-Eryk Anders: This fight was booked to be a coming out party for Anders beating a big name such as Lyoto Machida. And Machida is 39 years old. Has lost 3 fights in a row. Lost 4 out of his last 5. This is probably the last fight in his career. Anders is a legit top prospect and I see him following the exact game plan that Derek Brunson executed. Blitzing Machida. And I see Anders knocking him out in the same way in the 1st round.
-Pedro Munhoz: UPSET SPECIAL 1: I just think this is Munhoz’s time right now. And that John Dodson has peaked in his career. Dodson is 33 years old. Lost 2 title fights. He’s 2-2 after moving up to 135 lbs in the UFC. I don’t think his confidence is at the same level anymore. Munhoz might be only a couple years younger, but he’s at a very different place developmentally. Munhoz is 5-2 in the UFC. His only 2 losses were against top 3 fighters in the division. And a split decision loss at that to Jimmie Rivera. Munhoz is coming into his prime and never looked better after an extremely impressive win over rising contender Rob Font. Dodson is small at 135 lbs and I think Munhoz, being the much bigger fighter, is going to hurt Dodson with the big power difference. Not enough to knock Dodson out, but enough to pick up the decision win.
-Valentina Shevchenko: Pretty brutal of the UFC to make Priscila Cachoeira take on Shevchenko in her UFC debut. You know, the same Shevchenko that lost a close split decision to 135 lb. champion Amanda Nunes. This isn’t going to be close at all. Cachoeira is a decent prospect, albeit with some question marks. She has beat a 3-1 prospect and a 4-1 prospect, but both were literally teenagers when Cachoeira beat them. She’s 29 years old. 8-0 record. Could be good. But my pick for next woman’s 125 lb. champion is Shevchenko. So Shevchenko should have no problem finishing this fight in the 1st round. Probably by submission.
-Michel Prazeres: Rustam Khabilov and Prazeres are very similar fighters. Which doesn’t bode well for Desmond Green. Green’s upside is a lower tier gate keeper. He’s pretty good. Well rounded. But he doesn’t have any dominant tools that finish quality fighters. He’ll beat fighters that don’t belong in the UFC by exposing holes in their game. But Prazeres is 7-1 in the UFC at 155 lbs and he’s coming off 2 submission wins in a row. I think big fights are pretty close for him and he’s probably able to smell. Prazeres by 2nd round submission.
-Marcelo Golm: This is a pick em fight for me. Coin flip. I’m really tempted to pick Tim Johnson and say that Golm only has 6 pro fights. He’s beat 5 tomato cans and a 37 year fighter with a 0-1-1 UFC record in his UFC debut. That Johnson will use his wrestling to make it an ugly fight and that Golm will be exposed for having no takedown defense. I’m tempted to roll that out as my pick. But Johnson’s last fight where he got knocked out by Junior Albini changes all that for me. The same Albini that just lost to Andrei Arlovski. I’m thinking if Albini, who is lumbering and not that athletic, could avoid the take down attempts and knock Johnson out, I think there’s a great chance that Golm who is a lot faster, way more athletic and explosive will be able to do what Albini did, but even better. Golm by 1st round knockout. And if Golm indeed pulls this off, it could make him a new contender in the heavyweight division.
-Thiago Santos: Exciting fight here as both Santos and Smith are coming off 3 knockouts in a row! And Santos especially has been really been on a roll the past couple years. And that knockout over Jack Hermansson, so impressive, as I thought Hermansson was starting to look like a title contender. Santos has a 8-4 UFC record and not only has he become an upper tier gate keeper, he’s looking like a dark horse title contender. Although at 34 years of age, he’s starting to run out of time. He takes on Anthony Smith who’s 4-1 in his 2nd stint with the UFC. But after watching Santos destroy Hermansson, I just don’t see how Smith poses any threat, thus I’m picking Santos to continue to roll with a 1st round knockout.
-Tim Means: In Sergio Moraes’ last fight, I think he got exposed by Kamaru Usman. Moraes is 6-2 in the UFC, but had never fought a power puncher until Usman. Usman blitzed Moraes and knocked him out within 3 minutes. I see Means doing the same thing Usman did. Full on blitz and I expect a Mean(s) knockout in the 1st.
-Alan Patrick: Really close fight. Damir Hadzovic might look like a generic, average prospect, but he’s sneaky good. Hadzovic has a 11-3 pro record and all 3 of his losses have come against fighters that have fought in the UFC. Including two contenders in Krzysztof Jotko and Mairbek Taisumov. Plus Hadzovic has beat decent, albeit older, competition outside the UFC. 1-1 UFC record so far. But he takes on Patrick who has a 4-1 UFC record. Has quality wins over Stevie Ray and John Makdessi. And he’s a very good wrestler and very good at grinding opponents out to decision wins. Hadzovic is more of a stand up fighter and I see Patrick getting take downs and picking up the decision.
-Marlon Vera: This is a really difficult fight to pick, because it’s hard for me to get a handle on who Marlon Vera is. On the one hand, Vera has a 4-3 record in the UFC. On the other, he’s 25 years old and is 3-1 in his last 4 fights, which might indicate a possible breakout. And that lone loss came against title contender John Lineker, where Vera did decent in. Douglas Andrade is more of known commodity. Despite the gaudy overall pro record of 24-2, he has a 2-2 UFC record. His 2 wins were against fighters no longer in the UFC. And his 2 losses were against very good up and comers in Rob Font and Zubaira Tukhugov. And at 32 years of age, Andrade is at his ceiling developmentally. So it’s possible Andrade uses his experience to win, proving Vera is nothing but a gate keeper. But I think it’s more likely Vera is in the middle of a breakout and that he submits Andrade in the 2nd round.
-Joe Soto: Soto’s UFC career didn’t get off to that great a start. The loss to champion TJ Dillashaw was forgivable. But not as much when he lost another two in a row to Anthony Birchak and Michinori Tanaka, which both fighters have been released from the UFC. Surprisingly, the UFC gave Soto one last shot and took advantage of it, winning three in a row. And he didn’t just beat nobodies. He beat Marco Beltran and top gate keeper Rani Yahya. Soto lost to rising contender Brett Johns last time out, but still Soto has looked great in his last four fights. Iuri Alcantara, not so much. He’s 37 years old now. And the younger Alcantara would’ve beat a fighter like Alejandro Perez. But Alcantara isn’t young anymore. Soto is more in his prime being 30 years old and think Soto will do enough mixing striking with wrestling to take the decision win.
-Joseph Morales: UPSET SPECIAL 2: Super impressed with what Morales did in his last fight against Roberto Sanchez. Sanchez is a very good prospect and Morales just starched him in the 1st round. Morales now takes on another top prospect in Deiveson Figuieredo, who’s also undefeated. But I like Morales upside way more as Morales is just 23 years old and Figueiredo is 29. Jarred Brooks took Figueiredo down a bunch of times when they fought, but Brooks couldn’t do anything with the take downs. But Morales’ ground game is way better and wrestling just as good as Brooks’. So I see Morales being able to take Figueiredo down and submitting him in the 2nd round.
-Polyana Viana: This is going to be a beatdown, and I feel bad for Maia Stevenson. This fight is a real bad mismatch. Stevenson has a 6-4 pro record, but the 6 fighters she’s beat, they have a combined record of 0-13. Yes, you read that right. None of the opponents Stevenson has beat has a pro win. Plus Stevenson is 35 years old. Viana though is an elite prospect. 9-1. 25 years old. Has a big knockout win over Amanda RIbas. This is going to be an ugly 1st round knockout for Viana.