Saturday, 8 July 2017

UFC 213 Preview



DISCLAIMER: This article is previewing four fights of the main card ONLY.

(C) indicates current champion.

UFC 213 is set to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on 8th July, and is an absolutely stacked card.

However, there have been two cancellations from the original main card, the first being Bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt vs T.J. Dillashaw after Garbrandt pulled out with a back injury, and the other being Donald Cerrone vs Robbie Lawler after UFC President Dana White confirmed Cerrone had a staph infection and a pulled groin.

Then, just hours before the PPV, Women's Bantamweight Amanda Nunes pulled out of her scheduled main event defence against Valentina Shevchenko due to illness, with Strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk begging to be Nunes' replacement.






Despite this, UFC 213 looks to be one hell of a night for the hardcore MMA fan.


Anthony Pettis vs Jim Miller (Lightweight Bout)

 After missing weight that cost him the chance at becoming the interim featherweight champion and then being knocked out by Max Holloway at UFC 206, Anthony Pettis (19-6 MMA, 6-5 UFC) decided to move to up to lightweight.

In his first fight at 155 pounds since he lost to Edson Barboza at UFC 197, the former UFC Lightweight champion will face Jim Miller (28-9 (1 No Contest) MMA, 17-8 (1 No Contest) UFC) in a fight that Pettis will be looking to start a climb up the lightweight rankings and Miller will see as an excellent opportunity to defeat a former champion.

PREDICTION: Pettis wins via second-round knockout.





Fabricio Werdum vs Alistair Overeem (Heavyweight Bout)

Fabricio Werdum (21-6-1 MMA, 9-2 UFC) and Alistair Overeem (42-15 (1 No Contest) MMA, 7-4 UFC) both share an unfortunate experience.

They've both lost to UFC Heavyweight champ Stipe Micoic (17-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC).

Whilst they may have both been knocked out by the Cleveland native, the pair face off in what could be considered a number one contender match.

In his last fight, at UFC 203, Werdum beat Travis Browne ( MMA, UFC) via unanimous decision and Overeem bounced back from his loss to Miocic on the same card by beating Mark Hunt at UFC 209.

It's hard to see what the deciding factor will be in their rematch from when they fought back in StrikeForce, which Overeem won via unanimous decision, but it'll be one hell of a fight.


PREDICTION: Overeem wins via unanimous decision.





Yoel Romero vs Robert Whittaker (For the Interim Middleweight Championship)

Ever since Michael Bisping (30-7 MMA, 20-7 UFC) knocked out the then UFC Middleweight champion Luke Rockhold (15-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) at UFC 199, the 185 pound division has been in limbo.

First off, Luke Rockhold was looking for a rematch with the Briton but Bisping completely ignored him.

Then, Bisping was announced to fight a returning Georges Saint-Pierre (25-2 MMA, 19-2 UFC) at some point later this year. However, Dana White said that Bisping would face the winner of Yoel Romero (13-1 MMA, 8-0 UFC) and Robert Whittaker (18-4 MMA, 9-2 UFC) for the undisputed Middleweight title, as GSP wouldn't be ready to fight until November.


So anyway, here we are at UFC 213 with the chance to be become the interim Middleweight title up for grabs between a wrestling Olympic silver medal winner (Romero) and a hard-hitting Aussie striker (Whittaker).

What's refreshing about this match-up is that it's a contrast to how the rest of the division has been acting, e.g. dodging fights and rambling online, and Whittaker has said that it's a honour to fight Romero as he believes that he will not only make him a better fighter, but a better man.

Whatever happens, it's sure to be one hell of a fight between the number one and two contenders, with Bisping and the undisputed title waiting for the winner.


PREDICTION: Romero wins via third-round knockout.





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Friday, 23 June 2017

Bellator NYC Preview



DISCLAIMER: This article is covering one fight from the Bellator 180 card and four fights from the Bellator NYC Pay-Per-View card.

(C) indicates current champion.


