Tag Archives: MMA

Fantasy Fights, MMA

10 UFC Fights to make in 2024

Leave a comment

2023 was a super exciting year for mixed martial arts, in particular in the UFC, as we saw new champions crowned and incredible upsets throughout.

But now heading into 2024 there are several storylines that remain untouched by the UFC and some that have already begun bubbling under the surface.

Here are the ten fights that I want to see the UFC make at some point in 2024, in no particular order, and why they should be made.

Max Holloway vs Ilia Topuria – Featherweight

Alexander Volkanovski is already booked to fight the Spanish Topuria in February, but however that goes his next fight should be against long-time star Holloway.

‘Blessed’ is still seen by many as the gold standard in the featherweight division despite not being champion for more than four years now. Topuria, at the time of writing, is an undefeated fighter and could be the champion in just a matter of weeks.

Both guys are excellent on the feet with Holloway one of the best boxers in the company, while Topuria’s ground game has been flawless since his arrival. This would be the perfect stylistic clash and would send fans crazy.

Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall

The undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and arguably one of the greatest of all time simply has to fight the interim champion and one of the best in the world today.

We all know Jones vs Stipe is next when he recovers from his shoulder surgery, but Jones doesn’t need that fight and you’d be hard-pressed to find a fan who cares in 2024. It’s a legacy fight for both men and nothing else.

Should Jones win that, he will probably retire. But hopefully he doesn’t and we get to see Britain’s best ever heavyweight export go for his own legacy-defining win in a huge fight for the belt.

Leon Edwards vs Shavkat Rakhmonov

Most people doubted that Edwards would enter 2024 as the champion, but he did it with back-to-back dominant wins over Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington in 2023.

Shavkat on the other hand continued his stunning record and moved to 19-0 with 19 finishes, and now firmly deserves a title show. The expectation is that Belal Muhammad is next in line, but most neutrals will admit that doesn’t tingle the tastebuds in the same way.

Shavkat would undoubtedly be Edwards’ biggest test as champion and with his finish record you’re guaranteed entertainment. This would be an incredible fight.

Khamzat Chimaev vs Robert Whittaker

For all the hype that Khamzat has had in the UFC since his stunning arrival in 2021, there are still plenty of question marks over him for me.

He is dominant and among the best in the world undoubtedly. But his biggest win came at welterweight against Gilbert Burns in a three-round war, and his most recent fight was a shaky win over welterweight Kamaru Usman at middleweight. Whittaker on the other hand is coming off a shock loss to Dricus Du Plessis, but has been among the very best at 185 for several years.

This would be a real test for both guys and would surely show us where they both stand. Whittaker is comfortable with the wrestling as he showed in his bouts with Yoel Romero, and Khamzat is happy to strike in Whittaker’s world. An insane fight that would genuinely be 50-50. Yes please!

Alex Pereira vs Magomed Ankalaev

There has been some speculation of Israel Adesanya moving up to 205lbs to fight Pereira for a fourth time, but nobody really wants to see that. What’s the point?

If Pereira is planning to stay at 205lbs then I want to see him tested by the best natural options in that division, and there aren’t many better than Magomed Ankalaev.

The Dagestani is a fantastic striker and excellent grappler, and a dodgy judge’s decision is the only reason he isn’t the champion right now and Pereira is. If he can get past Johnny Walker in the first event of the year, this is the fight to make after Jamahal Hill gets his title shot.

Ian Machado Garry vs Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson

This might be a bit of a left-field suggestion, but as a fan who prefers fun striking battles over grappling wars this just screams excitement to me.

Garry has been on a great run recently before suffering the wrath of the internet, while Thompson is still a super dangerous striker despite falling victim to Shavkat Rakhmonov’s submission skills last time out.

There would be no takedowns in this one and it would be a battle of power, movement and karate style striking and it would be brilliant for as long as it lasted.

Zhang Weili vs Valentina Shevchenko

This should have been a champion vs champion fight for 2024, but one crazy judge cost ‘Bullet’ getting her title back in the rematch against Alexa Grasso.

But with Weili and Grasso campaigning to fight each other at UFC 300 in April, there is a big chance that this fight could still happen if Weili were to be successful and permanently make the move up to 125-pounds.

Both fighters are exceptional whether it be in the striking, wrestling or grappling and there wouldn’t be a real size advantage either way, so this could be one of the greatest WMMA fights of all-time if it were to happen.

Sean O’Malley vs Cory Sandhagen

Similar to the Garry vs Wonderboy fight earlier, this has all the makings of a stunning striking battle at the very highest level in the bantamweight division.

O’Malley is now a genuine superstar after his knockout win over Sterling in August, and Sandhagen has some of the best highlight reel knockouts in the division with flying knees and spinning kicks.

Sandhagen may well try to wrestle as he has in his last few fights, but O’Malley stopped Sterling taking him down and forced a stand-up battle there so if he can do the same here then we’d be in for fireworks. It would also likely be a 25-minute scrap for the belt. What more could you possibly ask for?!

Islam Makhachev vs Leon Edwards

Edwards is the only fighter to feature on this list twice, and that’s because there are big options for him. It’s also because Makhachev is probably the only current champion in the men’s divisions who deserves a chance at double-champ status.

There is a lot of talk about champions moving up to fight the next champ, but Makhachev has defended his belt twice already and is currently the pound-for-pound number one in the world.

If he can beat Justin Gaethje next (which is mooted to be his next defence), then he deserves the chance to step up and stylistically this would be a sensational fight after the way Edwards dealt with Covington and Usman. Sign me up!

Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz 3

I’m one of the people in the camp that McGregor should retire and just enjoy his wealth and fortune rather than return to fighting, but he seems intent on coming back for some reason.

If that’s the case, then the only fight that anyone has any real interest in would surely be the trilogy bout with Nate Diaz. They’re currently 1-1, both way past their prime now and both the biggest names in the sport today.

It’s an easy-sell, a somewhat even match-up and there’s a storyline to it. Sorry Michael Chandler, but nobody really cares about McGregor fighting you. Give the fight to Nate and lets really make the return of the Notorious one mean something.

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC 290: Volkanovski vs Rodriguez – Main card predictions

Leave a comment

The UFC returns to the T-Mobile Arena for International Fight Week and UFC 290 for a huge card, headlined by the featherweight title unification bout between Alexander Volkanovski and Yair Rodriguez.

The co-main event is a flyweight title fight between men who have fought twice before as the champion Brandon Moreno looks to get his first win over Alexandre Pantoja.

We’ll also see a huge middleweight scrap between Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis, while Robbie Lawler makes the walk for the final time against Niko Price and Bo Nickal returns too.

Last time we picked an entire card was UFC 289 where we went 6/10 with three perfect picks to move to 878/1361 (64.51%) with 357 (41%) perfect picks. You can see our full pick history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here and after starting with the early prelims then moving on to the rest of our prelim picks, we finish up with the main card picks here.

Bo Nickal (4-0) vs Val Woodburn (7-0) – (Middleweight/185lbs)

An interesting middleweight bout up next in a short-notice bout to open the main card. Nickal is 4-0 professionally and claimed a dominant win in his UFC debut against Jamie Pickett last time out, while Woodburn makes his debut on five-days’ notice as an undefeated fighter.

Nickal has an argument to be the best wrestler in the entire UFC with his background in the collegiate program, and his Brazilian ju-jitsu game to go with it makes him incredibly dangerous. Woodburn is a powerhouse of a 185-pounder with five knockout wins to open his career, but this is a very big step up in competition compared to anything he has ever fought before.

Woodburn needs to keep the fight standing for as much as possible and use his counter-striking and power to land flush. But the likelihood is that Nickal gets hold of him early, drags him down and has his way with him on the mat en route to another first-round finish via choke.
PICK – Bo Nickal via Submission, Round 1

Jalin Turner (13-6) vs Dan Hooker (22-12) – (Lightweight/155lbs)

A banger in the lightweight division up next between two hopeful contenders looking to break into the top ten. Turner has won five of his last six, suffering defeat to Mateusz Gamrot most recently on the judge’s scorecards. Hooker has lost four of his last six but earned a dominant win over Claudio Puelles last time out on his return to 155-pounds via a second-round knockout.

Turner is an awkward lightweight because he stands at 6ft 3 and has fantastic striking skills, but he’s also a really good grappler with solid takedown defence to match. Hooker is a kickboxer by trade and naturally stands in front of his opponents looking to trade, although he has shown he has the ability to wrestle if he needs to.

This is going to be a really tough fight for Hooker though. He’ll look to stay on the outside and kick the legs while countering on the inside, but Turner is the more powerful and explosive of the two and he has plenty of experience at this level also. Hooker’s chin has shown some hints of cracking recently, although the weight-cut probably didn’t help against Arnold Allen, but don’t be surprised to see Turner get a statement stoppage.
PICK – Jalin Turner via Decision

Robert Whittaker (25-6) vs Dricus Du Plessis (19-2) – (Middleweight/185lbs)

A title eliminator bout in the middleweight division up next. Whittaker has lost only twice since 2014, both times in title fights against Israel Adesanya and he remains unbeaten at 185-pounds outside of those bouts. Most recently he dominated Marvin Vettori to a decision win. Du Plessis on the other hand has won five-in-a-row in the UFC with five finishes, knocking out Derek Brunson most recently.

Whittaker is a near-perfect mixed martial artist with unbelievable kickboxing skills, excellent wrestling and world-class distance management. Du Plessis is a bit more wild and is more of a brawler, but he has got great power in his hands and excellent cardio. He’s also shown some great wrestling offensively and defensively in recent fights. Both fighters know that a win will see them face Adesanya in a title fight next, so the stakes are high.

In a shame for most fans, it’s hard to see how Whittaker loses this fight. Stylistically he is a nightmare for Du Plessis because he is constantly moving, stabbing at his opponents with kicks and jabs and he’s happy to play for the points victories – his last finish came against Jacare Souza back in 2017. He’s been hit a lot in the past and hurt, but he always seems to come out on the other side of it and I expect him to do the same again here to claim a decision win and set up a trilogy with Adesanya that nobody really wants to see.
PICK – Robert Whittaker via Decision

Brandon Moreno (21-6-2) vs Alexandre Pantoja (25-5) – (Flyweight/125lbs)

A magnificent flyweight title fight up next in what will be a trilogy bout unofficially between the two fighters. Moreno is coming off a quadrilogy with Deiveson Figueiredo where he went 2-1-1, and beat Kai Kara-France to win the interim belt in the middle of that. Pantoja on the other hand has won his last three-in-a-row, stopping Alex Perez in 91 seconds last time out.

Moreno is a very well-rounded fighter with excellent boxing and some nasty submission skills on the mat to go with his much improved wrestling over the years. Pantoja is very similar stylistically but probably more technical, and he has beaten Moreno twice before (via submission TUF in 2016 and via decision in the UFC in 2018). Moreno is the more aggressive fighter and there is no doubt that he is better than he was back then.

