Whittaker vs de Ridder, Yan vs McGhee, Magomedov vs Barriault Fight Picks – July 26, 2025

Robert Whittaker vs Reinier de Ridder

• Robert Whittaker
• Age: 34
• UFC Record: 14-4 at 185 lbs.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Ikram Aliskerov, Derek Brunson, Jacare Souza. Beat Paulo Costa, Yoel Romero (twice), MarvinJared Cannonier, and Uriah Hall.
• Striking: near plus plus (75)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: plus (70)

• Reinier de Ridder
• Age: 34
• Pro Record: 20-2
• UFC Record: 3-0
• Key Wins: Submitted Kevin Holland, Gerald Meerschaert, a well rounded 12-2 fighter, a 17-1 grappler, and a well rounded 23-4 fighter. Knocked out Bo Nickal, a 6-1 striker, and a well rounded 30-6 fighter. Beat an 11-3 striker.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Grappling: plus (70)

Chris’ Pick: Whittaker by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Whittaker -300

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Petr Yan vs Marcus McGhee

• Petr Yan
• Age: 32
• UFC Record: 10-4
• Key Losses: Split decision losses to Sean O’Malley and Aljamain Sterling.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Douglas Silva de Andrade and Urijah Faber. Beat Deiveson Figueiredo, Song Yadong, Cory Sandhagen, Jimmie Rivera, and John Dodson.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: above average (60)
• Wrestling: plus (70)

• Marcus McGhee
• Age: 35
• Pro Record: 10-1
• UFC Record: 4-0
• Key Wins: Submitted Journey Newson. Knocked out Gaston Bolanos, JP Buys, and a 4-1 grappler. Beat Jonathan Martinez.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: plus (70)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

Ghee out striking Martinez 100 to 46 is truly stunning. Very possible his striking could be as high as a 75, wrestling could be a 70, we just haven’t seen him use it as much lately.

Chris’ Pick: McGhee by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: McGhee -175

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Shara Magomedov vs Marc Andre Barriault

• Shara Magomedov
• Age: 31
• UFC Record: 4-1
• Key Wins: Knocked out Armen Petrosyan, Antonio Trocolli, a 16-4 striker, a 4-1 striker, and a well rounded 9-2 fighter. Beat Bruno Silva and a 21-5 wrestler.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: plus (70)
• Wrestling: above average (60)

• Marc-Andre Barriault
• Age: 35
• UFC Record: 6-8
• Key Losses: Split decision loss to Chris Curtis.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Bruno Silva, Julian Marquez, Abu Azaitar, a 9-3 striker, and a 7-1 striker. Submitted Jordan Wright. Beat Eryk Anders and Dalcha Lungiambula.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: above average (60)

Chris’ Pick: Magomedov by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Magomedov -300

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Asu Almabayev vs Jose Ochoa

• Asu Almabayev
• Age: 31
• UFC Record: 4-1
• Key Wins: Knocked out a 10-1 striker. Submitted Ode Osbourne, a well rounded 6-0 fighter, a well rounded 5-0 fighter and a well rounded 10-2 fighter. Beat Jose Johnson, CJ Vergara, a 4-0 grappler, and a 14-4 wrestler.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: above average (60)
• Wrestling: plus (70)
• Grappling: plus (65)

• Jose Ochoa
• Age: 24
• Pro Record: 8-1
• UFC Record: 1-1
• Key Wins: Knocked out Cody Durden. Submitted a well rounded 5-0 fighter.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: plus (70)
• Grappling: near plus (65)

Almabayev is very similar to Ochoa’s last opponent Durdan and we all saw how that ended up.

Chris’ Pick: Ochoa by 2nd round knockout.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Ochoa -175

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Nikita Krylov vs Bogdan Guskov

• Nikita Krylov
• Age: 33
• UFC Record: 10-7
• Key Wins: Knocked out Alexander Gustafsson, Ed Herman, and Walt Harris. Submitted Ryan Spann, Marcos Rogerio de Lima, Francimar Barroso, and Ovince St. Preux. Beat Volkan Oezdemir.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: plus (70)
• Wrestling: near plus plus (75)

• Bogdan Guskov
• Age: 32
• Pro Record: 17-3
• UFC Record: 3-1
• Key Wins: Knocked out Ryan Spann, a well rounded 13-3 fighter and a 4-1 grappler. Submitted Billy Elekana.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: above average (60)

Chris’ Pick: Krylov by 1st round submission.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Krylov -500

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Bryce Mitchell vs Said Nurmagomedov

• Bryce Mitchell
• Age: 30
• UFC Record: 9-3
• Key Wins: Submitted Matt Sayles. Knocked out Kron Gracie. Beat Dan Ige, Edson Barboza, Andre Fili, Charles Rosa, and Bobby Moffett.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: above average (60)
• Grappling: plus (70)

• Said Nurmagomedov
• Age: 33
• UFC Record: 6-3
• Key Wins: Knocked out Cody Stamann, Ricardo Ramos, and Mark Striegl. Submitted Muin Gafurov and Saidyokub Kahkramonov. Beat a well rounded 9-2 fighter, a well rounded 11-2 fighter, and a 16-3 grappler. Split decision over Justin Scoggins.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

Chris’ Pick: Mitchell by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Mitchell -200

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Carlos Leal vs Muslim Salikhov

• Carlos Leal
• Age: 31
• Pro Record: 22-6
• UFC Record: 2-0
• Key Losses: Split decision loss to a 15-6 wrestler.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Alex Morono, a 12-3 wrestler, a well rounded 13-3 fighter, and a well rounded 21-6 fighter. Submitted an 8-3 striker. Beat a well rounded 9-0 fighter. Split decision over a 8-3 wrestler.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