On 24th June, at a sold-out Madison Square Garden in New York City, Bellator will host it's second ever Pay-Per-View event and it's an absolutely stacked card for a promotion that has gained some ground on their global rival, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, via frustration over the new owners' [WME-IMG] treatment of fighters, thus leading to many jumping ship to Bellator.

Phil Davis (C) vs Ryan Bader (Non-PPV Fight) (For The Light Heavyweight Championship)

Starting off on the non-PPV Bellator 180 card and a main event for the Light Heavyweight Championship.

Ryan Bader (22-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) signed with Bellator on 21st March after the UFC didn't match the contract that president Scott Coker had offered to Bader.

He was originally scheduled to face Muhammad Lawal (21-6 (1 No Contest) MMA, 10-4 BMMA) but was matched up in a rematch with Light Heavyweight champion Phil Davis (17-3 (1 No Contest) MMA, 4-0 BMMA) after Lawal withdrew due to injury. Davis and Bader fought at UFC on FOX: Gustafsson vs Johnson back on 24th January 2015, which Bader won by split decision.

Since then, the two have been down different paths in MMA, with Davis going on a four-fight winning streak inside the Bellator cage that saw him capture the Light Heavyweight title in his last fight against Liam McGeary (12-2 MMA, 9-2 BMMA).

Bader ran out his UFC contract and jumped ship when he knew he wasn't wanted by the brass at WME-IMG.

Now, the two meet in an interesting encounter that will be a mix of high-level wrestling and an old school heavyweight slugfest.


PREDICTION: Davis wins via unanimous decision.



Douglas Lima (C) vs Lorenz Larkin (For The Welterweight Championship)

Another ex UFC fighter debuts in the Bellator cage at Madison Square Garden and it's former Middleweight, and later Welterweight, fighter Lorenz Larkin (18-5 (1 No Contest) MMA, 0-0 BMMA).

Larkin comes into Bellator off the back of a solid first-round win over Neil Magny at the biggest selling UFC event of all-time [UFC 202 which did 1.65 million buys] but seemingly wants to move on from talking about his former employer.
The Brazilian has won the majority of his fights via knockout so logic dictates that Larkin will look for takedowns to stop Lima's rythm and possibly get a stoppage from ground and pound.


PREDICTION: Lima wins via second-round knockout.






Michael Chandler vs Brent Primus (For the Lightweight Championship)

The fight for the Lightweight title is between Michael Chandler (16-3 MMA, 13-3 BMMA), a veteran inside the Bellator cage [with his first fight coming in October 2010 at Bellator 31], and Brent Primus (7-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA), a fighter that has very little tape on him due to five first-round stoppages from his seven fights.

Whilst it could be seen as a mismatch in terms of experience, Primus' stunning professional record, which includes four straight wins via rear-naked choke, shows that he deserves to be in this fight against Chandler. No doubt Coker and co will be hoping for a strong display by the Oregon native.


Fedor Emelianenko vs Matt Mitrione (Heavyweight Bout)

Fedor Emelianeko (36-4 (1 No Contest) MMA, 0-0 BMMA).

The greatest Heavyweight fighter in MMA history and arguably the biggest signing in Bellator history.

The last Emperor has been the most powerful and dominate heavyweight in all the promotions that he's fought in and whilst many will look back on the Russian's career and wonder what could have been if he'd joined the UFC, there's no doubt that Fedor has laid waste to countless opponents.

His debut Bellator fight will come against ex-UFC heavyweight Matt Mitrione (11-5 MMA, 2-0 BMMA).

This fight was supposed to happen in February at Bellator 172 but was cancelled after Mitirone was reported to have passed a kidney stone.

Now, Mitrione looks to defeat a legend and be launched into not just Bellator, but MMA stardom.

For Fedor, it's the same as it's been his whole career.

Turn up, destroy opponent, leave.


PREDICTION: Fedor wins via second-round knockout.




