http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2016/1/2...an-mma-alessio-di-chirico-italian-roster-news
Who is Bojan Mihajlovic?
The 35-year-old fighter is the first Serbian (I believe) in the promotion's history. He trains out of Family Fight Team in Novi Sad alongside a number of longtime regional vets and reasonably promising young fighters, who compete mostly on the regional local circuit. Mihajlovic is an old-school adopter of MMA in his native homeland. He's traveled to Brazil on several occasions to learn the basics of MMA and Luta Livre technique and bring them back to his own training environments. As such he has a somewhat inconsistent pro career that stretches all the way back to 2003. He'll be entering the UFC with a 10-3 official Sherdog record, whether or not that represents a clear picture of his actual pro career. His record is mostly made up of cans and .500 opponents, but he hasn't officially lost since 2006 to UFC vet Goran Reljic. Moreover, his record is pretty indicative of the circuit he fights on, which is pretty underdeveloped in comparison to the global MMA scene.
What you should expect:
First off, on a more well developed circuit, Mihajlovic would probably be a light heavyweight, and even then a smallish one. He's got the Omielanczuk build of being shortish (5' 11"), barrel chested, and short armed. He's actually pretty light on his feet as a big man, but it's reasonable to wonder if that's not in part due to him not being a true heavyweight. In terms of skill sets, Mihajlovic is mostly a kicker when he's standing and given time and space it seems like he'd like to be a range striker. But, he doesn't do well at maintaining distance when he punches and usually ends up clinched up after one or two strikes.
Because he's a smallish fighter, Mihajlovic often gets muscled around a bit on the inside. Opponents have been able to push him against the fence regularly and keep him there for long stretches. Part of that is his own comfort there, as bodylock takedowns are central to Mihajlovic's arsenal. If he can get his back off the cage and find underhooks, Mihajlovic is decent at getting the bodylock and using foot sweeps along with his low center of gravity to snap opponents to the ground.
On the ground is where Mihajlovic does all his fight ending work. He's quick to move into mount (usually from side control off the bodylock) and because of his short powerful stature, he has very little trouble kneeling or crouching over opponents while raining down heavy, fast shots. It's the best developed part of his game, without question. It's also shown him as a potential loose cannon fighter, who has tried to punch through referees and had to be pulled off of at least a couple opponents. It's something that could translate really poorly to a larger, more public arena like the UFC.
What this means for his debut:
It's pretty clear that Mihajlovic is set up as cannon fodder here for Ngannou. He's not a dangerous puncher standing, and while he throws a decent variety of snapping kicks, his short arms and legs put him at serious disadvantage in trying to range strike against someone with 5 inches of height on him (and probably a lot more reach). His reliance on clinches and body locks to initiate his takedown and ground game mean he might be able to surprise the Frenchman once or twice and catch him off balance, but they make him poorly suited for winning a battle of strength inside over the long run of a fight. Mihajlovic is tough and scrappy and I expect he'll put up a fight, but it's hard to see him winning, or even making the final bell here.