Islam Makhachev vs Ian Machado Garry
- Islam Makhachev
- Age: 34
- UFC Record: 1-0 at 170 lbs. 16-1 overall.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Alexander Volkanovski, Bobby Green, and Gleison Tibau. Submitted Renato Moicano, Dustin Poirier, Charles Oliveira, Dan Hooker, Drew Dober, and Kajan Johnson. Beat Jack Della Maddalena, Alexander Volkanovski, Nik Lentz, Arman Tsarukyan, and Davi Ramos.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: above average (60)
- Grappling: near plus plus (75)
- Ian Machado Garry
- Age: 28
- UFC Record: 10-1
- Key Wins: Knocked out Daniel Rodriguez, Kenan Song, Jordan Williams, a 4-0 grappler, and a 6-2 striker. Beat Belal Muhammad, Carlos Prates, Michael Page, Neil Magny, Gabe Green, Darian Weeks, and a well rounded 17-6 fighter. Split decision over Geoff Neal.
- Striking: near plus plus (75)
- Power: near plus plus (75)
- Wrestling: plus (70)
Chris’ Pick: Machado Garry by 2nd round knockout.
Mackenzie Dern vs Gillian Robertson
- Mackenzie Dern
- Age: 33
- UFC Record: 11-4
- Key Wins: Submitted Amanda Ribas, Nina Nunes, Randa Markos, and Hannah Cifers. Beat Virna Jandiroba, Loopy Godinez, Angela Hill, and Virna Jandiroba. Split decision wins over Tecia Torres and Ashley Yoder.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: above average (60)
- Grappling: near plus plus (75)
- Gillian Robertson
- Age: 31
- UFC Record: 6-1 at 115 lbs. 14-7 overall.
- Key Wins: Submitted Piera Rodriguez, Mariya Agapova, Priscila Cachoeira, Cortney Casey, Emily Whitmire, and Molly McCann. Knocked out Marina Rodriguez, Polyana Viana, and Sarah Frota. Beat Amanda Lemos, Luana Pinheiro, Michelle Waterson-Gomez, and Poliana Botelho.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: a little above average (55)
- Grappling: plus (70)
Chris’ Pick: Dern by decision.
Jose Ochoa vs Charles Johnson
- Jose Ochoa
- Age: 25
- Pro Record: 9-2
- UFC Record: 2-2
- Key Wins: Knocked out Cody Durden. Submitted a well rounded 5-0 fighter. Beat Clayton Carpenter.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: plus (70)
- Grappling: near plus (65)
- Charles Johnson
- Age: 35
- UFC Record: 8-7
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Ode Osbourne.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Lone’er Kavanagh, Joshua Van, Jimmy Flick and a well rounded 6-0 fighter. Submitted a well rounded 6-0 fighter. Beat Sumudaerji, Jake Hadley and Azat Maksum. Split decision wins over Bruno Silva, Zhulgas Zhumagulov, a well rounded 7-2 fighter and a 5-1 wrestler.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus plus (65)
- Wrestling: near plus (65)
Chris’ Pick: Ochoa by decision.
Mansur Abdul-Malik vs Dustin Stoltzfus
- Mansur Abdul Malik
- Age: 28
- UFC Record: 4-1-1
- Key Draws: Fought Cody Brundage to a majority draw.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Nick Klein, Dusko Todorovic, and Wesley Schultz. Submitted Antonio Trocoli.
- Striking: above average (60)
- Power: above average (60)
- Wrestling: near plus (65)
- Dustin Stoltzfus
- Age: 34
- UFC Record: 4-7
- Key Wins: Submitted Puna Soriano. Knocked out Marc Andre Barriault and a well rounded 7-1 fighter. Beat Dwight Grant and a 10-2 wrestler.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: a little above average (55)
- Wrestling: plus (70)
- Grappling: near plus (65)
Chris’ Pick: Stoltzfus by decision.
What odds I think the favorite shoud be at: Stoltzfus -135
Estevan Ribovics vs Edson Barboza
- Esteban Ribovics
- Age: 30
- UFC Record: 4-3
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Nasrat Haqparast.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Terrance McKinney, an 11-3 striker, a 5-1 grappler, a well rounded 17-6 fighter, and a well rounded 21-6 fighter. Beat Kamuela Kirk. Split decision over Daniel Zellhuber.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Grappling: above average (60)
- Edson Barboza
- Age: 40
- UFC Record: 14-12 at 155 lbs. 18-16 overall
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Dan Ige.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Billy Quarantillo, Shane Burgos, Dan Hooker, and Beneil Dariush. Beat Sodiq Yusuff, Makwan Amirkhani, Anthony Pettis, and Gilbert Melendez.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Wrestling: above average (60)
Chris’ Pick: Ribovics by 1st round knockout.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Ribovics -135
Joel Alvarez vs Chidi Njokuani
- Joel Alvarez
- Age: 33
- UFC Record: 8-3
- Key WIns: Submitted Marc Diakiese, Alexander Yakovlev, Joseph Duffy, a 5-1 striker, a well rounded 5-0 fighter, a well rounded 14-2 fighter, and a 9-1 striker. Knocked out Drakkar Klose, Elves Brener, Thiago Moises, and a 12-4 striker. Beat Vicente Luque.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: plus (70)
- Grappling: plus (70)
- Chidi Njokuani
- Age: 37
- UFC Record: 6-5
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Albert Duraev.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos, Dustin Todorovic, Marc Andre Barriault, a well rounded 12-1 fighter, an 18-4 wrestler, an 8-0 striker, a well rounded 6-1 fighter and an 8-2 striker. Beat Jared Gordon, a 6-2 wrestler, an 8-2 striker, an 11-3 striker, and a 10-3 grappler. Split decision wins over Rhys McKee and Max Griffin.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Wrestling: above average (60)
Chris’ Pick: Alvarez by 2nd round submission.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Alvarez -350
Jalin Turner vs Kaue Fernandes
- Jalin Turner
- Age: 31
- UFC Record: 9-4 at 155 lbs. 9-5 overall.
