We’re 10 days away from the biggest card of the year and sure, we’re all waiting for Max Holloway vs Justin Gatejhe and Arman vs Charles but there are some sweet fights on the prelims as well. Today, we’ll take a closer look at some of the most intriguing bouts on the prelims of UFC 300.
We’ve got a mix of former champions, top contenders and some plain old fun matchups. Let’s dive straight in.
Deiveson Figueiredo vs Cody Garbrandt
This is the first fight of the night and knowing these two, it’s going to be a banger, there is no doubt about it. Figueiredo is a bruiser, through and through and apart from a Moreno misstep, has all but destroyed his former opponents. After a dominant stint at flyweight, he moved up to bantamweight and laid a beating on Rob Font. The man has power, speed and a chin to match. He’s also incredibly aggressive and is a fight-finisher. Cody, on the other hand, is going to be knocked out. Plain and simple. He does not have the fight IQ to take on someone like Figueiredo and has taken more than enough punishment over the years. He was trained to just beat Dominick Cruz and nothing more. Figueiredo will have his way with Garbrandt but the former bantamweight champ could make it a closer contest if he had any game-planning skills. Figueiredo by KO in Round 1.
Jailin Turner vs Renato Moicano
This is a real treat. Both Turner and Moicano are very skilled lightweights and this pairing should make for an exciting fight. Turner is a big boy. He’s huge for the weight class and has the power to prove it. His destruction of Bobby Green and Brad Riddel is a testament to his power and finishing ability. He’s had a few missteps against Dan Hooker and Gamrot but he was still very competitive in those split-decision losses. Moicano has been in the UFC for almost 10 years now and after a move up from featherweight, he’s found himself right in the ranking mix. An excellent ground fighter with relatively good kickboxing, Moicano can get himself in trouble when slinging it out on the feet with more diverse strikers. His loss against Fiziev is a prime example. However, if he does take it to the ground, he’ll have a huge advantage there as the Brazilian is a legitimate black belt with serious submission skills. This fight is a real toss-up but if we had to pick, Turner by 2nd round KO.
Sodiq Yusuff vs Diego Lopes
Fan favourite Lopes is going up against his stiffest test in Sodiq Yusuff and this fight will tell us if he belongs in the upper echelon of the featherweight division. Lopes is a dangerous and opportunistic grappler who will snatch up limbs and necks if you even give him the slightest chance. While he does have impressive power in his hands, its the ground where his best work is done. Yusuff is a powerful striker with dynamite in his hands and very good takedown defence. He took it to Edson Barboza before losing steam but it was in the first round where he rocked the seasoned striker with a ferocious right hand. This will be the toughest test of Lopes’ career and if he gets past Yusuff, we should be seeing him against the top 10 in his next fight. Yusuff by decision.
Calvin Kattar vs Aljamain Sterling
After a brutal defeat to Sean O’Malley, Sterling is looking to reinvent himself up a weight class. He’s going to have a tough go of it as he’s paid up against the always-dangerous Calvin Kattar. Looking to rebound from a nasty defeat, Sterling is an excellent grappler who excels at taking the back and finishing the fight. He’s big and strong for bantamweight but will he retain the same power and finishing ability against guys who are going to be naturally bigger than him? He’s got a tough test in the form of Calvin Kattar. The Boston rep is a certified banger with excellent boxing and superb takedown defence. The guy can crack as evidenced by his utter destruction of Jeremy Stephens and beatdown of Giga Chikadze. Will he be able to hold back the grappling of Sterling? We’ve got Kattar by TKO in Round 2.
Jiří Procházka vs Aleksandar Rakić
Looking to rebound from a devastating KO loss to Alex Periera, Jiri is jumping right back into the fire against a dangerous Aleksandar Rakić. Touted as one of the better prospects in 205, Rakic has shown that he might not be everything that’s been advertised as a tepid fighting style following a nasty KO of Jimi Manua, has labelled him as a boring fighter. He’ll have no choice but to engage with a man like Jiří Procházka. The Chezch fighter is a finisher. The man has been to 1 decision in his entire MMA career. He’s a kill-or-be-killed kind of guy and it shows in his performances. This is one contest that we cannot see going the distance.
