Preview: UFC Fight Night 151 ‘Iaquinta vs. Cowboy’

Women’s Bantamweights

Macy Chiasson (4-0, -650) vs. Sarah Moras (5-4, +475): Even the worst seasons of “The Ultimate Fighter” tend to find at least one solid prospect, and on this most recent season, Chiasson was that prospect. She came into the season ridiculously raw as the UFC searched for featherweights, but she has proven herself to be a long, powerful striker with some surprising grappling skills; and her bantamweight debut against Gina Mazany in March showed that those gifts carry down a weight class. Chiasson turns around on short notice to take on Moras, who, like Mazany, will probably try to take Chiasson to the mat. However, given that Moras is also a non-athlete, that does not figure to go too well. Moras has put together a solid UFC career based off little but her submission skill, so she has a shot at handing the Louisianan her first loss, but Chiasson figures to hit her with something hard before it gets to that point. The pick is Chiasson via first-round knockout.

Bantamweights

Aiemann Zahabi (7-1, -165) vs. Vince Morales (8-3, +145): Suddenly, Zahabi badly needs to get his career in gear. Coming into the UFC as a hyped prospect due to his last name -- he is the brother of Tristar Gym guru Firas Zahabi -- he had an odd profile. Zahabi faced a weak slate of competition on his way to the Octagon, yet he still projected as a well-schooled if low-upside talent who could immediately start racking up some wins. That did not happen. His UFC debut was a narrow decision win, and after suffering a come-from-behind knockout loss to Ricardo Ramos, Zahabi has been gone for about a year and a half. Already 31 years old, Zahabi needs a win here against Morales, who is probably a bit underrated at this point. He is a solid prospect lost in a deep bantamweight division and got a tough ask in his UFC debut against Chinese uber-prospect Yadong Song. Morales prefers to counter in combinations, which can leave him defensively vulnerable, but Zahabi does not figure to have the one-shot power to make him pay too much of a price. Morales figures to be much more productive over rounds than the patient Zahabi. The pick is Morales via decision, even if this is a close fight.

Welterweights

Nordine Taleb (14-6, -350) vs. Kyle Prepolec (12-5, +260): Perhaps Taleb can rebound from a tough 2018. The Frenchman-turned-Quebecer looked to finally be putting things together at welterweight, but his run suddenly got interrupted by two straight losses. Poor fight IQ doomed Taleb against Claudio Henrique da Silva -- Tristar fighters continue to chase low-percentage leg locks -- while Sean Strickland managed to beat the sometimes stiff and slow Taleb to the literal punch. Taleb should be able to get off the schneid against a late replacement in this one. Prepolec is a solid journeyman who has earned this chance, but he is also a natural lightweight and Taleb is a gigantic welterweight. That physical power should be too much for Prepolec to handle, and the newcomer does not look like the type of offensive fighter who can make Taleb pay for anything. The pick is Taleb via first-round stoppage.

Featherweights

Matt Sayles (7-2, -220) vs. Kyle Nelson (12-2, +180): Ontario’s Nelson had a memorable UFC debut in December. Stepping in on about two days’ notice, Nelson got off to a strong start against huge betting favorite Carlos Diego Ferreira before fading come the second round. Nelson faces a Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series Season 2 alum in Sayles, who is a solid prospect but might be in a bit over his head in the UFC this early in his career. Sayles relies on a potshotting boxing game and some solid wrestling, neither of which really got going against Sheymon Moraes in his UFC debut. Even against a step down in Nelson, the Canadian figures to be long enough to hit Sayles on the feet and powerful enough to take advantage of any wrestling exchanges. There are still wins for Sayles on this roster, but Nelson is a deceptively tough out. The pick is Nelson via decision.

Heavyweights

Juan Adams (5-0, -130) vs. Arjan Singh Bhullar (8-1, +110): Adams has a ton of potential. He has a bunch of charisma and natural athleticism, and he is an absolutely giant human being, making one of the bigger weight cuts on the heavyweight roster to make it down to 265 pounds. He is also ridiculously raw, so it remains to be seen if the UFC will bring him along correctly or if it will rush him in over his head. This fight against Bhullar could prove to be either one. The first UFC fighter of Indian descent, British Columbia’s Bhullar had a strong career representing Canada as a wrestler and has proven to be a tough if not particularly dynamic grinder. Bhullar could easily grind out a win, but beyond his massive size advantage, Adams also has a wrestling background of his own upon which to fall back. Add in that in his last fight “The Kraken” actually showed some ability to fight for multiple rounds at a pace, and the pick is Adams via second-round stoppage.

Bantamweights

Mitch Gagnon (12-4, -135) vs. Cole Smith (6-0, +115): This one is a big question mark. Gagnon had a solid run through 2014 as an underrated fireplug of a grappler, but after losing in a big spot against Renan Barao to cap off the year, the Ontario native more or less vanished, fighting only once in the last four and a half years. This time around, he takes on a British Columbia native and late replacement in Smith, who makes his UFC debut. From what little footage is out there, Smith looks like a well-put-together fighter with some wrestling skills; however, there is little footage from which to glean. With the long layoff for Gagnon, Smith could easily score an upset, but without much in the way of proven evidence about his skill set, the pick has to be Gagnon via decision, if only by default.