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UFC Fight Night 119: Lyoto Machida vs. Derek Brunson

As UFC fight night 119 draws closer, all eyes are on Lyoto Machida and Derek Brown who will take on each other in what is being touted as the highlight of the night. UFC 119 will take place in Brazil and coincidentally it also features some amazing Brazilian talent. This event is being termed the […]

As UFC fight night 119 draws closer, all eyes are on Lyoto Machida and Derek Brown who will take on each other in what is being touted as the highlight of the night. UFC 119 will take place in Brazil and coincidentally it also features some amazing Brazilian talent. This event is being termed the return of The Dragon as Machida will be coming back from after a rather long absence to take on Derek Brunson who is gaining quite a bit of traction and momentum in the highly competitive middleweight division.

Other fighters who will be featuring on the night and are worth mentioning are Demian Maia, Jim Miller and John Lineker. It is certainly going to be an entertaining fight night with a lot to look forward to.

Coming back to Lyoto Machida vs. Derek Brunson, Brunson will be fighting on Machida’s home soil as Machida makes a comeback and will be looking for nothing less than a win. Machida’s fighting is mostly influenced by Karate and he has a rather unique striking style which has proven to be difficult to deal with for most, if not all, of his prior opponents. However, the question everyone is asking is whether Machida will be able to hit the floor running since he has been out of action since June 2015 after having failed a drug test. It will be highly surprising if he isn’t at least a little rusty coming back. Brunson will not make things easy for Machida.

Brunson is more of a wrestler type of fighter who will be looking to get into close quarters. Machida however is agile and will not be easy to grab onto and take down. In terms of a prediction, despite the fact that Machida has been out for over two years, we cannot see him losing this one.

Machida to win by TKO.

UFC 216 – Preliminary Card Predictions

UFC 216 – Lando Vannata Vs. Bobby Green Lando Vannata turned a lot of heads and raised a lot of eyebrows with an impressive UFC debut wherein he nearly got the better of Tony Ferguson.He promised of potential, and even knocked out John Makdessi with a wheelkick that was nothing short of spectacular. However, he […]

UFC 216 – Lando Vannata Vs. Bobby Green

Lando Vannata turned a lot of heads and raised a lot of eyebrows with an impressive UFC debut wherein he nearly got the better of Tony Ferguson.He promised of potential, and even knocked out John Makdessi with a wheelkick that was nothing short of spectacular. However, he was humbled at UFC 209 at the hands of David Teymur.

Vannata’s loss only goes to prove that there is always room for improvement. He gets to be in the spotlight again come UFC 216 on October 7th when he faces off against the more experienced Bobby Green. Vannata has been training hard from what we know, and this will be the perfect opportunity for him to showcase his newly acquired skills.

UFC 216 – Pearl Gonzalez Vs. Poliano Botelho

Pearl Gonzalez really messed up her UFC debut, it was pretty diabolical as everything went horribly wrong for her. Sadly, the UFC cuts her no slack and has put her up against Poliano Botelho who is strong favorite going into this match up.

Things don’t look positive for Gonzalez at this point. She is going to have a hard time, and we doubt she is ready for a challenge this tough, this early.

UFC 216 – Walt Harris Vs. Mark Godbeer

There is always one fight in every UFC fight night which features two massive men that can both pack a punch. While it might not be the most agile or technical fight of the night. There is certainly going to be a display of brute force in this match up. The two middle heavyweights should make for an interesting fight. This one is really hard to predict, can go either way.

UFC 216 – Matt Schnell Vs. Marco Beltran

This fight is pretty much going to help the UFC decide who is going to be cut. Firstly, the weight division itself is losing popularity and the UFC themselves don’t seem to bother much for this weight class. Furthermore, both fighters have suffered back to back losses and whoever is on the losing side here will certainly be going home for good.

UFC 216 – Tom Duquesnoy Vs. Cody Stamann

This fight is basically the UFC giving Duquesnoy a stage and an opponent which is ideal for him to show off what he can do. The ex BAMMA champion did impress in his debut and the UFC seem keen to see what else he can do at the expense of Cody Stamann.

Stamann might be able to prove the UFC wrong and actually cause an upset here, but it is going to be an uphill task to say the least.

UFC 216 Notable Bouts – Moraga vs. Bibulatov, Leites vs. Tavares

UFC 216 – John Moraga Vs. Magomed Bibulatov Magomed Bibulatov had his sheer existence among the ranks of the UFC and its roster in itself has proven to be a bit of a hassle for the UFC. This fighter from Russia, has managed to stay on the UFC against all odds and has done so […]

UFC 216 – John Moraga Vs. Magomed Bibulatov

Magomed Bibulatov had his sheer existence among the ranks of the UFC and its roster in itself has proven to be a bit of a hassle for the UFC. This fighter from Russia, has managed to stay on the UFC against all odds and has done so pretty comfortably so far.

He has looked a solid, well rounded fighter so far in his career and the UFC have now stepped up his challenges. Bibulatov will now face experienced flyweight John Moraga.

While Moraga’s prime may be behind him, there is no denying that he is still a serious challenger and will most certainly put Bibulatov through his paces come UFC 216.

Can Bibulatov come out on top in this test? The odds seem to suggest he can! If he does, the UFC are going to have to scratch their heads about how they will promote him and what they plan for his future.