But sometimes fighters just have the number of their opponents and that could be the case here. Pantoja is a crisp boxer with strong kicks and can more than hold his own when it comes to the ground game, so it’s down to Moreno not to get sucked in to a battle of egos. Moreno looks like the better flyweight and his championship experience could help him, so I think “The Assassin Baby” gets his win back in blood with a knockout finish.
PICK – Brandon Moreno via Knockout, Round 4

Alexander Volkanovski (25-2) vs Yair Rodriguez (15-3) – (Featherweight/145lbs)

The best fight of the night is the main event with the featherweight title on the line. Volkanovski saw his 22-fight win streak snapped by Islam Makhachev in his pursuit of double-champ status last time out, but he remains undefeated at 145-pounds in the UFC heading into his fifth title defence. Rodriguez comes into this fight on a two-fight win streak having beat Brian Ortega due to injury,before submitting Josh Emmett to win the interim title.

Volkanovski is the pound-for-pound number one in the world and stylistically it shows, with world class striking and and grappling to go with his world class cardio and fight IQ. Rodriguez is one of the most dangerous strikers in the UFC with unbelievable kicks and power, but he’s also very dangerous in the grappling as he showed against Emett to prove he’s a threat everywhere.

Rodriguez is the better striker and can use his kicks to try and control the distance and pace of the fight. But Volkanovski is a master of pushing the pace and implementing his game place, so expect him to mix up his attack to find takedowns, use ground and pound and then use his boxing on the feet. It’s going to be closer than many people are expecting, but Volkanovski is the best for a reason and I don’t think his reign ends just yet.
PICK – Alexander Volkanovski via Decision

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC 290: Volkanovski v Rodriguez – Prelims predictions

Leave a comment

The UFC returns to the T-Mobile Arena for International Fight Week and UFC 290 for a huge card, headlined by the featherweight title unification bout between Alexander Volkanovski and Yair Rodriguez.

The co-main event is a flyweight title fight between men who have fought twice before as the champion Brandon Moreno looks to get his first win over Alexandre Pantoja.

We’ll also see a huge middleweight scrap between Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis, while Robbie Lawler makes the walk for the final time against Niko Price and Bo Nickal returns too.

Last time we picked an entire card was UFC 289 where we went 6/10 with three perfect picks to move to 878/1361 (64.51%) with 357 (41%) perfect picks. You can see our full pick history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here and after starting with the early prelims, we move on to the rest of our prelim picks.

Tatsuro Taira (13-0) vs Edgar Chairez (10-4) – (Catchweight/130lbs)

A late-notice fight saved at the last minute up next in a catchweight bout. Taira is a phenomenon in the flyweight division, currently 3-0 in the UFC with submission wins in his last two. Chairez makes his UFC debut on a two-fight win streak on a little over a week’s notice.

Taira is a stunning grappler with incredible submission skills, while also being a tidy striker on the feet also. Chairez is fairly well-rounded also, but he seems out-matched everywhere here and it’s a tough ask for him to come in on short-notice against a stud like Taira.

The UFC have a potential star on their hands but they’re being careful about building him too quickly. This screams another Taira win though, and he’s likely to get it with a swift takedown and then working to another armbar finish in the second round.
PICK – Tatsuro Taira via Submission, Round 2

Jimmy Crute (12-3-1) vs Alonzo Menifield (13-3-1) – (Light Heavyweight/205lbs)

These two fought each other back at UFC 284 to a draw, with Menifield dropping Crute twice before he had a point deducted for a fence grab when Crute was dominating in the third round.

Crute is a tidy boxer, but it’s his excellent wrestling and incredibly top pressure that saw him break onto the scene in the UFC as a top prospect. Menifield is a striker with an absolute weapon of a right hand, but his overall skillset isn’t the most well-rounded and that’s a problem here. Crute’s chin has obviously shown that it can be cracked, and Menifield has the power to dent it further.

However Crute will know he has a clear route to victory in the grappling, and the likelihood is that he will need just one takedown per round to get it there and keep it there. Expect him to avoid the early hammer blow and take Menifield down early, before controlling on the ground for a decision win.
PICK – Jimmy Crute via Decision

Yazmin Jauregui (10-0) vs Denise Gomes (7-2) – (Strawweight/115lbs)

Absolute banger in the women’s strawweight division up next. Jauregui is undefeated and has gone 2-0 in the UFC, with a TKO finish over Istela Nunes in her most recent bout. Gomes suffered defeat to Loma Lookboonmee in her debut, but earned a KO win over Bruna Brasil most recently.

Both of these women like to knuckle-up and go out swinging, with Jauregui having a slight speed advantage and accuracy edge in the match-up between them. Gomes has got an excellent wrestling game in her back pocket too, but she’s got to find a way to use it without getting clipped first.

Overall this should be a really fun fight for as long as it lasts, which is rare to say in this weight division, but Jauregui is the more powerful fighter with a bit more big-fight experience so I’ll edge with her getting it done after a war.
PICK – Yazmin Jauregui via Knockout, Round 3

Jack Della Maddalena (14-2) vs Josiah Harrell (7-0) – (Welterweight/170lbs)

A mismatch if we’ve ever seen one, but this isn’t the UFC’s fault on this occasion. Maddalena comes into the fight on a 14-fight win streak with four first-round finished in his four UFC bouts. Harrell steps in on a week’s notice to replace Sean Brady, who withdrew with illness. He is undefeated and makes his UFC debut in this bout.

