UFC Vegas 78 Predictions

With all due respect to Rafael dos Anjos and Vicente Luque, they may have to be in contention for Fight of the Year to make this Saturday a night to remember.

UFC Vegas 78 has veterans Anjos, Luque and Cub Swanson at the top of the card, as well as Canadian featherweight challenger Hakeem Dawodu. But apart from those two battles, there was very little recruitment as far as Star Power would go. And that’s due to the fact that this card is filled with fighters who have earned their way to the big show through UFC’s various talent search programs.

Thirteen of the twenty-six fighters competing tonight at the UFC APEX have been signed through. Dana WhiteContender Series, best fighteror Dana White: Looking for a fight.. Here is the full list: (All D.W.C. The fighter won a contract on the show. unless otherwise stated):

And that doesn’t really delve into how inexperienced this character is. With 8 fighters having less than 10 pro fights and many more hovering around that mark

These people all have extraordinary stories and their achievements should be celebrated. But as far as the quality of the competition goes. It’s fair for the general audience to question whether or not the UFC offers the highest quality product possible (answer: they don’t, and thankfully, they don’t need to do a lot of TV and streaming). comfortable with ESPN)

As always, good luck to the men and women who are about to step into the cage. And hope they put on a show that silences the critics sitting on the couch.

what: UFC Vegas 78

where: UFC APEX in Las Vegas

when: Saturday, Aug. 12, the seven-fight preliminary kicks off at 4:00 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN+, followed by the six-fight primetime card at 7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN+.

---

Vicente Luque vs Rafael dos Anjos

Age is a major factor to consider in both the main event and the main event. But when it comes to Vicente Luque and Rafael dos Anjos, the differences are deceiving.

Yes “RDA” is just a few months away from his 39th birthday and Luque is about to turn 32 years old. The gap narrowed when his career began in 2004, about five years before Luque. And while Dos Anjos’ 46 pro bouts are impressive, But Luque recently surpassed the 30-fight limit.

and that’s strong Over 30 fights that Luque has gone through, even though he used to be a hammer. But he has almost nailed it at times, a pattern that may have caught him in the past two losses to Jeff Neal and Belal Muhammad. deals damage as well But he has shown that he can go above and beyond what we consider his strengths. The same can’t be said for Luque, maybe this is where he turns things around.

The hit had to go in favor of the bigger Luque. which continued to be a knockout threat despite his durability decreasing. He didn’t fuss on the floor either. And while it’s unlikely he will become the first man to deliver dos Anjos, he hasn’t lost his way either. Still, look for Dos Anjos to blend the ground and ground game as expertly as he has throughout his career. His Hall of Fame career was to prevent Luque from getting any strokes.

I picked dos Anjos to lead a tense five rounds and beat Luque on cards.

choose: from the angel

Cub Swanson vs. Hakeem Dawodu

The difference in wear here is more significant, with Cub Swanson starting his fighting career in 2004, nearly a full decade before Hakeem Dawodu. Where racing and competition has to feel better and better day by day for someone like Swanson.

You know what? I’m still going with Swanson to get rid of the upset here.

skill to skill Have Swanson take care of these young shooters every day. Never mind that unfortunately dropped to 135 pounds he just tried and focus on where he used to be. in featherweight He would always only lose to the best of the best. Names like Jose Aldo, Max Holloway, Frankie Edgar, Brian Ortega and Chad Mendes have made his ledger red. With other strong contenders out there as well, Dawodu has the potential to be added to the list for sure. It’s more about being consistent with him.

Can Dawodu accelerate the pace? Can he be an aggressor? He was able to come out quickly and injure Swanson. Then set your mind up for the rest of the fight if finishing the first round doesn’t happen. This should be a strong resume builder for Dawodu, he just has to seize the opportunity.

Until I saw him prove he was in that upper featherweight division. I still hold on to “Killer Cub.”

choose: Swanson

Khalil Runetri vs Chris Dowkaus

This was one match I couldn’t get over the difference in speed and athleticism. Chris Daukaus made the wise decision to step down from heavyweight after being overwhelmed by some of the bigger guys in that division. But competing with another knockout artist might not be the best for his health.

As the reverend Jed Meshew pointed out, One of the advantages Daukaus has in heavyweight is that he is often faster than his opponent. That won’t be the case when he comes in at 40 pounds lighter, especially with Rountree saying that one of the advantages he still has is that he’s a top fighter. Which before he had no reason to show much because he touches KO more often than not

Rountree’s overthrow defense came and went. So this is difficult to find out. Sometimes he looks like a classic, brawling fighter. But sometimes it looks like Rob Font is taking Cory Sandhagen (too early?). I still haven’t seen Daukaus perform his jiu-jitsu properly, so Rountree is safe…

I wouldn’t deposit Daukaus interrupting Rountree’s stand-up game for three rounds. Rune Tree by knockout.

choose: yearn for

Poliana Viana vs Iasmin Lucindo

Iasmin Lucindo brings an impressive physique to the 115-pound class. That might explain why the 21-year-old is heading into this bout as the favorite over Polyana Viana, who has more experience than the UFC. It’s like heavyweight, although it’s on the opposite end of the division spectrum: plus athleticism and Aggression can take you far.

I doubt it was enough to defeat the deadly Viana, who was in a relentless pursuit of victory. The problem is if she can’t finish it. She lost a bit when she had to beat the judges. Five of her career losses came from decisions.

On the other hand, all of Lucindo’s losses came from surrender. And that becomes an area where Viana is superior. Lucindo is particularly vulnerable to one of Viana’s special equipment, the armbar. So look for an experienced player to lock in her favorite position for victory here.

choose: Vienna

AJ Dobson vs. Tafon Chukwei

This is the first of two main bouts to switch from middleweight to catchweight. Because one contestant has lost a lot of weight, in this case Tafon Nchukwi was over 3.5lbs for his fight with AJ Dobson and while I’m not sure that gave him a huge advantage. I’m not sure he wants a well-rounded fight, but uh, Dobson, that’s pretty unexplained.

Look, these two aren’t chasing UFC gold anytime soon and that’s okay. The best we can hope for as fans is to cross middleweight status — Nchukwi is tempting fate by stepping down from light heavyweight — and delivering brawls that fun Considering both of them are fighting for their jobs. It can really go both ways.

Nchukwi by decision? Your guess is as good as mine.

choose: Chukwue

Josh Fremd vs. Jamie Pickett

When it comes to middleweight vs. middleweight matchups. I’m optimistic that we’ll finish the match to start the main card, and once again, I’m going to go with a fighter coming in hard. as much as it hurts me

This doesn’t mean that missing weight automatically gives you an advantage (Mike Chiappetta gave up on this myth a long time ago. In summary, it is (For the most part, the offenders in the next winning weigh-in are usually encouraged anyway.) In this case, I’m more concerned with Jamie Pickett’s UFC 2-5 record. First or what? Four out of five losses are by knockout or loss. three times before the end of round 1

So the only explanation for this bout is the main card showdown. (It doesn’t matter since they’re all on the same platform anyway) is that the matchmaker is sure it doesn’t go far and I agree.

Fremd did well in quick KOs before reaching the UFC and I think he can find that spark in his attack again and get Pickett out early.

choose: foreign

preliminary

Marcus McHee def. J.P. Bye

Terence McKinney D.F. Mike Breeden

Francis Marshall def. Isaac Dalgarian

Martin Buday def. Josh Parisien

Jacqueline Amorim def. Montserrat Ruiz

Damon Blackshear def. Jose Johnson

Juliana Miller challenges Luana Santos