Chael Sonnen vs Wanderlei Silva (Light Heavyweight Bout)

If you didn't know already, Chael Sonnen (29-15-1 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) and Wanderlei Silva (35-12-1 (1 No Contest) MMA, 0-0 BMMA) don't like each other.

It's not exactly clear what it is that set both men on a path of hatred towards one and other but it all results in money for Bellator.


The pair are polar opposites, with Sonnen the original cocky trash talker and Silva as the explosive brawler once the cage closes, but are now on course for a blockbuster main event fight that will end a rivalry that has spanned not just the world but seven years.


PREDICTION: Sonnen wins via first-round submission.





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Friday, 16 June 2017

Mayweather vs McGregor Preview



Well here it is.

After months of speculation, shots over social media and endless clickbait articles, the biggest fight of all-time, between former five division world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr and UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) Lightweight champion Conor McGregor, is set to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, on 26th August at 154 pounds (Light Middleweight).






Whatever your thoughts on the fight, there's no doubt that it's set to be the biggest fight in combat sport history, from both commercial and sporting perspectives.

Without further ado, here's my preview of Mayweather vs McGregor.


Tale of The Tape

 Name: Floyd Mayweather Jr

 Age: 40 (DOB 24th February 1977)

 Height: 5 foot 8 inches (173 cm)

 Reach: 72 inches (183 cm)

 Professional Boxing Record: 49 Wins (26 via Knockout), No Losses, No Draws

Name: Conor McGregor

 Age: 28 (DOB 14th July 1988)

 Height: 5 foot 9 inches

 Reach: 74 inches (188 cm)

 Professional Boxing Record: 0-0-0



Before we get into it, some housekeeping to outline in regards to this 'freak' Boxing match:

Time: 12 three minute rounds.

 Gloves to be used: 10 ounce gloves.

Drugs testing system: USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency), used by the UFC.

Tickets and PPV price: No official news yet.


A few months ago, I predicted that Mayweather vs McGregor wouldn't happen due to the ego and various demands from the parties involved and whilst that was plausible, it seems that money has paved the way for all parties (them being Mayweather, Mayweather Promotions, SHOWTIME, McGregor, Ultimate Fighting Championship and Zuffa LLC) to dot the I's and cross the T's.

Like with almost everything in Sport, money is the main theme and attraction of this event.

Mayweather and McGregor look set to earn $200 million and $100 million respectively (not too bad for a potential 36 minutes of fighting) with SHOWTIME taking a chunk of the money left.

In terms of Pay-Per-View, it looks highly likely that this fight will break the all-time PPV record set by Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Manny Pacquiao on 2nd May 2015, which did 4.6 million buys worldwide.

All in all, this fight is wonderfully mad.

Wonderful because of the attraction of the greatest defensive boxer of all-time, surpasses Rocky Marciano's perfect 49-0 Professional Boxing record, being in the ring with the most popular MMA fighter of all-time (and the best trash talker of this generation).

Mad because of the logic holes in the fight being made from purely sporting angle (these being McGregor never stepping into a Boxing ring for an amateur or Professional fight and McGregor not defending his Lightweight title since he won it back in November).

Anyway, what's the fallout if 'Money' wins?

If Mayweather wins, he obviously goes to 50 pro fights unbeaten and makes his case for being in the same ballpark as Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali as the greatest Boxers of all-time.

What happens if 'The Notorious' wins?

If McGregor wins, he's arguably the greatest combat sports competitor of all-time.

Whether he returns to the UFC is very unclear, regardless of whether he wins or loses, as McGregor's rags to riches story will end in truly inspiring fashion when he walks away with $100 million in his pocket.


Whatever happens, it's a fight that, don't lie, you're going to watch.



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Sunday, 4 June 2017

UFC 212 Review



DISCLAIMER: This article is reviewing the co main and main event ONLY.

 UFC 212 had two blockbuster fights that would determine the future of their divisions (the Women's Strawweight and the Men's Featherweight divisions respectively) and in the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the courses of both divisions were dramatically changed.


