
Calvin Kattar vs Dan Ige
Calvin Kattar
Age: 32
UFC Record: 5-2
Key Wins: Knocked out Jeremy Stephens, Shane Burgos, Chris Fighgold, and Ricardo Lamas.
Tools: Kattar has plus striking (70) and near plus wrestling (65).
Dan Ige
Age: 28
UFC Record: 7-1
Key Wins: Knocked down Danny Henry and submitted him. Beat Kevin Aguilar. Split decision wins over Mirsad Bektic and Edson Barboza.
Tools: Ige has plus striking paired with above average power (70-60). He also has near plus grappling (65).
Kattar nearly beat Zabit Magomedsharipov. Like if their fight had gone 5 rounds, Kattar was very likely to win as Zabit’s cardio was exposed. Thus, Kattar established himself to be at the very top of the food chain at 145 lbs. No one else has come remotely close to beating Zabit. Add in that he’s knocked out a who’s who of top featherweight contenders and you have a fighter that has a chance at becoming champion. With Ige, he’s a very legit contender. He’s very good. But because of the styles, he’s going to have a hard time beating Kattar. Ige lacks the power Kattar has, so the longer they stand and trade, the more danger Ige is in. Ige also has near plus grappling, but Kattar’s wrestling will probably neutralize it. This fight will play out on the feet and after seeing Kattar knock out so many other contenders, I have a hard time seeing how that won’t happen again with Ige.
Chris’ Pick: Kattar by 2nd round knockout.
Tim Elliott vs Ryan Benoit
Tim Elliott
Age: 33
UFC Record: 4-9
Key Losses: Lost to Zach Makovsky.
Key Wins: Knocked down and submitted by Ben Nguyen. Submitted Mark de la Rosa. Beat Louis Smolka.
Tools: Elliott has average striking paired with below average power (50-40). He also has above average wrestling (60) and average grappling (50).
Ryan Benoit
Age: 30
UFC Record: 3-4
Key Losses: Submitted by Josh Sampo and Ben Nguyen. Split decision loss to Heili Alateng.
Key Wins: Knocked out Sergio Pettis.
Tools: Benoit has near plus striking (65) and average wrestling (50).
This is a projection pick for me. Benoit looks like he’s still developing. His wrestling was improved in the Alateng fight and I thought Benoit won. But this fight is going to come down to where Benoit’s wrestling is at. Can he keep it on the feet? If he can, it’s going to be a lopsided fight where Benoit will have his way. I think he will.
Chris’ Pick: Benoit by 2nd round knockout.
Jimmie Rivera vs Cody Stamann
Jimmie Rivera
Age: 31
UFC Record: 6-3
Key Wins: Beat Thomas Almeida, John Dodson, and Urijah Faber. Split decision win over Pedro Munhoz.
Tools: Rivera has above average striking paired with average power (60-50). He also has near plus wrestling (65).
Cody Stamann
Age: 30
UFC Record: 5-1-1
Key Draws: Yadong Song
Key Wins: Beat Alejandro Perez and Brian Kelleher. Split decision wins over Bryan Caraway and Tom Duquesnoy.
Tools: Stamann has near plus striking paired with power that’s a little above average (65-55). He also has above average wrestling (60).
Really close fight. But it seems to me their careers are going in opposite directions. Rivera has lost 3 out of his last 4. And Stamann has only lost once in his first 7 UFC fights. Rivera might have a slight wrestling advantage, but not enough to take Stamann down and keep him there. I think this is a stand up fight where Stamann’s striking should be a little better.
Chris’ Pick: Stamann barely wins the striking exchanges to eke out a split decision win.
Molly McCann vs Talia Santos
Molly McCann
Age: 30
Pro Record: 10-2
UFC Record: 3-1
Key Wins: Beat Ariane Lipski.
Tools: McCann has above average striking (60) and average wrestling (50).
Talia Santos
Age: 27
Pro Record: 15-1
UFC Record: 1-1
Key Losses: Split decision loss to Mara Borella Romero.