Thales Leites Vs. Brad Tavares

If there is one fight on the card for UFC 216 wherein both fighters are high on confidence, then it has to be Thales Leites Vs. Brad Tavares. Both fighters are coming into this fight on the back of strong winning streaks that have boosted their confidences sky high. In his last outing, Leites beat Sam Alveyand Tavares’ most recent fight was a convincing victory against Elias Theodorou.

If there is one thing we know about the UFC, they are not fans of letting fighters from the middle ranks break into the top 5s and so on. So, what are they going to do about it? Simple, they will pit them against each other. Ergo, Thales Leities Vs. Brad Tavares is scheduled for October 7th and someone will have to be on the losing end.

This is a difficult one to call. In terms of morale, both fighters are close to 100%, but Leites has the upper hand in terms of experience. However, this is going to make for a very technical, highly competitive and interesting fight given that both fighters are excellent grapplers.

UFC 216 – Notable Bouts – Brooks vs. Lentz, Dariush vs. Dunham

UFC 216 – Will Brooks Vs. Nik Lentz Will Brooks is a formidable fighter who has shown what he is capable of on a good day. He has taken down the likes of fighters like Michael Chandler (twice), Dave Jansen and Marcin Held who are all reputable fighters in their own rights. However, Brooks has […]

UFC 216 – Will Brooks Vs. Nik Lentz

Will Brooks is a formidable fighter who has shown what he is capable of on a good day. He has taken down the likes of fighters like Michael Chandler (twice), Dave Jansen and Marcin Held who are all reputable fighters in their own rights.

However, Brooks has hit a bit of a rough patch since these notable victories. His UFC debut did not quite go as planned as he was humbled by Alex Oliveira. Even more recently, he suffered a submission at the hands of Charles Oliveira.

He will be hungry to get back to winning ways when he comes up against Nik Lentz in UFC 216 on October 7th.

Lentz is a solid overall fighter with a good win ratio on paper. Even though he has never made a break through, he has had quite a successful career thus far. Brooks is going to have a hard time keeping Lentz under control.

If Brooks fails to defeat Lentz, he might just get the boot from the UFC.

UFC 216 – Beneil Dariush Vs. Evan Dunham

Beneil Dariush looks good until and gets a lot of wins under his belt until he is put up against a fighter with some proper pedigree. He is able to put away most anonymous fighters with ease, but has failed time and again to produce results when it matters against the top dogs.

At this point, he is serving as the filter system of the UFCs lightweight division by keeping out those who simply do not cut it. His opponent come October 7th is going to be Evan Dunham who used to kind of play this role in the past.

Dunham has had good times and bad throughout his UFC career. However, at this point in time, he is on an all-time high and has peaked courtesy of a four-fight winning streak which he will most certainly be looking to keep going.

While Dariush has a lot to prove, Dunham also has a lot riding on this fight. If he is able to get the better of Dariush, he might, for the first time in his career, break into the top ten ranks of the UFC.

UFC 216 – Paige Van Zant Vs. Jessica Eye Predictions

The word around the block is that Paige Van Zant’s fighting days maybe drawing to a close and the UFC are going to utilize the 23 – year old as a full – time spokes model instead. Van Zant has remained pretty much the same since making a name for herself in her debut. Technically, […]

The word around the block is that Paige Van Zant’s fighting days maybe drawing to a close and the UFC are going to utilize the 23 – year old as a full – time spokes model instead. Van Zant has remained pretty much the same since making a name for herself in her debut. Technically, despite rigorous training in one of the best MMA gyms in the country, Van Zant really hasn’t shown any visible improvement.

Her opponent come UFC 216 is going to be Jessica Eye, who was once considered an elite level flyweight, but is only a shadow of her past self now. Her recent form has taken a substantial dip and she will be coming in to face Van Zant on the back of a four match losing streak.

Irrespective of the future career path that the UFC may have in mind for Van Zant or Eye, there is a lot up for grabs in this fight. It is highly likely that the winner here will get a change at a title shot in the first quarter of 2018.

Judging by recent form and confidence, Van Zant definitely has the upper hand here. It might not be the most eye catching fight as both women will mostly be looking to clinch, dirty box and hunt for take downs. So we aren’t expecting anything spectacular here at UFC 216.

For our prediction, we thing VanZant will take this one via unanimous decisions.

UFC 216 – Paige Van Zant Vs. Jessica Eye Predictions

The word around the block is that Paige Van Zant’s fighting days maybe drawing to a close and the UFC are going to utilize the 23 – year old as a full – time spokes model instead. Van Zant has remained pretty much the same since making a name for herself in her debut. Technically, […]

The word around the block is that Paige Van Zant’s fighting days maybe drawing to a close and the UFC are going to utilize the 23 – year old as a full – time spokes model instead. Van Zant has remained pretty much the same since making a name for herself in her debut. Technically, despite rigorous training in one of the best MMA gyms in the country, Van Zant really hasn’t shown any visible improvement.

Her opponent come UFC 216 is going to be Jessica Eye, who was once considered an elite level flyweight, but is only a shadow of her past self now. Her recent form has taken a substantial dip and she will be coming in to face Van Zant on the back of a four match losing streak.

Irrespective of the future career path that the UFC may have in mind for Van Zant or Eye, there is a lot up for grabs in this fight. It is highly likely that the winner here will get a change at a title shot in the first quarter of 2018.

Judging by recent form and confidence, Van Zant definitely has the upper hand here. It might not be the most eye catching fight as both women will mostly be looking to clinch, dirty box and hunt for take downs. So we aren’t expecting anything spectacular here at UFC 216.

For our prediction, we thing VanZant will take this one via unanimous decisions.