Yuri Alcantara vs. Pedro Nobre
Had George Roop not pulled out of this bout, it would’ve made for an tough fight to call. However, Alcantara will now be facing UFC newcomer Pedro Nobre, which is a far less interesting match up. Alcantara is an elite featherweight and grappler with nearly as many wins by knockout as he does by submission. Nobre could shock the fans in his UFC debut, but the chances of that happening aren’t too likely. This fight won’t go to long as Alcantara will look to finish his opponent with a quick submission.
Pick : Yuri Alcantara
Fransisco Trinaldo vs. C.J. Keith
Trinaldo may have lost his fight with Gleison Tibau, but he was able to hold his own and prove that he can hang with some of the better fighters in the division. Keith has some skills in the stand up, but lacks skills in the ground game, which just so happens to be Trinaldo’s bread and butter. Keith is a thinner, more lanky lightweight and doesn’t possess the strength to stop Trinaldo’s takedowns, so Keith will be tapping out earlier than he did in his fight with Ramsey Nijem.
Pick : Fransisco Trinaldo
Wagner Prado vs. Ildemar Alcantara
Prado may have gotten his octagon jitters out of the way, but Alcantara has nearly three times as much MMA experience, with a ninety percent finish rate. Alcantara takes very limited damage on the feet, blocking or evading most of what his opponents throw, while using proficient counter striking. He wastes little energy in his fights, but is explosive in his striking and uses fluent combinations. Prado has the power to finish any fight, but the bottom line is that he is strictly a striker, who will be facing a superior, more technical striker. Alcantara possess excellent kicks and a top notch Thai clinch in his arsenal, so he will be comfortable fighting at all ranges, giving him a significant advantage. Prado always has a puncher’s chance, but it’s not a smart bet. Alcantara will out strike Prado and go in for the kill with relentless knees from his deadly Thai clinch, Anderson Silva style.
Pick : Ildemar Alcantara
Edson Barboza vs. Lucas Martins
There’s no need to go into too much detail about Lucas Martins. Bottom line, he hasn’t faced the same level of competition, and he doesn’t possess the same skill set. Barboza has the tools to finish the UFC newcomer and add another highlight knockout to his repertoire.
Pick : Edson Barboza
Diego Nunes vs. Nik Lentz
How many fans are scratching their heads over this match up? Nunes had a phenomenal performance in his win over Bart Palaszewski, so why is he now fighting the less talented Lentz? Evan Dunham was able outclass Lentz on the feet, so he won’t stand a chance against Nunes. A win over Eiji Mitsuoka doesn’t entitle any fighter to a bout with a top ten featherweight, and Nunes will punish Lents for three rounds, or until the ref intervenes
Pick : Diego Nunes
Ronny Markes vs. Andrew Craig
Markes is an enormous middleweight, and will have a noticeable size advantage. His wrestling skills bested those of Aaron Simpson and shouldn’t have a problem imposing them on Craig as well. Craig was controlled by Kyle Noke’s grappling, but Noke’s cardio wasn’t up to par, which allowed Craig to gain the upper hand to win a decision. On the feet, Rafael Natal was picking Craig apart until Craig’s head kick comeback. Craig’s best attribute is his determination and his nerver say die attitude, but his actual skills are far from impressive. Markes will use his size and wrestling to control the fight and win himself the unanimous decision.
Pick : Ronny Markes
Godofredo “Pepey” Castro vs. Milton Vieira
Vieira will have the Jiu-Jitsu advantage, but Pepey possess impressive submission skills, making the gap between their grappling much smaller then the gap in their striking. Pepey went toe to toe with Rony “Jason” for three rounds to showcase his ability to stand and throw leather. Pepey may not be able to submit Vieira, but he certainly can use his knowledge of the ground game to keep the fight standing where he will have a definitive advantage. Vieira has yet to be the victim of a stoppage loss, so this fight will most likely go the distance, but it will be Pepey who gets the victory.
Pick : Godofredo “Pepey” Castro
Thiago Tavares vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov
Despite a controversial win over Gleison Tibau, Nurmagomedov has a solid performace against a strong lightweight, but now he’s facing a step down in competition by fighting Tavares. Like Tibau, Tavares is a Brazilizn Jiu-Jitsu black belt, but hasn’t been as successful in the octagon as Tibau. Tavares took two unanimous decisions over Sam Stout and Spencer Fisher, two fighters who are slowly becoming insignificant in the division, and Nurmagomedov shouldn’t have any issue getting this fight to the ground. Tavares doesn’t possess the strength to prevent the takedown attempts like Tibau was able to. Once the fight in on the ground, Nurmagomedov will control this fight in it’s entirety.
Pick : Khabib Nurmagomedov
Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Ben Rothwell
Gonzaga has a tendency to neglect his Jiu-Jitsu in his fights, and instead stand toe to toe with his opponent. Even though he had relative success in doing so, Rothwell isn’t the fighter to challenge to a slugfest if you can avoid it. Rothwell has showcased his capability to knockout his opponent, but the Gonzaga has succeed in taking down a number of heavy handed strikers such as Junior dos Santos, Shane Carwin, and Mirko Cro Cop (when he was still relevant). Mark Hunt is primarily a striker, but was able to not only take and hold Rothwell down, therefore, Gonzaga shouldn’t have any problem doing the same. The Gonzaga has stated his intensions to go back to his Jiu-Jitsu roots, so as long as he doesn’t stray from that plan, he will get his opponent to the ground and submit him.
Pick : Gabriel Gonzaga
Daniel Sarafian vs. C.B. Dollaway
Dollaway is a variable. He may have a stellar performance one fight, and then bomb the very next. Dollaway is a great wrestler, but is more or less a one dimensional fighter. He has several submission wins, but it seems that all he has in his repertoire is chokes. Dollaway was knocked out in two consecutive fights by Jared Hamman and Mark Munoz, and if Hamman was able to finish him, than Sarafian can certain do the same. Sarafian is a well rounded fighter with six submissions and two knockouts, including his fights while on the Ultimate Fighter: Brazil. When Dollaway tries to take Sarafian down, he’s going to eat a plethora of punches, one of which is bound to drop him. Sarafian has serious power in his hands and if the fight does go to the ground, he is capable of submitting Dollaway, even off his back.
Pick : Daniel Sarafian
Vitor Belfort vs. Michael Bisping
This is a fight where the fans may very well see Bisping try to utilize his wrestling, because it will be a mistake for him to stand toe to toe with the Phenom. Belfort doesn’t usually take part in the whole “feeling out” process, and will attack aggressively from the start. Bisping may be a talented striker, but he doesn’t possess the speed or the power than Belfort has, the same speed and power that helped him achieve quick finishes over Rich Franklin and Yoshihiro Akiyama. Even if Belfort finds himself on his back, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt will be more than comfortable; it only takes one second for Belfort to catch Bisping in with a submission. Either way, this is a bad match up for Bisping whether he wants to strike or grapple, Belfort will take the fight to him and finish in the first round.
Pick : Vitor Belfort
– Ryan “Fight Freek” Poli
@FightFreek