. But, there is a reason why Ellenberger has resisted that fate so far—he is simply one of the most exciting fighters in the welterweight division.

Hailing from Omaha, Nebraska, Ellenberger has also recently experienced a change in fight camp—much like his upcoming opponent. A long time member of Kings MMA under the tutelage of Chute Boxe legend Rafael Cordeiro, Ellenberger opted to move to pastures new by training under Ronda Rousey's coach Edmond Tarverdyan at Glendale Fighting Club back in 2014. But, the move proved that the grass isn't always greener on the other side and he promptly returned to the Los Angeles-based Kings MMA ahead of the Saffiedine fight.

Many fighters would feel awkward returning to their old gym with their tail between their legs. But, Ellenberger said Cordeiro made it as easy as possible for his former student: "I've always had a great relationship with Rafael Cordeiro—an amazing coach. We sat down and had a few conversations. There was never any animosity or falling out, I would say when I chose to work with other people. But he's got a big heart and he loves to help people."

Reinvigorated by returning to his old stomping ground, Ellenberger will hope to put a halt to his sliding record against Saffiedine. However, it's not the first time they were scheduled to fight.

This fight has been scheduled twice before now. Back in 4 January 2014, Ellenberger was supposed to be Saffiedine's opponent on the Belgian's UFC debut. But, the American pulled out of the fight with a hamstring injury. In Ellenberger's absence, Saffiedine recorded a win on his promotional bow over the Korean Hyun Gyu Lim. The UFC then attempted to re-schedule the bout for UFC 172 later in April. However, this time saw Saffiedine pull out of the contest through injury.

Both fighters have had to endure differing battles against adversity in that time. Ellenberger has been striving to revive his ailing career within the UFC. Meanwhile, Saffiedine has been struggling to overcome injury to make his long-awaited return to the Octagon. Those two stories will culminate in the cage on Saturday night at the third time of asking. To put it simply, there's a reason why the UFC are so keen to get this fight booked.