Claudia Gadelha defeats Karolina Kowalkiewicz via first-round rear-naked choke

 Claudia Gadelha (now 15-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) swiftly defeated Karolina Kowalkiewicz (now 10-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) via first-round rear-naked choke to stake her claim for a third fight with UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC).

Going into the fight, I, like many others, said that Gadelha's main form of offensive would come in the form of wrestling and unfortunately for Karolina, the Pole was taken to the ground by the Brazilian and eventually forced to tap.

One woman goes to the first of the line for a title shot and the other goes to the back of the line after suffered back-to-back losses.



Max Holloway defeats Jose Aldo via third-round knockout to become the undisputed UFC Featherweight Champion

 There is a new king of the 145 pound division.

In Jose Aldo's (now 26-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) hometown of Rio de Janerio, Max Holloway (now 18-3 MMA, 14-3 UFC) did what he said he'd do in the build-up and knocked out the best featherweight fighter in MMA history in the third round (which I successfully predicted!).

It was a strange performance by Aldo, who didn't go for any takedowns at all throughout the fight, and looked to be slightly gassed when the third round came around.

Holloway took full advantage and ground and pounded the Brazilian until referee John McCarthy stopped the fight, thus ushering in the new featherweight blood to not only regain the undisputed 145 title but to strech his winning streak to 11.

The next big fight in the division looks to be Holloway against Frankie Edgar (22-5-1 MMA, 16-5-1 UFC) whilst Aldo will look to take some time off before he thinks of his next fight.








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Friday, 2 June 2017

UFC 212 Preview



DISCLAIMER: This article will be reviewing the co-main and main event ONLY.

C indicates Current Champion.

IC indicates Interim Champion.

UFC 212 comes from the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. and features two intriguing fights, one between former Women's Strawweight title contender Karolina Kowaliewicz and Clauida Gadelha and the other being the blockbuster Featherweight champion vs champion fight between the king of the Featherweight division, Jose Aldo, and the new blood of the division, Max Holloway.

The card did suffer a big loss when former Ultimate Fighter winner Kevin Gastelum was pulled from his scheduled Middleweight fight with Anderson Silva due to being flagged by the USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency) for a failed drug test, which turned out to be for Carboxy-Tetrahydrocannabinol (Carboxy-THC), which is a metabolite of marijuana.

Former StrikeForce and UFC Middleweight champion Luke Rockhold accepted the chance to fight Silva in Gastelum's place but Silva rejected the fight, saying it didn't make sense with the former champ coming off a loss (at UFC 199 to current Middleweight champ Michael Bisping).

Silva then wanted Nick Diaz or Uriah Faber but stating that he would retire if he didn't get an interim title fight against Yoel Romero.

After a short period of time, the UFC and Silva agreed that he wouldn't fight at UFC 212.

Anyway, the card is now in shape and looks to end with the crowning of one undisputed king of 145.
Cláudia Gadelha vs Karolina Kowaliewicz (Women's Strawweight Bout)

In Madison Square Garden, New York, at UFC 205, Karolina Kowaliewicz (10-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) fought Strawweight champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk (14-0 MMA, 8 UFC) in a slug-fest that identified that whilst Karolina is a good fighter, she's not a top-level fighter like Jedrzejczyk.

So begins the route back to the title and the first roadblock comes in the form of Claudia Gadelha (14-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC).

Gadelha has also faced Jedrzejczyk, back in December 2014 at UFC on Fox 13, and again as the decider of The Ultimate Fighter 23 in July 2015.

Both losses came via decision, split and unanimous respectively.

It seems to be a title eliminator and the main battle going in is Gadelha's raw wrestling against Karolina's fast striking.

The key for Gadelha is to land quick takedowns and move swiftly into one of a number of possible submissions, whilst the key for Karolina is to knockout Gadelha before she lands any takedowns.

This is all easy to say however as the fight will be a lot closer than just closing out the opponent's main form of offense.

