Lightweights
Islam Makhachev (17-1) vs. Davi Ramos (10-2)ODDS: Makhachev (-335), Ramos (+275)
If it was not for Khabib Nurmagomedov, Makhachev might be the great Russian hope at 155 pounds. A close friend of Nurmagomedov, Makhachev fights with a similar style and has had similar success. Save for his getting sparked in surprising fashion by Adriano Martins early in his UFC career, Makhachev has done nothing but rack up win after win inside the Octagon. Makhachev’s wrestling is not quite the automatic victory-cincher on par with Nurmagomedov, but he makes up for it by being a more dynamic finisher. Makhachev is more willing to give up control to go for a submission, and against Gleison Tibau, he even showed a bit of knockout power. For whatever reason, the UFC has mostly been content to slow-play Makhachev -- he faced an admittedly talented newcomer in Arman Tsarukyan in his most recent assignment -- but this fight against Ramos could be a showcase spot for the Russian to knock down the door for a move up the ladder.
Ramos is an interesting prospect but a frustrating one. It is not an entirely unfamiliar story, as Ramos is an accomplished Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist who fought rather infrequently at first and is trying to flesh out the rest of his game now that he has grown more active. It has been a mixed bag. Ramos is not terrible on the feet, but he also has not been particularly successful, as whatever success he may have as a power puncher is mitigated by his stout fireplug build. That makes it a bit disheartening when Ramos decides to spend rounds kickboxing until at some point he finally realizes where he excels and takes his opponents to the mat. That submission mastery insulates him from a lot of things, which at least allows Ramos to progress from fight to fight. This is a huge chance for the Brazilian to prove himself as a legitimate future contender rather than just a flawed talent.
This looks like Makhachev’s fight to lose, and that becomes particularly obvious on the feet. While Makhachev is there to get hit, Ramos has little else going for him besides his natural power, as his counterpart figures to be the quicker fighter with more options and, most importantly, the longer build. Moreover, Makhachev can probably keep the fight there. While things would get super interesting if the bout goes to the mat, Makhachev has shown strong enough defensive wrestling that he should be able to stuff Ramos’ takedowns and keep this on the feet. On paper, this is an intriguing fight between two talented grapplers, but in practice, this could be one of those bouts where all of that skill cancels itself out, leaving things as a lukewarm kickboxing match. The pick is Makhachev via decision.
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