An exciting card makes its way to Dallas, Texas Saturday night, as Stipe Miocic defends his UFC Heavyweight Championship against the last man to defeat him, Junio Dos Santos. Miocic will be looking to make his second title defense, something that is currently unchartered territory in the UFC Heavyweight Division. The last time these two fought, Dos Santos won a split decision victory in a very controversial fight. Saturday night, both men will look to put the past behind them while fighting for the richest prize in all of combat sports.
With probably the best card on paper so far in 2017, let’s get to my predictions for this star-studded card.
Eddie Alvarez vs. Dustin Poirier- Alvarez is coming off of one of the toughest losses in the UFC, dropping the first-ever Madison Square Garden main event to Conor McGregor to lose his UFC Lightweight Championship in the process. Poirier is back on the winning track after a strong showing against Jim Miller and will look to make a case for why he is one of the best Lightweight contenders in the division. Unfortunately for both of these fighters, the division will stay put for as long as Conor McGregor stays inactive, as “The Notorious” is angling for a super fight against boxing great Floyd Mayweather. Nonetheless, a win here could help position one of these fighters for an Interim title shot or at least put them in position for a title shot soon.
Winner: Eddie Alvarez via First-Round Knockout
Krzysztof Jotko vs. David Branch– Both fighters are extremely talented and could end this fight at any point. If there was to be a finish, I’d give the edge to Branch. But there won’t be. There will be a back-and-forth exchange for most of this fight and Jotko will squeak out a split decision victory as he keeps this fight on the feet.
Winner: Jotko via Split-Decision
Frankie Edgar vs. Yair Rodriguez– Edgar is such a technician, finding the weak spots in his opponent’s game. The former UFC Lightweight Champion has taken on all comers and has disposed of most of them. His next challenger will be one of his toughest to date. Yair Rodriguez is one of the most promising young talents in the UFC. He finishes fights and does so rather explosively, most recently in his performance against B.J. Penn. If Rodriguez wins, he could land the next title shot. It will be interesting to see what happens if he wins, as Cub Swanson is waiting to see if he gets the next UFC Featherweight Title shot. Would Rodriguez jump Swanson for a shot at the gold? Let’s save the what-ifs, as Edgar will do what he does best. Go out and silence the haters once again.
Winner: Edgar via Unanimous Decision
Demian Maia vs. Jorge Masvidal- In what might be the biggest fight this year that doesn’t have a title on the line, Maia will look to keep on rolling and prove to the rest of the Welterweight division that he is the toughest opponent that Tyron Woodley should take on next. Maia runs the same risk that Jacare Souza faced when he took a fight with Robert Whittaker. Souza was in position for aan upcoming title shot in the Middleweight Divisiion, but a devastating loss to Whittaker ended those hopes for now. Maia keeps taking fights which could eventually come back to bit him. And though, Masvidal is a tough opponent who is riding a hot streak, I don’t think there is another opponent who can stop Maia on his way to Woodley.
Winner: Maia via Second-Round Submission
UFC Strawweight Championship: Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Jessica Andrade– Joanna Champion is the best female MMA fighter right now and could be the best of all-time. Andrade is a tough opponent for her, one that knows Joanna pretty well. The one thing that worries fans about Joanna is her ground game. Claudia Gadelha really exposed her at points of their two fights. What gets Joanna rolling is her ability to strike at an extremely efficient rate. Combine that with her ability to turn it up a few notches in the championship rounds and their is no stopping her. Joanna Champion stays on top.
Winner: Jedrzejczyk via Unanimous Decision
UFC Heavyweight Championship: Stipe Miocic vs. Junior Dos Santos– Stipe is a different fighter since the first time these two fought. He is complete as a fighter and will right his wrong to JDS, who has not seen superb competition since facing Stipe. That will be the difference tonight, as Miocic will take him into deep water and chew him apart late in the fight.
Winner: Miocic via Unanimous Decision
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