Regardless, it'll be a fight worth watching, especially if you're Joanna Jedrejczyk.


PREDICTION: Gadelha wins via second round knockout.
Jose Aldo (C) vs Max Holloway (IC) (Fight To Unify The Interim Featherweight and Featherweight Championships)

 Here it is.

In Jose Aldo's (26-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) hometown of Rio de Janeiro, the undisputed king of the Featherweight division will be crowned when the Brazilian faces interim champion Max Holloway (17-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) in the main event.

It's arguably the biggest Featherweight fight in UFC history, even bigger than Aldo vs McGregor, and I agree with this as it's a battle between the old guard of the division (in the form of Aldo and his eight fight defence of the title) and the new young blood of the division (in the form of Holloway's ten fight unbeaten streak) and will shape the 145 division for the foreseeable future.

As stated above, Holloway is on a roll in the Octagon, developing a unique style that has a kickboxing background that features spinning backhands and flash body kicks. Whether he's able to cope with Aldo's explosive jabs and savage legkicks is one of the very intriguing focus areas going into this fight.

I seems to me that Aldo will be looking to end the fight early with a stunning knockout of his Hawaiian opponent, fighting at home and all, but I see Holloway sticking out the early punishment dished out by Aldo and, to the shock of the Rio audience, knocking out Jose Aldo for only the second time in his career.

It may seem unlikely but as people say anything can happen in MMA and it could very well be Holloway's time, with the man himself saying: "Kings go to other king's villages and take everything they own."
PREDICTION: Holloway wins via third-round knockout.
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Sunday, 14 May 2017

UFC 211 Review



UFC 211 was tipped to be the super-card of the 2017 so far... and it delivered.

Filled with controversy, split decisions and stunning knockouts, UFC 211 was a Pay-Per-View that delivered for the fans and the UFC.




 Eddie Alvarez vs Dustin Poirier ends in a no-contest as referee Herb Dean deems illegal knees were thrown by Alvarez

In the final fights of the FX Prelims, Eddie Alvarez (now 28-5 (1 No Contest) MMA, 3-2 (1 No Contest) UFC) and Dustin Poirier (now 21-5 (1 No Contest) MMA, 13-4 (1 No Contest) UFC) were having a slug-fest when referee Herb Dean stopped the contest after Alvarez delivered illegal knees to Poirier, after the latter had his hand on the mat.

The fight was then ruled a no contest.



There was so confusion and anger as to why there is still different rules from state to state and that the unified rules should be unified across all 50 states and beyond.







Frankie Edgar defeats Yair Rodriguez via second-round doctor stoppage

Frankie Edgar (now 22-5-1 MMA, 16-5-1 UFC) defeated Yair Rodriguez (now 10-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) to put himself in the conversation to face the winner of Jose Aldo (26-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) vs Max Holloway (17-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) at UFC 212.

Before the fight, Edgar said that Rodriguez's push was pre-mature and that he would stop him in his tracks.

He did just this, striking the Mexican to the point of a doctor stoppage in the second round.

Whilst Edgar will be hoping for Holloway to beat Aldo in Brazil, it will be very interesting to see if Dana and co book Aldo vs Edgar 3 as the current UFC Featherweight champ has beaten Edgar in their last two meetings.



Damien Maia defeats Jorge Masvidal via split decision (29-28, 28-29 and 29-28)

Damien Maia (now 25-6 MMA, 19-6 UFC) beat Jorge Masvidal via split decision to earn himself a Welterweight title shot against champion Tyron Woodley (17-3-1 MMA, 7-2-1 UFC).

Maia fended off the take-downs of Masvidal and got the decision needed to get his seventh straight win inside the Octagon.

When that'll be exactly is if for debate but what isn't is that he deserves to step inside the Octagon with Tyron Woodley.