Maddalena is one of the best boxers in he UFC with fantastic combinations, excellent power and a great fight IQ to make reads and capitalise on them. Harrell is also a striker but isn’t a natural welterweight and is nowhere near a strong enough wrestler to upset the rhythm of Maddalena.

The Australian is a top prospect at 170-pounds and this is a chance to pad his record a little bit. Expect a showcase before a nasty combination turns Harrell’s lights out somewhere in the opening five minutes.
PICK – Jack Della Maddalena via Knockout, Round 1

Robbie Lawler (29-16) vs Niko Price (15-6) – (Welterweight/170lbs)

One of the greatest welterweight fighters of all-time makes the walk to the octagon for the final time “Ruthless” fights Price in his retirement bout. Lawler was beaten by Bryan Barbarena last time out by knockout, making it five defeats in his last six fights. Price has lost two of his last three, getting stopped by Phillip Rowe in his last outing.

Lawler is a fine wrestler but it’s his power striking and incredible aggression which has made him a household name and legendary figure in the sport. Price has a very similar fighting style to Lawler, with tones of aggression and a good mix of striking and wrestling in his weaponry.

This is going to be a straight up war which means the fans will be electric and the fighters will go for it. But in 2023, that doesn’t suit Lawler anymore and Price is more likely to outland him and outwork him over 15 minutes to claim a big win for his record and send Lawler into the sunset on his back.
PICK – Niko Price via Decision

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC 290: Volkanovski v Rodriguez – Early prelims predictions

Leave a comment

The UFC returns to the T-Mobile Arena for International Fight Week and UFC 290 for a huge card, headlined by the featherweight title unification bout between Alexander Volkanovski and Yair Rodriguez.

The co-main event is a flyweight title fight between men who have fought twice before as the champion Brandon Moreno looks to get his first win over Alexandre Pantoja.

We’ll also see a huge middleweight scrap between Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis, while Robbie Lawler makes the walk for the final time against Niko Price and Bo Nickal returns too.

Last time we picked an entire card was UFC 289 where we went 6/10 with three perfect picks to move to 878/1361 (64.51%) with 357 (41%) perfect picks. You can see our full pick history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here, starting with the early prelims.

Kamuela Kirk (12-5) vs Esteban Ribovics (11-1) – (Lightweight/155lbs)

A banger to open up the card in the lightweight division. Kirk won his UFC debut with a decision win over Makwan Amirkhani, before suffering defeat to Damon Jackson in his most recent outing to snap a three-fight win streak. Ribovics made it into the UFC as an undefeated fighter thanks to a win on Dana White’s Contender Serie, but he lost his debut against Loik Radzhabov back at UFC 285.

Kirk is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt through and through with solid takedowns, terrific submissions and some decent hands on the feet too. Ribovics is a brawler on the feet with constant forward pressure and great combinations, and while his takedown defence isn’t the best he is able to scramble and get back up very quickly too.

Kirk is moving up to 155 for the first time in the UFC and that could see him look stronger in the wrestling since he’s not cutting so much weight. But Ribovics looks the far more aggressive of the two and his strengths seem to outweigh his weaknesses in this match up. Expect a fun fight with momentum swings, but Ribovics claims the win on the cards.
PICK – Esteban Ribovics via Decision

Shannon Ross (13-7) vs Jesus Aguilar (8-2) – (Flyweight/125lbs)

An interesting bout in the flyweight division up next between two guys looking for their first win in the octagon. Ross was beaten on the Contender Series before losing his UFC debut against Kleydson Rodrigues in under a minute, while Aguilar saw an eight-fight win streak snapped on his debut when he was tapped out by the impressive Tatsuro Taira in the first round.

It’s hard to see how Ross is a UFC calibre fighter with below average grappling and a striking game that seems him get rocked and dropped with alarming regularity for this level. Aguilar is a very aggressive fighter with strong combinations and good power in his hands, and a nasty guillotine if he gets the opportunity to snatch up a neck.

With that said, if Aguilar drops on a guillotine that isn’t there he could find himself struggling to get back up from under Ross. If he stays standing and just strikes, which is where his strength is, then Aguilar could find himself getting a finish in the middle round.
PICK – Jesus Aguilar via Knockout, Round 2

Cameron Saaiman (8-0) vs Terrence Mitchell (15-2) – (Bantamweight/135lbs)

A very fun bantamweight scrap up next between two fun prospects. Saaiman is one of the best up and coming 135-pounders at 22-years-old with a knockout win over Steven Koslow before a decision win over Mana Martinez. Mitchell makes his UFC debut on an 11-fight win streak, seven years after appearing on The Ultimate Fighter.

Saaiman is a fantastic kickboxer with great power and speed in his strikes, but he does struggle with wrestling. His cardio has been decent too, allowing him to pour pressure onto his opponents. Mitchell is a strong wrestler but his striking game is average at best, while he tends to crumble in the face of pressure – just ask Kai Kara-France.

If Mitchell is able to shoot for takedowns and hold Saaiman down then he has a chance of victory, but this seems to be a chance for “MSP” to showcase his skills and get another finish win on his record.
PICK – Cameron Saaiman via Knockout, Round 1

Vitor Petrino (8-0) vs Marcin Prachnio (16-6) – (Light Heavyweight/205lbs)

Light heavyweights collide next with a prospect coming up against a veteran. Petrino claimed a dominant decision win in his UFC debut last time out against Anton Turkalj, while Prachnio comes into this bout with three wins in his last four – most recently against William Knight.