- Key Losses: Split decision losses to Dan Hooker and Mateusz Gamrot.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Edson Barboza, Bobby Green, Josh Culibao, a well rounded 6-2 fighter, and a well rounded 5-1 fighter. Submitted Brad Riddell and Uros Medic.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: plus (70)
- Wrestling: near plus (65)
- Kaue Fernandes
- Age: 31
- Pro Record: 11-2
- UFC Record: 3-1
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Marc Diakiese.
- Key Wins: Submitted a 6-1 wrestler. Knocked out Harry Hardwick, Mohammed Yahya, a 19-5 striker, a 6-0 wrestler, and a well rounded 9-1 fighter. Beat a 4-0 grappler.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: plus (70)
- Wrestling: plus (70)
Chris’ Pick: Fernandes by 2nd round knockout.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Fernandes -200
Donte Johnson vs Eric McConico
- Donte Johnson
- Age: 27
- Pro Record: 8-0
- UFC Record: 3-0
- Key Wins: Submitted Sedriques Dumas. Knocked out a well rounded 3-0 fighter. Split decision over Cody Brundage.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Wrestling: near plus (65)
- Grappling: above average (60)
- Eric McConico
- Age: 36
- Pro Record: 11-4-1
- UFC Record: 2-2
- Key Losses: Knocked out by a 10-7-2 striker and a 5-3 striker. Beat Rodolfo Vieira. Split decision over Cody Brundage.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Grappling: above average (60)
Chris’ Pick: Johnson by 2nd round knockout.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Johnson -135
Lucas Fernando vs Rafael Tobias
- Lucas Fernando
- Age: 29
- Pro Record: 13-3
- UFC Record: 0-1
- Key Wins: Knocked out Jansey Silva, a 10-3 striker, a 7-1 striker, a well rounded 18-3 fighter, and a 4-0 striker. Beat a well rouned 8-2-1 fighter, a well rounded 7-2 fighter, a 5-1 striker, and a 6-2 striker.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Wrestling: above average (60)
- Rafael Tobias
- Age: 23
- Pro Record: 13-2
- UFC Record: 1-1
- Key Wins: Submitted a well rounded 6-0 fighter. Knocked out a well rounded 12-4 fighter.
- Striking: a little above average (55)
- Power: a little above average (55)
- Grappling: a little above average (55)
I know Diyar Nurgozhay leveled up his striking, but still, it was crazy to see Nurgozhay out striking Tobias 81 to 26. I have no choice but to downgrade Tobias’ tools to 55’s.
Chris’ Pick: Fernando by 1st round knockout.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Fernando -350
Neil Magny vs Ramiz Brahimaj
- Neil Magny
- Age: 38
- UFC Record: 27-14
- Key Wins: Knocked out Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos and Mike Malott. Hector Lombard. Submitted Jake Matthews and Daniel Rodriguez. Beat Geoff Neal, Robbie Lawler, Anthony Rocco Martin, Jingliang Li and Tim Means. Split decision wins over Phil Rowe and Max Griffin.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: a little above average (55)
- Wrestling: near plus (65)
- Ramiz Brahimaj
- Age: 33
- UFC Record: 5-4
- Key Losses: Lost to an 8-3 grappler and a 10-4 wrestler.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Mickey Gall. Submitted Austin Vanderford, Billy Ray Goff, Sasha Palatnikov, and a 9-3 striker.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: a little above average (55)
- Grappling: plus (70)
It’s possible Brahmiaj’s striking could have leveled up to a 70, but I haven’t seen enough yet.
Chris’ Pick: Brahimaj by 1st round submission.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Brahimaj -200
Vicente Luque vs Tresean Gore
- Vicente Luque
- Age: 34
- UFC Record: 16-7
- Key Wins: Knocked out Randy Brown, Belal Muhammad, Chad Laprise, and Bryan Barbarena. Submitted Kelvin Gastelum, Niko Price, Themba Gorimbo, Michael Chiesa, and Tyron Woodley. Beat Rafael dos Anjos.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: plus (70)
- Grappling: near plus (65)
- Tresean Gore
- Age: 32
- UFC Record: 3-4
- Key Wins: Submitted Azamat Bekoev, Antonio Trocoli, and Josh Fremd.
- Striking: above average (60)
- Power: above average (60)
- Grappling: near plus (65)
Chris’ Pick: Luque by decision.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Luque -300
Jeremiah Wells vs Myktybek Orolbai
- Jeremiah Wells
- Age: 39
- UFC Record: 4-2
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Max Griffin.
- Key Wins: Knocked out Court McGee, Warlley Alves, and a well rounded 5-1 fighter. Submitted Blood Diamond and a 6-2 wrestler. Beat Themba Gorimbo, an 11-4 grappler and an 18-5 wrestler. Split decision over Matthew Semelsberger.
- Striking: near plus (65)
- Power: near plus (65)
- Grappling: plus (70)
- Myktybek Orolbai
- Age: 28
- UFC Record: 4-1
- Key Losses: Split decision loss to Mateusz Rebecki.
- Key Wins: Submitted Uros Medic. Knocked out Jack Hermansson and a well rounded 8-1 fighter. Beat Chris Curtis, Elves Brener, a well rounded 6-1 fighter.
- Striking: plus (70)
- Power: above average (60)
- Wrestling: near plus plus (75)
- Grappling: plus (70)
Chris’ Pick: Orolbai by decision.
What odds I think the favorite should be at: Orolbai -135