Predictions! UFC 297 Early ‘Prelims’ Preview – Pt. 1

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is bringing more “Prelims” fights to ESPN+ this weekend (Sat., Jan. 20, 2024) when UFC 297: “Strickland vs. Du Plessis” storms Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. MMAmania.com’s Patrick Stumberg kicks off the UFC 297 “Prelims” party with the first installment of a two-part undercard preview series below.

Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, hosts the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) pay-per-view show of 2024 this Saturday (Jan. 20, 2024) when Middleweight kingpin, Sean Strickland, looks to settle his bad blood feud with Dricus Du Plessis atop UFC 297. The evening’s other title fight sees Mayra Bueno Silva battle veteran Raquel Pennington for Amanda Nunes’ vacated women’s Bantamweight belt, while Ontario’s own Mike Malott chases his biggest win to date against Neil Magny at Welterweight.

Seven “Prelims” will set UFC 297’s PPV main card stage this time around, three on ESPN+ and the rest on ESPNN. Let’s take a gander at the first batch …

170 lbs.: Yohan Lainesse vs. Sam Patterson

Four months after knocking out Evan Cutts to claim CFFC gold, Yohan Lainesse (9-2) dispatched Justin Burlinson 97 seconds into their Contender Series bout to earn a UFC berth. He now finds himself 1-2 in the world’s largest mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion, a split decision over Gabe Green sandwiched between stoppage losses to Gabe Green and Mike Malott.

He gives up two inches of height and reach to Sam Patterson (10-2-1).

Patterson — riding a nine-fight unbeaten streak — survived a disastrous start to choke out Vinicius Cenci on Contender Series and claim a UFC contract. His debut pitted him against Yanal Ashmouz, who slept “The Future” with punches just 75 seconds into the first round (watch highlights).

He’s scored five knockouts and four submissions as a professional.

There are two potential outcomes here. The first is that Lainesse just bulldozes Patterson inside of three minutes. Forgoing the cut to 155 pounds should help shore up Patterson’s durability, but he’s there to be hit and Lainesse does pack some genuine pop.

The second — and the one I’m going with — is that Patterson survives long enough for Lainesse’s gas tank to fail him again. “White Lion” just cannot maintain his striking output for more than a round; for example, he landed a total of 10 significant strikes in the last 10 minutes of the Weeks fight. I know it’s been a rough time of late for lanky Brits, but expect Patterson to avoid the kill shot and take over down the stretch.

Prediction: Patterson via third round submission

125 lbs.: Jasmine Jasudavicius vs. Priscila Cachoeira

Undeterred by a loss to then-unknown Natalia Silva, Jasmine Jasudavicius (9-3) scored back-to-back upsets of Gabriella Fernandes and Miranda Maverick. Her third effort of 2023 resulted in a bloody battle against Tracy Cortez, who ultimately walked away with a competitive decision victory.

She’ll enjoy a three-inch reach advantage.

Priscila Cachoeira (12-5) battled her way to a 4-1 run after dropping her first three UFC fights, earning two post-fight bonuses along the way. Then came an 11-month stay on the sidelines, which led into a submission loss to Miranda Maverick at UFC 291.

All seven of the “Zombie Girl” stoppage wins have come via knockout.

The good news for Cachoeira is that Jasudavicius will be an easy target. Indeed, Jasudavicius gets hit with alarming frequency, eating around 200 combined significant strikes from Silva and Cortez.

The bad news is that Jasudavicius takes a great shot and isn’t shy about abusing a wrestling advantage. She racked up more than 10 minutes of top control against Fernandes, whom I’d tab as a more dangerous striker than Cachoeira … and has the means to do the same to “Zombie Girl.” In the end, Jasudavicius shrugs off a haymaker or two to repeatedly drag Cachoeira to the mat and ruin her day.

Prediction: Jasudavicius via unanimous decision

125 lbs.: Malcolm Gordon vs. Jimmy Flick

Following two straight defeats in his first two UFC appearances, Malcom Gordon (14-7) evened up his Octagon record by beating Francisco Figueiredo and Denys Bondar. Muhammad Mokaev dragged him back below .500, though, finishing him with a third round armbar, after which Jake Hadley punished Gordon’s weight miss by stopping him in 61 seconds (watch highlights).

He sports three inches of reach on “The Brick.”

Jimmy Flick (16-7) capped off a four-fight win streak by hitting a flying triangle in his UFC debut, only to announce his retirement soon after. His momentum failed to follow him in his comeback, which has seen him suffer back-to-back (technical) knockout losses to Charles Johnson and Alessandro Costa.

He’s scored 14 submissions as a professional.

Athletic sprawl-and-brawlers seem like a Kryptonite that Flick can’t overcome. That said, his ground game remains among the best in the division and Gordon strikes me as a much more willing dance partner than Johnson or Costa. All signs point to a high-octane Brazilian jiu-jitsu battle that Flick is extremely well-equipped to win.

The key factor here is Flick’s wrestling. Though it wasn’t sufficient to ground his last two opponents, it should be more than enough to punch through Gordon’s single-digit takedown defense. With the ability to dictate when and how the fight hits the ground and the scrambling skills to stay one step ahead of Gordon once there, I like Flick to re-enter the win column with his 15th submission.

Prediction: Flick via second round submission

Four more UFC 297 “Prelims” bouts remain to preview and predict, including a Featherweight shootout in the making between Charles Jourdain vs. Sean Woodson. Same time tomorrow, Maniacs.

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Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 297 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPNEWS at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

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