The UFC was busy announcing bouts for upcoming fight cards in recent weeks, and under are my thoughts on a few of the newly-announced bouts for UFC Philadelphia and UFC Russia.
Josh Emmett vs. Michael Johnson, UFC on ESPN 2 Featherweight contender Josh Emmett will return from a lengthy layoff when he takes on Michael Johnson in UFC on ESPN two, which takes place March 30 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ESPN broke news of this struggle. Emmett (13-2) is currently 4-2 in the UFC but has not fought because a brutal KO loss to Jeremy Stephens in February 2018. He rocketed up the rankings with a knockout win over Ricardo Lamas however, the loss to Stephens where he broke his nose was a significant setback. Johnson (19-13) is 11-9 in the UFC and is coming from back-to-back decision wins over Andre Fili and Artem Lobov. However, he’d lost three straight fights before that. Although Johnson is inconsistent, we understand how great he is when he is at his best, as well as Emmett coming from such a lengthy layoff you need to fade him here and prefer Johnson to win this fight.
Ray Borg vs. Pingyuan Liu, UFC on ESPN 2 Ray Borg will move up to bantamweight if he takes on Pingyuan Liu in UFC on ESPN 2. The Philly Voice broke the news. Borg (11-3) is currently 5-3 in the UFC but hasn’t fought as a submission loss to Demetrious Johnson in October 2017. He was one of the best flyweights from the UFC but will soon be moving up to bantamweight now and it’s going to be interesting to see if he can make a run in his new weight class. Liu (13-5) is riding a nine-fight win series including a 2-0 mark in the Octagon with wins over Damian Stasiak and Martin Day. Even though he’s moving up to bantamweight, there is no doubt Borg is going to be a large favorite here just according to his UFC expertise and level of competition.
Marcin Tybura vs. Shamil Abdurakhimov, UFC Fight Night 149
Heavyweights Marcin Tybura and Shamil Abdurakhimov will square off UFC Fight Night 149, set for April 20 in Yubileyny Sports Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. Tybura (17-4) is 4-3 in the UFC and won a decision over Stefan Struve in his final outing. Abdurakhimov (19-4) is currently 4-2 at the UFC and is coming off of back-to-back wins over Andrei Arlovski and Chase Sherman. It is heavyweight MMA so you can never be sure of the outcome, but I believe Tybura is the better fighter and should be favored here.
Emil Weber Meek vs. Sultan Aliev, UFC Fight Night 149
Welterweights Emil Weber Meek and Sultan Aliev will also meet at UFC Fight Night 149. Meek (9-4, 1 NC) is 1-2 in the UFC and is coming off of consecutive declines to Kamaru Usman and Bartosz Fabinski. Aliev (14-3) is 1-2 at the UFC and is coming from a TKO loss to Warlley Alves. Both men are disappointments in the UFC, but Meek generally gets more respect from bettors and I assume he’ll be favored here.
Krzysztof Jotko vs. Roman Kopylov, UFC Fight Night 149
And lastly, a middleweight bout will see Krzysztof Jotko take on UFC newcomer Roman Kopylov in UFC Fight Night 149. Jotko (19-4) is 6-4 at the UFC however is riding a three-fight losing skid including back-to-back KO declines to Uriah Hall and Brad Tavares. Kopylov (8-0) is making his UFC debut after going undefeated on the Russian regional arena. It is hard to back Jotko after his current win streak, and I anticipate the undefeated Kopylov to be the favorite here.
Disclaimer: This page includes affiliate links and MMA Odds Breaker is going to be paid if you make a purchase after clicking on the hyperlinks.
Read more: 2017ipl.net
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