Petrino is a violent striker with tremendous punching power, decent kicks and excellent cardio. Prachnio is a pretty bog-standard light heavyweight with average striking and some okay takedown defence, but his chin still hangs way up in the air. His best option is making this fight ugly and dragging it out for as long as possible.

Realistically though, that isn’t going to happen. Petrino will come out and blitz Prachnio and even if he manages to survive initially, Petrino has the cardio to go again and get the finish everyone expects.
PICk – Vitor Petrino via Knockout, Round 1

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC 289: Nunes vs Aldana – Main card predictions

Leave a comment

The UFC heads to the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada for UFC 289 as the women’s bantamweight title is on the line in the main event between Amanda Nunes and Irene Aldana.

A huge fight will see the greatest female fighter of all time go up against the number five ranked 135-pound fighter in the world, looking to extend her legacy. In the co-main event we’ll see two lightweight title contenders go head-to-head in an amazing fight that could easily be the fight of the year.

Last time we predicted a whole card at UFC 288 we had a poor night, going 6/12 with two perfect picks to move to 872/1351 (64.54%) with 357 perfect picks (40.94%). You can see our full picks history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here and after starting with the early prelims then moving on to the rest of the prelims, we finish up with the main card picks.

Marc-Andre Barriault (15-6) vs Eryk Anders (15-7) – (Middleweight/185lbs)

Fun middleweight scrap up next. Barriault bounced back from a submission loss to Anthony Hernandez with a second-round knockout win over Julian Marquez last time out, while Anders recovered from back-to-back losses to earn a big knockout win over Kyle Daukaus most recently.

“Powerbar” is a strong wrestler that he often chooses against using, instead opting to use his powerful striking and good pressure. Anders on the other hand is a good wrestler who similarly has a powerful strike on him, but he tends to use his wrestling a lot more often. Both guys are happy to play counter striker on occasion with their power and defensive wrestling nous, which means we could find a bit of a stalemate here.

More likely however is that Barriault is going to march forward as usual and force Anders backwards and just go bell-to-bell with haymakers. If it goes to the ground Anders has some really good jiu-jitsu in back pocket, but ultimately I think it stays up for the most part and Barriault can get it done with his cardio and score a late finish.
PICK – Marc-Andre Barriault via Knockout, Round 3

Dan Ige (16-6) vs Nate Landwehr (17-4) – (Featherweight/145lbs)

An intriguing featherweight fight next up on the main card. Ige snapped a three-fight losing streak with a vicious knockout win over Damon Jackson most recently, while Landwehr has won his last three in a row against Ludovit Klein, David Onama and most recently Austin Lingo.

Ige is a boxer with some decent power in his hands, a fantastic chin and some good defensive grappling too to ensure he can’t be bullied on the mat. Landwehr is a powerful puncher, but it’s the wrestling where he does his best work as he looks to get control. His aggressive style always makes for a fun fight, but he could find himself in trouble this time.

“50K” Ige has some fantastic counter-striking skills and his boxing is fantastic. He may not be a fighter who will be a contender in this weight class, but overall he is a better fighter than Landwehr. His chin means he’s unlikely to drop early on but Landwehr has the option of trying to outwrestle him and just control. Ige should be able to deal with it and do enough damage on the in-betweens to claim another much needed win.
PICK – Dan Ige via Decision

Mike Malott (9-1-1) vs Adam Fugitt (9-3) – (Welterweight/170lbs)

A very fun welterweight fight between two guys looking to break into the rankings at 170 pounds. Malott is on a five-fight win streak and is undefeated in the UFC, with wins over Mickey Gall and Yohan Lainesse in the first-round. Fugitt suffered defeat to Michael Morales in his UFC debut, but bounced back last time out with a first-round knockout against Yusaku Kinoshita.

Malott and Fugitt are both very well-rounded fighters, with Malott a coach for jiu-jitsu and striking at his gym. Fugitt is a southpaw who looks to use his power left-hand a lot while also having good defensive skills in the grappling realm too.

This fight has no business being this high up the card but the UFC are clearly trying to make a new star. Of the two, Malott seems to be the guy for that. He’s strong everywhere and can take the fight wherever he needs to. Fugitt has the ability to catch him as he tries to close the distance, but this fight looks like a good opportunity for a club and sub win for “Proper”.
PICK – Mike Malott via Submission, Round 2

Charles Oliveira (33-9) vs Beneil Dariush (22-4-1) – (Lightweight/155lbs)

Absolute banger at lightweight and without a doubt the fight of the night. Oliveira saw an 11-fight win streak including victories over Tony Ferguson, Michael Chandler, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje snapped last time out by Islam Mackhachev as he lost the title. Dariush is currently on an eight-fight win streak, with big decision wins over Ferguson and Mateusz Gamrot most recently.

Both fighters are world class jiu-jitsu practitioners who also have solid striking games and power to put opponents out. Dariush is a better wrestler out of the two, but Oliveira stands to be the better striker on the feet which makes this a magnificent match up. Both fighters will fancy their chances in a stand-up war, and on the mat it probably couldn’t be more even.

With that said, both fighters will probably look to avoid the grappling game. On the feet Oliveira is quicker and loves to push the pace, while Dariush is more about power. Olliveira is relentless with his pressure and I just have a hunch that “Do Bronx” gets it done in style to get back on the winning road.
PICK – Charles Oliveira via Knockout, Round 2

Amanda Nunes (22-5) vs Irene Aldana (14-6) – (Bantamweight/135lbs)

A women’s bantamweight title fight in the main event, and history is on the cards. Nunes avenged her shock loss to Julia Pena last time out as she claimed a dominant decision win in the rematch, reclaiming her title in the process. Aldana comes into this on a two-fight win streak having knocked out Yana Santos and Macy Chiasson.

