Sam Oropeza is a promising King of the Cage welterweight prospect training out of the Philadelphia Fight Factory. A very tall, long 170 pound fighter, Oropeza is a mentally strong, intelligent fighter who’s proven to be tough, resilient and hardworking early in his career. He is a talented fighter who holds intriguing upside given his striking – submission combination.

Oropeza is very comfortable keeping the fight upright. An agile striker, Oropeza has a free and easy feel to his standup where he displays nice footwork and head movement. He’s armed with fast hands and excellent reach – proving particularly dangerous with his high kicks due to his length and frame (see his nine second KO of Dave Concepcion). Oropeza is an intelligent striker who does a good job of staying away from the mid-range striking game. He looks to either keep the fight outside where he can best utilize his reach, or get very close to his opponent where he can work his clinch game. Oropeza delivers an excellent straight left and aggressively leads in with big knees to the body. Offensively, Oropeza’s clinch game is very strong as he’s proven capable of grabbing opponents in the thai plum and teeing off with knees. Against the cage he really does a good job of putting his weight on his opponent and keeping the pressure up. Oropeza is a versatile striker who’s capable of firing off high kicks and flying knees effortlessly, putting together solid combinations working the head and body of his opposition. Defensively, Oropeza will leave himself open at times due to his approach but his aggressiveness and tenacity are certainly admirable.

Although Oropeza is far from being an explosive wrestler, he will look to take to his opponent to the mat if he sees fit. His reach really aids in his ground and pound abilities, as he’s able to cut through the opposition’s defense with big straight punches. A competent grappler, Oropeza also uses his punching to successfully open up submission and grappling opportunities on the mat. He shows quickness on the ground, displays nice transitioning, and will actively look to improve his position. Although his ground game is still coming together, Oropeza shows technical competency in his submission skills (see bout with Dustin Collins) and overall grappling abilities.