Rustam Babayev. Strengths.

    On the side of Rustam, in the first place - youth. Considering that Babaev is younger, the recovery timing between fights and endurance in the very fight at the table will be his advantage. Not long time ago, Rustam managed not only to restore his shape after a forced pause in a sports career, but also to improve it. His right hand, at the moment, is so strong that in his record you can see the victories over Yevgeny Prudnik, Dmitry Silayev and even Dmitri “Optimus Prime” Trubin. As they say, it does not matter what you won, but who you won matters.

    Another unconditional plus is the fact that Rustam chose the optimal weight class for himself, in which he feels most comfortable: power indicators have grown, but the speed of carrying out technical maneuvers at the table is still very high.

    Rustam Babayev’s arsenal allows him to demonstrate the standard performance of technical techniques in the fight, and it must be said that Rustam is a representative of the intellectual elite of arm wrestling. Not so many athletes in the world have such technical skills.

    Psychological stability - perhaps one of the strongest qualities of Rustam, as an athlete. His concentration and solidity during the fight from year to year prove that order beats the class. Yes, openly saying, if an athlete of this class has a clear plan for a duel and is focused solely on his victory, this can be called a "cool order".

Problem areas.

    Despite the fact that Rustam does not pay attention to his anthropometry and wins many uncomfortable heavyweights, it is the size of his palm and fingers that are the first problem zone of the athlete. I think that it is unlikely that Rustam adjusts his training program at the stage of preparing for a particular armfight for a specific opponent, but in the case of Tim - that would be very useful.

Tim Bresnan. Strengths.

    This guy is able to amaze. And, probably, the most correct definition of this Tim’s advantage is "unpredictability." How many times the arm wrestling experts have mistaken in predicting the results of Tim’s armfights, considering him only a contender for victory, while Bresnan proved that he was the true favorite.

    It should be noted that Tim is a representative of "mature" arm-wrestling, like many tops of our sport in the US. His experience and victories over eminent athletes, including even the name of the legendary arm wrestler from Russia Alexei Voevoda, are his strong point.

    Regarding the Bresnan’s skills at the table, I would say that he is the owner of individual technique, which allows him to resist the most formidable arm wrestlers around the world. Even Andrei Pushkar, with his colossal power, was defeated by Tim in the first round of their armfight.

    As in the case of Rustam, Tim is one of the coolest sportsmen. On his face, we hardly see unnecessary emotions. Exceptional concentration and focus on the duel - its strong quality, and it is these two qualities of Babaev and Bresnan deserve such a great name - “Meeting of two rocks."

Problem areas.

    Being a representative of a protracted, power pulling style, Bresnan rarely starts "into the attack." It's more correct to say that Tim starts "in defense", and already from this position holds his technical strategy. During the fight with Rustam, this feature can play a cruel joke with Bresnan, because to stop Rustam’s explosive start Tim may simply not be in time.

    Technical preparedness. As I wrote above, Tim has an individual technique, which we see in his fights. I think that at the time of meeting with such a strong rival as Rustam, Bresnan should have more than one option and add a couple more counterattacks to his technical arsenal, which would be inconvenient for Babaev.

The beginning of the match.

    At the moment of the beginning of the fight, a lot of things will become clear for both rivals. I think that reconnaissance of the strengths and weaknesses of each other will start from the central position. In connection with the fact that the anthropometry of the athletes is very different, I will assume that the main rounds of the meeting will be held in straps.

    Perhaps due to his speed potential, Rustam will be able to win the first round of the duel without straps. But in the following rounds Tim will attack Babaev's wrist, and Rustam will be forced to slip out in order to implement his fight plan in the straps.

    Also, I note that in the first round, without straps, both athletes can have problems with detachment of the elbows from the elbow pads. Rustam - due to the difference in the length of the forearms, Tim - due absence of the explosive start. Yes, friends, to attack explosively without a foul, without detachment of the elbow - this is a skill that athletes of high qualification develop in training.

The central position. Start of the fight.

    In the central position everything will depend on how much the Bresnan’s brachium and wrist are ready to stop Rustam's starting explosion. Any gap in this chain will largely determine Babaev's advantage. As soon as Rustam selects the optimal position for his pulling technique, Bresnan will have to defend in an open angle which will also benefit Babaev.

    In the case of a fight in the center, if Bresnan does not let Babayev "bypass" his shoulder and supine his forearm, the advantage will pass to him, given his excellent fight in the central position.

Aspect ratio.

    Taking into account all the weaknesses and strengths of the athletes listed by me, let me say that the 60/40 ratio is in favor of Rustam. Yes, in any case, my opinion is subjective, because my assessment is based on my perception of the technical, strength, psychological and tactical preparedness of athletes, but even if in the last three aspects Babaev and Bresnan are equal, then technically - Rustam has a decent advantage.

Critical Assessment

    I suppose that Rustam will be able to win the first two rounds of at the expense of speed and better technique execution. If Bresnan does not pick up a key to Babayev’s wrist in the central position, the score will be devastating for him. Otherwise, I'm afraid that for me and other fans of Rustam there will be a reason to be upset, because in the protracted struggle in the central position, I consider Bresnan's technique to be more effective.

    Well, friends, let us wish the athletes to reach the peak of their shape by the upcoming armfight, and us - to have the patience and time to buy the broadcast of the World Cup and all Vendetta fights at special prices!

    Please comment and discuss the upcoming armfights in our groups, exchange opinions and give predictions - our stars read your comments, and maybe it is your opinion that will get their attention and allow them to make appropriate adjustments before the fight!