Nunes is the GOAT, with world-class striking and unmatched power in the women’s game to go with strong wrestling and a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. Aldana is a terrific boxer with decent volume and combinations, while her defensive grappling has been enough for a lot of her career to avoid being dominated.

This fight should go however Nunes wants it to. We’ve seen her use her wrestling a lot more in recent fights and control from top position, but she dropped and hurt Pena several times in their last fight. Aldana will try to use the jab to frustrate Nunes similarly to how Pena did in their first fight, but Nunes is able to put her out with one punch where she couldn’t with Pena. Expect Nunes to want to make a statement here and land a nasty combination before doing enough damage for the referee to step in and call it a day somewhere in the middle rounds.
PICK – Amanda Nunes via Knockout, Round 3

ufc 289: nunes vs aldana – prelims predictions
Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC 289: Nunes vs Aldana – Prelims predictions

Leave a comment

The UFC heads to the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada for UFC 289 as the women’s bantamweight title is on the line in the main event between Amanda Nunes and Irene Aldana.

A huge fight will see the greatest female fighter of all time go up against the number five ranked 135-pound fighter in the world, looking to extend her legacy. In the co-main event we’ll see two lightweight title contenders go head-to-head in an amazing fight that could easily be the fight of the year.

Last time we predicted a whole card at UFC 288 we had a poor night, going 6/12 with two perfect picks to move to 872/1351 (64.54%) with 357 perfect picks (40.94%). You can see our full picks history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here and after starting with the early prelims, we move on to the rest of the prelims.

Aiemann Zahabi (9-2) vs Aoriqileng (24-9) – (Bantamweight/135lbs)

A fun bantamweight scrap up next. Zahabi is 2-2 in his last four with back-to-back defeats to Ricardo Ramos and Vince Morales, but he’s won his last two against Drako Rodriguez and Ricky Turcios. Aoriqileng is coming into the fight in the same vein of form, having lost to Jeff Molina and Cody Durden before winning his next two against Camerone Else and Jay Perrin.

Both of these guys are strong strikers on the feet with a weakness in the grappling, which means it becomes a battle of technique vs power. The issue for Zahabi, who is the technical striker of the two, is that he isn’t good enough to make that work against someone as aggressive and powerful as Aorqileng.

The Chinese fighter is going to push forward and use his wild style to land heavy shots. He’s got great volume in his game to push the pace and eventually he’s going to land heavy enough to claim the stoppage win.
PICK – Aorqileng via Knockout, Round 2

Miranda Maverick (13-4) vs Jasmine Jasudavicius (8-2) – (Flyweight/125lbs)

A very intriguing women’s flyweight bout up next. Maverick is on a two-fight win streak after submitting Sabina Mazo, before claiming a decision win over Shanna Young most recently. Jasudavicius has won four of her last five, with a defeat to Natalia Silva coming before her most recent win over Gabriella Fernandes most recently.

Maverick is one of the best young prospects in the division with superb wrestling skills and strong wrestling. She’s also a decent boxer with good power too, and will come up against Jasudavicius who likes to spam takedown attempts and try to generate enough control time to earn the win.

That’s a horrible plan against someone better than her wherever this fight goes, and Maverick looks set to make it three-in-a-row relatively comfortably. She should be able to land quite easily on the feet and if she goes for the takedown she’s aggressive enough to get the finish with ground and pound too.
PICK – Miranda Maverick via Decision

Nassourdine Imavov (12-4) vs Chris Curtis (30-10) – (Middleweight/185lbs)

A real banger in the middleweight division is the featured prelim bout here. Imavov was on a three-fight win streak before suffering a one-sided decision loss to Sean Strickland last time out. Curtis on the other hand is 2-2 in his last four, with wins over Rodolfo Vieira and Joaqui Buckley to go with defeats against Jack Hermansson and Kelvin Gastelum.

Imavov is a very strong technical striker with good kickboxing skills and strong wrestling, but he looked worryingly short of ideas in his last outing when that stopped working. Curtis is a strong boxer with fantastic one-punch power, but he’s a little bit undersized for the division. With just three rounds to work, his regular slow starts could be a bit of an issue.

Curtis will want to stand and trade and try to put him against the cage for more scrapping rather than a technical fight, because Curtis is shorter. Imavov has the explosiveness and style to cause Curtis problems, and he should be able to get the decision over the 15 minutes.
PICK – Nassourdine Imavov via Decision

ufc 289: nunes vs aldana – early prelims predictions
Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC 289: Nunes vs Aldana – Early prelims predictions

1 Comment

The UFC heads to the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada for UFC 289 as the women’s bantamweight title is on the line in the main event between Amanda Nunes and Irene Aldana.

A huge fight will see the greatest female fighter of all time go up against the number five ranked 135-pound fighter in the world, looking to extend her legacy. In the co-main event we’ll see two lightweight title contenders go head-to-head in an amazing fight that could easily be the fight of the year.

Last time we predicted a whole card at UFC 288 we had a poor night, going 6/12 with two perfect picks to move to 872/1351 (64.54%) with 357 perfect picks (40.94%). You can see our full picks history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here, starting with the early prelims.