Key Wins: Beat a 7-1 striker.
Tools: Santos has average striking (50).
On paper, Santos’ record looks really impressive. But it’s very padded with almost all of her wins against tomato cans. Santos fought Romero and that fight really showed where her tools are at. McCann has continued to develop and get better. Santos’ best skill is her striking, but it’s not on McCann’s level.
Chris’ Pick: McCann out strikes Santos and cruises to a decision win.
Abdul Razak Alhassan vs Mounir Lazzez
Abdul Razak Alhassan
Age: 34
UFC Record: 4-1
Key Losses: Split decision loss to Omari Akhmedov.
Key Wins: Knocked out Niko Price.
Tools: Alhassan has plus striking (70) and above average wrestling (60).
Mounir Lazzez
Age: 32
Pro Record: 9-1
Key Wins: Knocked out a 4-0 striker.
Tools: Lazzez has average striking (50)
It’s really hard to know for sure where Lazzez’s tools are at because almost all his wins have come against cans. 8 of his 9 wins have been by knockout. The 1 decision win came against tougher competition, an 8-3 grappler. Lazzez lost to a grappler. Best opponent he beat had a 4-0 record. So this is a steep, very steep step up with Alhassan who has a quick knockout win over Price on his resume. Alhassan is proven. All 10 of Alhassan’s wins are knockouts. All 10 of the knockouts came in the 1st round. And for those who think Alhassan is a 1 round fighter that empties the gas tank in the 1st round, he went 3 rounds with Akhmedov and barely lost the split decision.
Chris’ Pick: Pretty easy pick. Alhassan’s striking is on another level. Another quick 1st round knockout for Alhassan.
Khamzat Chimaev vs John Phillips
Khamzat Chimaev
Age: 26
Pro Record: 6-0
Key Wins: Knocked out a 4-0 grappler and a well rounded 8-0 fighter.
Tools: Chimaev has above average striking (60). He also has wrestling that’s a little above average (55) and grappling that’s a little average (55).
John Phillips
Age: 35
Pro Record: 22-9
UFC Record: 1-3
Key Losses: Submitted by Charles Byrd. Split decision loss to Jack Marshman.
Key Wins: Knocked out an 8-1 striker.
Tools: Phillips has striking that’s a little above average (55).
After seeing Phillips knockout Alen Amedovski in 17 seconds in his last fight, Chimaev would be smart to not mess around with Phillips on the feet. I think Phillips is at his ceiling. No way he’s gotten better on the ground. Chimaev shouldn’t have a problem taking Phillips down.
Chris’ Pick: Chimaev submits Phillips in the 1st round.
Ricardo Ramos vs Lerone Murphy
Ricardo Ramos
Age: 24
UFC Record: 5-1
Key Wins: Submitted Luiz Garagorri. Beat Journey Newsom. Split decision win over Kyung Ho Kang.
Tools: Ramos has average striking (50) and near plus grappling (65).
Lerone Murphy
Age: 28
Pro Record: 8-0-1
UFC Record: 0-0-1
Key Draws: Fought Zubaira Tukhugov to a split decision draw.
Key Wins: Beat a well rounded 7-1 fighter.
Tools: Murphy has near plus striking (65) and above average wrestling (60).
The Murphy vs Tukhugov fight last year was one of the most surprising I’ve seen in awhile. Here’s Murphy, who’s making his UFC debut, taking on an opponent who a lot of people think will become a contender. And this is a very, very steep step up in competition as Murphy fought mostly tomato cans outside the UFC, which makes it very hard to gauge where his tools are really at. But low and behold, his striking and wrestling was good enough to get a draw. I understand Ramos being the betting favorite. Ramos also looks like a potential contender at 145 lbs. More of a known commodity. But Ramos struggled against Ho Kang. A wrestler. I think Murphy will be able to stuff the takedowns and seems to have a striking advantage.
Chris’ Pick: Murphy wins the striking exchanges to pick up the upset decision win.