Joanna Jedrzejczyk defeats Jessica Andrade via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-44 and 50-45) to retain her Women's Strawweight Championship

Joanna Jedrzjczyk (now 14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) beat Jessica Andrade (now 16-6 MMA, 7-3 UFC) via unanimous decision to search her title defences to five, one away from tying Ronda Rousey's (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) record set when she defended the Women's Bantamweight Championship.

The Pole improved in her striking against her Brazilian opponent, leading to her landing the most strikes in a championship fight, breaking her own record of 170 strikes by landing 225 strikes.

She's now worthy of being in the discussion of the greatest female MMA fighters of all-time and is one hell of a roll at 115 pounds.






Stipe Miocic defeats Junior Dos Santos via first-round knockout to retain his Heavyweight Championship

 Stipe Miocic (now 17-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC) defeated Junior Dos Santos (now 18-5 MMA, 12-4 UFC) to retain his Heavyweight title and tie the record for heavyweight title defences.

It was different from their five-round slug-fest from back in December 2015, which Dos Santos won by decision, as Miocic boxed Dos Santos in with close-range strikes to avenge his most recent loss.

After the fight, Miocic said "I'm the Best (Heavyweight) in the World" and after this performance it's extremely hard to argue with.




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Saturday, 13 May 2017

UFC 211 Preview



DISCLAIMER: This article is previewing one fight from the prelims and the main card.

(C) indicates current Champion.


UFC 211 takes place at the United Airlines Centre in Dallas, Texas, on May 13th and is an absolute blockbuster of a card, with two title fights for the co main and main event.

Here's my preview of what could be the most stacked UFC card of 2017.


Eddie Alvarez vs Dustin Poirier (Prelim Lightweight Bout)

It's been a strange 10 months for Eddie Alvarez (28-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC).

He captured the Lightweight title from then champ Raphael Dos Anjos on July 7th via first-round TKO (punches) and was subsequently put in the main event of the biggest UFC show of all-time, at UFC 205 on November 12th, against then Featherweight champion Conor McGregor (21-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC).

Unfortunately, the former Bellator Lightweight champion was beaten in convincing fashion by McGregor and has found himself on the prelims of UFC 211, to be aired on FX.

Actually, Alvarez is fine being on the prelims and understands that it will bring more eyes to the card if the former lightweight champion isn't actually on the pay-per-view itself.

He faces Dustin Poirier ( MMA, UFC), who is coming off a majority decision victory over Jim Miller ( MMA, UFC) at UFC 208.

Whilst, Poirier has come off a decent win, both will want to get a convincing win to kick off 2017 and move up the rankings.


 PREDICTION: Alvarez wins via second-round knockout.


Henry Cejudo vs Sergio Pettis (Flyweight Bout)

Since his return to flyweight at UFC 185, at which he lost to Ryan Benoit (9-5 MMA, 2-3 UFC), Sergio Pettis (15-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) has had a good three-fight winning streak, picking up unanimous decision wins over Chris Cariaso (17-8 MMA, 7-6 UFC), Chris Kelades (9-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) and John Moraga (16-6 MMA, 5-5 UFC) at UFC 192, 197 and Fight Night: Rodriguez vs Penn respectively.

His opponent however, Henry Cejudo (10-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) is coming off of two back-to-back losses, one at UFC 197 to dominate flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson (26-2-1 MMA, 14-1-1 UFC) and his most recent fight, which he lost via split decision, against Joseph Benavidez (25-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC) were Cejudo was deduced points for repeated low blows.

Again, it's a fight were both are out to prove themselves, Pettis out to continue his winning streak and Cejudo to get back on track in the flyweight division.


 PREDICTION: Pettis wins via unanimous decision.


Frankie Edgar vs Yair Rodriguez (Featherweight Bout)

Frankie Edgar (21-5-1 MMA, 15-5-1 UFC) has always seemed as the nearly man of the Featherweight division.

On two occasions, at UFC 156 and 200, Edgar was beaten by current Featherweight champion Jose Aldo ( MMA, UFC) for the Featherweight title (at 156) and for the Lightweight title (at 200).