Diane Belbita (14-7) vs Maria Oliveira (13-6) – (Strawweight/115lbs)

A fun women’s strawweight fight opens the card in Vancouver. Belbita has lost three of her four fights in the UFC, dropping a decision to Molly McCann in her debut before being armbarred by Liana Jojua. She got her first win over Hannah Goldy, but lost last time out to Gloria De Paula over a year ago. Oliveira has lost two of her three UFC bouts, with a win over De Paula sandwiched between decision losses to Tabatha Ricci and Vanessa Demopolous most recently.

Belbita is a very technical striker with good volume and power, but she has some big issues when it comes to grappling where she is very much at the helm of her opponent. But on this occasion Oliveira is unlikely to test that as she is also a strong striker with plenty of combinations and very little grappling to go with her attacks.

“Warrior Princess” is the better striker of the two and has more volume and power to her game too. Expect this one to go the distance, but with Belbita to come out on top.
PICK – Diane Belbita via Decision

David Dvorak (20-5) vs Stephen Erceg (9-1) – (Flyweight/125lbs)

A banger in the flyweight division between two very highly-rated future contenders. Dvorak has lost his last two fights in a row, dropping decisions to Matheus Nicolau and Manel Kape most recently. Erceg comes into the fight for his UFC debut on an eight-fight win streak on two-weeks’ notice, with a first-round submission most recently back in February.

Dvorak is a powerful striker with a nasty right hook and great heart to show whenever he gets hurt, while Erceg is a great striker with nasty submission skills to go with it. He does have a bit of an issue with his cardio, but he has proven himself to be a UFC calibre fighter already.

Erceg is likely to come forward and his ability to land quick combinations to go with Dvorak’s violent style means he could certainly strike hard and get it done. But the experience under the bright lights and his chin should see him come through any tough times initially to claim the win with a tough as nails performance, where he uses his cardio to push hard and claim the win.
PICK – David Dvorak via Decision

Kyle Nelson (13-5-1) vs Blake Bilder (8-0-1) – (Featherweight/145lbs)

An interesting featherweight fight up next. Nelson is winless in his last three fights losing two in a row to Billy Quarantillo and Jai Herbert, before drawing with Doo Ho Choi last time out. Bilder comes in as an undefeated fighter with a win over Shane Young in his debut last time out.

Nelson is a powerhouse in the striking game, but he moves a bit like a heavyweight when it comes to the fact that after the opening five minutes he slows all the way down. Bilder on the other hand is a very well-rounded scrapper with excellent grappling skills and strong wrestling. If he gets out of the opening five minutes this is his fight to lose.

Nelson is going to push the pace early on and throw bombs, but if he doesn’t land then he’s going to end up on his back and getting beaten to a pulp for the majority of the next ten minutes.
PICK – Blake Bilder via Decision

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC Vegas 74: Kara-France vs Albazi – Fight predictions

Leave a comment

The UFC returns after a two-week break for another banger in the Apex as ranked flyweights compete in the main event.

Kai Kara-France returns for the first time since losing an interim title fight against current champion Brandon Moreno, while Albazi enters on a five-fight win streak looking to break into the top five of the rankings.

Last time out at UFC Vegas 73 we got the main event pick right when Mackenzie Dern dominated Angela Hill, although she didn’t get the submission we expected. You can see our full pick history here.

We’ll look to improve on that here with our pick for this 125-pound banger.

Recent fight history

Kara-France found himself on a hot-streak in 2021 with back-to-back first-round knockout wins against Rogerio Bontorin and then former bantamweight champion Cody Gardbrandt.

He followed those up with a dominant decision win against Askar Askarov to set up his interim title fight against Moreno, which he suffered a knockout loss in after the ill effects of a body shot and the follow up ground and pound. This is his first fight in 11 months.

Albazi on the other hand has risen up the ranks in the UFC quickly after making his debut in the organisation back in July 202 with a first-round submission win over Malcolm Gordon.

After that he claimed a decision win over Zhalgas Zhumagulov, before back-to-back stoppage wis over Francisco Figueiredo and Alessandro Costa. This is his first UFC fight against an opponent ranked inside the top 10.

Fight styles

Kara-France is a kickboxer with fantastic striking and superb one-punch power for the 125-pound division.

His boxing is really good with great combinations and speed to go with it, while he also uses good low kicks and great footwork to avoid any counter strikes.

His grappling is competent too, but more in a defensive sense than offensively and he will want the fight to stay on the feet for as long as possible.

Albazi on the other hand is a world class grappler with fantastic jiu-jitsu skills and incredible wrestling, but his striking has also improved greatly in recent years.

His jab in particular is really strong and he has a nasty right cross that he throws too, but his greatest strength is without a doubt when he gets hold of guys and takes it down to the mat and starts working for limbs or a neck.

Prediction

Stylistically this is a good fight for both guys, because Albazi will feel as though his grappling skills are too much for Kara-France.

But there’s a debate as to whether or not Albazi is a better wrestler than Askarov was, and Kara-France completely nullified him and controlled that fight from start to finish.

Even if he does get taken down, he is really good at getting back to his feet quickly and on the feet he certainly has the advantage in power, speed and technique.

It’s most definitely not an easy pick and I expect it will go back and forth throughout the 25 minutes, but Kara-France’s experience at the highest level and his willingness to go into the fire to land and make a statement should see judges lean in his favour on the scorecards in a close decision.

PICK – Kai Kara-France via Decision

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC Vegas 73: Dern vs Hill – Fight predictions

Leave a comment

From the big boys to the smallest girls, strawweights take centre stage at the UFC Apex this weekend as Mackenzie Dern and Angela Hill headline UFC Vegas 73.

After the previous main event for this event fell out, these two women stepped up on short notice to take the five round spot as they look to improve their recent runs and push up the rankings.