Modestas Bukauskas vs Andreas Michaildis
Modestas Bukauskas
Age: 26
Pro Record: 10-2
Key Wins: Knocked out a well rounded 5-0 fighter and an 8-1 striker.
Tools: Bukauskas has striking that’s a little above average (55)
Andreas Michaildis
Age: 31 Pro Record: 12-3
Key Wins: Knocked out a 7-0 wrestler and a 9-3 grappler.
Tools: Michaildis has average striking (50). He also has average wrestling (50) and fringe average grappling (45).
This fight could go either way, but it’s likely going to be determined by whether or not Michaildis can take Bukauskas down. On the feet, Bukauskas could be better. Could be. It’s close. But even if Michaildis can’t out strike Bukauskas, he has a decent chance of being able to take him down.
Chris’ Pick: Michaildis does get those takedowns and does enough on the ground to win a close decision.
Chris Fishgold vs Jared Gordon
Chris Fishgold
Age: 28 Pro Record: 18-3-1
UFC Record: 1-2
Key Losses: Lost to a 3-2 wrestler.
Key Wins: Submitted a 6-2 grappler, a 9-3 grappler, a well rounded 8-1 fighter, and a well rounded 6-2 fighter. Knocked out a 6-1 striker.
Tools: Fishgold has striking that’s a little above average paired with fringe average power (55-45) and above average grappling (60).
Jared Gordon
Age: 31
UFC Record: 3-3
Key Losses: Knocked out by Joaquim Silva.
Tools: Gordon has average striking (50) and average wrestling (50).
I really like Gordon and his story, but at 31 years of age and 6 fights into his UFC career, it’s possible he might have hit his ceiling. Might not be much projection left. Fishgold though is more the prospect. The 1-2 record doesn’t look great, but the losses came against Calvin Kattar and Makwan Amirkhani. He’s got a great record, finished lots of quality competition. I think Fishgold’s tools take a step forward in this fight. That he’s better than the last time we saw him. I see Fishgold being able to drag Gordon to the ground where he’ll have an advantage.
Chris’ Pick: Fishgold submits Gordon in the 2nd round.
Diana Belbita vs Liana Jojua
Diana Belbita
Age: 24
Pro Record: 13-5
UFC Record: 0-1
Key Wins: Majority decision win over a 0-2 fighter in 2017.
Tools: Belbita has above average striking (60) and fringe average wrestling (45) and fringe average grappling (45).
Liana Jojua
Age: 25
Pro Record: 7-3
UFC Record: 0-1
Key Wins: Majority decision win over a 4-0 grappler.
Tools: Jojua has striking that’s a little above average paired with fringe average power (55-45). She also has average grappling (50).
Two interesting prospects collide here. Belbita looked way better than I thought she would against Molly McCann. The striking was close to equal in that fight. Jojua has better grappling than Belbita but I think Belbita’s wrestling will prevent the fight from getting to the ground. On the feet, Belbita should out strike Jojua and has more power.
Chris’ Pick: Belbita does enough in the stand up to win via decision.
Jack Shore vs Aaron Phillips
Jack Shore
Age: 25
Pro Record: 12-0
UFC Record: 1-0
Key Wins: Submitted a 9-3 wrestler, a well rounded 7-0 fighter, a well rounded 6-0 fighter, and a 10-3 wrestler. Knocked out a 7-0 striker.
Tools: Shore has average striking (50). He also has above average wrestling (60) and above average grappling (60).
Aaron Phillips
Age: 30
Pro Record: 12-3
Key Wins: Beat a 6-2 grappler. Split decision win over a well rounded 6-1 fighter.
Tools: Phillips has fringe average striking (45) and average wrestling (50).
This is Phillips’ second tour in the UFC. He hasn’t gone against too many quality opponents. And when he got to the UFC, he went 0-3. Meanwhile Shore is a top prospect. Well rounded. It’s possible that the striking on the feet could be close but Shore will have a monster advantage on the ground.
Chris’ Pick: Shore will have no problem getting Phillips on the ground and submits him in the 1st round.