Whilst his unanimous decision victory over Jeremy Stephens at UFC 205 will have boosted his standing in the division, he faces one of his toughest tests in the form of Yair Rodriguez (10-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC), who is undefeated in the Octagon thus far.

 Rodriguez, who destroyed UFC Hall of Famer BJ Penn (16-11-2 MMA, 12-10-2 UFC) in his last fight, will be looking to get his name in the mind of UFC President Dana White by defeating a former number one contender in the form of Edgar and get a future title fight against the winner of Aldo vs Holloway.
PREDICTION: Rodriguez wins via third-round knockout.



Demian Maia vs Jorge Masvidal (Welterweight Bout)

 Two fine fighters that both have one goal in mind, Tyron Woodley's ( 17-3-1 MMA, 7-2-1 UFC) Welterweight title.

In what is essentially a number 1 contender eliminator fight, both are coming off the back of two impressive runs in the Octagon, with Maia (24-6 MMA, 18-6 UFC) currently on a six-fight winning streak that includes three rear-naked choke wins over Neil Magny (19-5 MMA, 12-4 UFC), Matt Brown (20-16 MMA, 13-10 UFC) and Carlos Condit (30-10 MMA, 7- 6 UFC).

 When looking at how the fight will go, it comes down to if Maia gets Masvidal to the ground or whether Masvidal can utilise his striking power that saw him knockout Donald Cerrone (32-8 (1 No Contest) MMA, 9-5 UFC).

It's no wonder Woodley was looking for a big money opponent (Nate Diaz (19-11 MMA, 14-9 UFC) Middleweight champion Michael Bisping (30-7 MMA, 20-7 UFC) and Lightweight champion Conor McGregor (21-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC were mentioned after his split decision victory over Stephen Thompson ( MMA, UFC) at UFC 209, as he's got one hell of a task in defending his belt against one of these two fierce welterweights.


PREDICTION: Maia wins via second-round rear-naked choke.


Joanna Jedrzejczyk (C) vs Jessica Andrade (For the Women's Strawweight Championship)

Joanna Jedrzejczyk (13-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) is arguably the best female fighter in MMA today.

Since arriving in the UFC back in July 2014, the Pole has dominated the Strawweight division and has surprisingly become the most famous women's fighter since the fall of Ronda Rousey (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC).

Her next opponent, Jessica Andrade (16-5 MMA, 7-2 UFC), has a solid record inside the Octagon, with a number of submission wins (such as rear-naked chokes and guillotine choke).

Again it's another striking versus wrestling/submission based match-up and whilst Andrade looks to be the champion's toughest challenge yet, I see Joanna besting Andrade in the clinch, leading to a knockout.
PREDICTION: Jedrzejczyk via second-round knockout.



Stipe Miocic (C) vs Junior dos Santos (For the Heavyweight Championship)

 Back in December 2014, at UFC on FOX, Stipe Mioic (16-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) and Junior Dos Santos (18-4 MMA, 12-3 UFC) had an absolute blockbuster Heavyweight fight.



Dos Santos won via unanimous decision but since then Miocic has gone on a four-fight winning streak, winning the Heavyweight title in the third fight via first-round knockout against Fabricio Werdum (21-6-1 MMA, 9-3 UFC) at UFC 198 364 days ago.

Now, after Dos Santos lost to Alistair Overeem (42-15 (1 No Contest MMA, 7-4 UFC) and beat Ben Rothwell (36-10 MMA, 6-4 UFC), the two meet again with Miocic as the champion.

Although he may have lost their first meeting, Miocic says that he learnt that he belonged in the Octagon with a former Heavyweight champion.

When it comes to this fight, it seems unlucky that it will go the distance like it did last time (due to them having fought five rounds previously and both looks for a convincing knockout).

No matter what happens, it's sure to be a blockbuster main event.


PREDICTION: Miocic wins via third-round knockout.




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