Last time out at UFC Charlotte we got our main event pick spot on with a perfect pick, boosting our overall record. You can see our full picks history here.

We’ll look to further improve that record here with the main event picks for this weekend.

Recent fight history

After establishing herself as a threat to the strawweight division after a four-fight win streak, Dern has struggled in recent outings.

She suffered a unanimous decision defeat to Marina Rodriguez in a five-round main event back in October 2021, before bouncing back with a split decision win over Tecia Torres in April 2022.

Straight after that though she once again suffered defeat in a five-round main event, with Yan Xiaonan claiming a majority decision win in her last fight to move her professional record to 12-3.

Hill on the other hand has recovered from a horrible run that saw her lose five out of six, including some really controversial decision defeats.

She has since won her last two outings though, claiming unanimous decision wins against Lupita Godinez and most recently Emily Ducote back in December. Her professional record now stands at 15-12.

Fight styles

Dern is one of the very best Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners in the world today, male or female, and nobody wants to go to the ground with her if they don’t have to.

Despite her excellent grappling skills though, Dern has shown a tendency to be able to strike with opponents in recent fights at least to a point where she is dangerous.

Her offensive wrestling continues to give her problems though, as she can’t use traditional takedowns to get the fight where she is strongest and it gives her opponents a chance.

As for Hill, she’s a real grinder. “Overkill” is a fine striker with good boxing skills, but she is also a decent grappler with good wrestling.

Without doubt however her greatest attribute is her cardio and her grit, with a never-say-die attitude and an ability to maintain a fast pace for 25 minutes if necessary.

Prediction

This fight goes one of two ways and it seems quite clear.

If the fight goes to the ground for any prolonged period of time, then Dern is going to submit Hill. If the fight stays standing for the longest period of time, then Hill is going to be victorious.

So really what we’re predicting is if Dern can get the fight down to the ground in any way shape or form and keep her there to work her submissions, and I would be surprised if she’s not capable of doing so at some point in the 25 minutes this is scheduled for.

Neither woman needs to worry about knockout power coming back at her the other way, and Dern has the option of pulling guard or using her speed and size advantage to get this where she wants it before eventually snatching up an arm or neck for the win.

PICK – Mackenzie Dern via Submission, Round 2

Fight Predictions, MMA

UFC Charlotte: Rozenstruik vs Almeida – Fight predictions

Leave a comment

The big boys take centre stage at UFC Charlotte this weekend when Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Jailton Almeida headline the card to look to move up the heavyweight rankings.

Rozenstruik is looking to get back into the top five conversation with a win, with a current professional record of 13-4 including a 7-4 run in the UFC to date.

He’ll be coming up against the on-fire up and comer Almeida who is coming into this bout on a 13-fight win streak and is undefeated in the UFC, having fought at light heavyweight and heavyweight.

Last time out at UFC 288 we didn’t have the best night of picks as we went 6/12 with two perfect picks to move us to 872/1351 (64.54%) with 357 perfect picks (40.94%). You can see our full pick history here.

We’ll look to put that right here in this very intriguing match-up, with big top five consequences for the winner.

Recent fight history

“Bigi Boy” has had a tough time of things of late in the heavyweight division.

The Suriname native has lost three of his last five fights. He dropped a unanimous decision to Ciryl Gane before getting back in the win column with a first-round knockout over Augusto Sakai in the following bout.

That was followed up with a unanimous decision loss to Curtis Blaydes before Alexander Volkov turned in a striking clinic with a first-round knockout to put Rozenstruik on his first losing streak of his career. He bounced back last time out though with a knockout win over Chris Daukaus in 23 seconds.

Almeida on the other hand is absolutely flying in the UFC and this will be his biggest test to date.

So far the Brazilian has gone 4-0 in the UFC with all stoppages, claiming a knockout over Danilo Marques in his debut followed by submission wins against Parker Porter and Anton Turkalj.

Last time out against Shamil Abdurakhimov he earned another vicious knockout win despite being taken into the second round for the first time in his UFC tenure.

Fight styles

This is once again another classic striker vs grappler bout in the main event and it’s one that is very intriguing to break down.

Rozenstruik is a fantastic kickboxer with incredible one-punch power and strong low kicks, and his power carries through over the course of 25 minutes if necessary as we saw when he fought Alistair Overeem.

He likes to push opponents against the cage with pressure before unloading a flurry of strikes full of power, knowing that if one lands clean that could be the end of the bout.

Almeida on the other hand is a phenomenal grappler with world renowned jiu-jitsu skills. He’s also a nasty striker with good power, but it’s on the ground where he does his best work.

His offensive wrestling is not the greatest, but he does have good trips and throws and if he gets into top position on the ground then he stays there until the fight or the round ends.

Prediction

Power or grappling is the big question in this one, and usually I lean towards the grappler who can control where the fight goes.

But there is a genuinely worrying size difference in this one with Almeida being a light heavyweight moving up, whereas Rozenstruik would struggle to weigh in at 205lbs if he cut a leg off.

If Rozenstruik lands clean then this one will end quickly, but Almeida is quick with his movements and his striking itself isn’t that bad so he will be able to hold his own for a short while. And if he is able to get his hands on Rozenstruik and take the fight to the mat then it will be over quickly.

As much as the one-punch power and size difference gives “Bigi Boy” a great chance for victory, I can’t see past Almeida being able to get him down and work for a submission quickly with his phenomenal skills to make himself a real threat in the heavyweight division.
PICK – Jailton Almeida via Submission, Round 1