• Muslim Salikhov
• Age: 41
• UFC Record: 8-4
• Key Losses: Submitted by Alex Garcia.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Kenan Song, Andre Fialho, Nordine Taleb, a 5-1 striker, and a well rounded 6-2 fighter. Beat Francisco Trinaldo, Laureano Staropoli, and an 8-1 wrestler. Split decision wins over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

Chris’ Pick: Leal by 2nd round knockout.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Leal -135

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Da’Mon Blackshear vs Davey Grant

• Da’Mon Blackshear
• Age: 30
• UFC Record: 5-3-1
• Key Draws: Fought to majority draw with Youssef Zalal.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Luan Lacerda. Submitted Cody Gibson, Cody Stamann, Jose Johnson, Aalon Cruz, a well rounded 5-0 fighter, and a 5-2 wrestler. Beat Heili Alateng, a well rounded 5-1 fighter and a 5-1 grappler.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: plus (70)
• Grappling: plus (70)

• Davey Grant
• Age: 39
• UFC Record: 9-6
• Key Losses: Submitted by Damian Stasiak and Manny Bermudez. Split decision loss to Daniel Marcos.
• Key Wins: Submitted Raphael Assuncao. Knocked out Louis Smolka and Jonathan Martinez. Beat Ramon Taveras and Marlon Vera in 2016.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

Chris’ Pick: Blackshear by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Blackshear -300

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Amanda Ribas vs Tabatha Ricci

• Amanda Ribas
• Age: 31
• UFC Record: 7-5
• Key Losses: Knocked out by Polyana Viana. Beat Viviane Araujo. Split decision loss to Katlyn Chookagian.
• Key Wins: Knocked out Luana Pinheiro. Submitted Paige VanZant and Emily Whitmire. Beat Virna Jandiroba, Randa Markos, and MacKenzie Dern.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: above average (60)
• Grappling: plus (70)

• Tabatha Ricci
• Age: 30
• UFC Record: 6-3
• Key Losses: Split decision loss to Loopy Godinez.
• Key Wins: Submitted Jessica Penne. Beat Angela Hill, Gillian Robertson, Polyana Viana, and a 12-4 striker. Split decision over Tecia Pennington.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: a little above average (55)
• Wrestling: plus (70)

Chris’ Pick: Ribas by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Ribas -250

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Ibo Aslan vs Billy Elekana

• Ibo Aslan
• Age: 29
• Pro Record: 14-2
• UFC Record: 3-1
• Key Wins: Knocked out Raffael Cerqueira, Anton Turkalj, a 12-2 striker, and a 4-0 grappler.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: above average (60)

• Billy Elekana
• Age: 30
• Pro Record: 7-2
• UFC Record: 0-1
• Key Wins: Knocked out a 4-0 striker and another 4-0 striker. Beat a well rounded 5-1 fighter. Split decision over a 5-2 wrestler.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

Chris’ Pick: Elekana by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Elekana -175

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Mohammad Yahya vs Steve Nguyen

• Mohammad Yahya
• Age: 31
• Pro Record: 12-5
• UFC Record: 0-2
• Key Wins: Knocked out a 7-2 wrestler. Beat a well rounded 5-2 fighter.
• Striking: near plus (65)
• Power: near plus (65)
• Wrestling: a little above average (55)

• Steve Nguyen
• Age: 32
• Pro Record: 9-2
• UFC Record: 2-2
• Key Wins: Knocked out a well rounded 11-2 fighter and a 5-2 grappler. Beat a 5-0 striker.
• Striking: a little above average (55)
• Power: a little above average (55)
• Grappling: a little above average (55)

Chris’ Pick: Yahya by decision.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Yahya -300

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Marcus Buchecha vs Martin Buday

• Marcus Buchecha
• Age: 35
• Pro Record: 5-1
• Key Wins: Submitted a 14-3 striker, a 5-0 striker, and a 5-1 striker.
• Striking: above average (60)
• Power: average (50)
• Grappling: near plus (65)

• Martin Buday
• Age: 33
• UFC Record: 7-1
• Key Wins: Submitted Josh Parisian. Knocked out a 7-1 striker. Beat Uran Satybaldiev, Jake Collier, and Chris Barnett. Split decision wins over Andrei Arlovski and Lukas Brzeski.
• Striking: above average (60)
• Power: average (50)
• Wrestling: above average (60)

Chris’ Pick: Buchecha by 1st round submission.

What odds I think the favorite should be at: Bucheca -175

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Movsar Evloev vs Aaron Pico

• Movsar Evloev
• Age: 31
• UFC Record: 9-0
• Key Wins: Knocked out a well rounded 12-2 fighter and a 15-5 wrestler. Submitted an 11-3 striker. Beat Aljamain Sterling, Arnold Allen, Diego Lopes, Dan Ige, Hakeem Dawodu, Mike Grundy, Enrique Barzola, a 7-1 striker, a well rounded 6-2 fighter, and a 14-2 wrestler. Split decision win over Nik Lentz.
• Striking: plus (70)
• Power: above average (60)
• Wrestling: near plus plus (75)

• Aaron Pico
• Age: 28
• Pro Record: 13-4
• Key Wins: Knocked out a well rounded 9-1 fighter, a well rounded 12-3 fighter and an 18-4 grappler. Beat a 12-0 wrestler.
• Striking: above average (60)
• Power: above average (60)
• Wrestling: near plus (65)

Chris’ Pick: Evloev by 2nd round submission.