Featherweights
Arnold Allen (13-1) vs. Jordan Rinaldi (14-6): There was a brief moment when Allen looked like England’s best prospect. Not that he has done anything to dissuade that notion -- he has won all four of his UFC bouts -- but injuries and visa issues have left him relatively inactive, robbing his career of momentum. When he gets in the cage, Allen walks a fine line when it comes to procuring the victory. His approach is based almost purely around leveraging his physical strength to bull around his opponents, leaving him without much of a backup plan if his counterpart has a strong technical edge. Allen’s last bout against Mads Burnell was a perfect encapsulation of this reality, as the Dane mostly controlled Allen for two rounds before the Brit managed to jump on a front choke to net a sudden comeback win. Rinaldi has done well to stick on the UFC roster with a nondescript, well-rounded game, but in terms of stopping Allen’s physical approach, he is probably an easier test than Allen’s last few opponents. Rinaldi is a decent enough wrestler, so if he suddenly turns the fight on Allen, he can probably ride out things, but it does not appear he can match Allen’s physical strength. The pick is Allen via decision. ODDS: Allen (-160), Rinaldi (+140)Advertisement
Lightweights
Marc Diakiese (12-3) vs. Joseph Duffy (16-3): The idea of these two lightweights finding success at the UFC level was somewhat taken for granted, so it is jarring to see them facing each other in a do-or-die fight on this undercard. Duffy came into the UFC in 2015 with a rare amount of hype; at the time, he was the last man to beat Conor McGregor, and the UFC quickly attempted to give him the push to make him the promotion’s next Irish star. For about a year, things worked swimmingly, as Duffy showed off both his boxing background and his slick submissions. However, after suffering a loss to Dustin Poirier, maneuvering through contract issues and injuries and finally getting knocked out by James Vick, Duffy’s star has dulled a bit. He will take on England’s Diakiese, who came into the UFC with a solid bit of hype himself. Diakiese is a physical marvel who has gotten the chance to show off his knockout power in moments during his UFC career. However, even in his wins, he has struggled with opponents who have been unwilling to respect his power and instead have just pinned him to the mat or the cage. Diakiese is now coming off of three straight losses, including a complete outclassing at the hands of fellow prospect Nasrat Haqparast, so the “Bonecrusher” badly needs to get back into the win column. Duffy should have this based off of skill and experience, but Diakiese does have paths to victory. Duffy chooses to dodge via head movement rather than defend, so Diakiese’s hand speed might be enough to catch him clean; and for all of Diakiese’s wrestling issues, Duffy is the type of grappler who seems content to lay on his back and go for submissions, so that might be an unlikely path of victory for the Brit. Still, Duffy’s depth of boxing skill should be enough to pick apart Diakiese on the feet. The pick is Duffy by decision. ODDS: Duffy (-230), Diakiese (+190)Light Heavyweights
Nicolae Negumereanu (9-0) vs. Saparbek Safarov (8-2): This was originally supposed to be a match that saw kickboxing legend Gokhan Saki likely obliterate Safarov, but with Saki injured, in steps Negumereanu. The Romanian newcomer is a can-crusher personified, racking up wins with plodding power strikes and a grappling game that, well, works at the Romanian regional level. Safarov is not particularly good, but he has shown a level of toughness and competent grappling that is levels above anything Negumereanu has faced to date. The pick is Safarov via second-round knockout. ODDS: Negumereanu (-185), Safarov (+160)Middleweights
Tom Breese (11-1) vs. Ian Heinisch (12-1): The UFC has tried to book Breese against Cezar Ferreira twice, and in the end, the winner might wind up being Heinisch. He made his late-notice debut after Breese pulled out of the first booking of the fight, then scored an upset decision victory. This time, Ferreira withdrew from the bout, so into the void steps Heinisch once again. Heinisch has a crazy life story, based around drug trafficking and time in prisons around the world, but inside the cage, things are relatively simple, as he uses big power punches to lead into a strong wrestling game. That was enough to overwhelm and keep Ferreira on his heels, and it might work here against Breese. The once-beaten Breese has rightfully been touted as an excellent prospect, but his main weakness is being too patient for his own good. Even if Heinisch manages to crash Breese and get inside, the 27-year-old Brit might just be a physical and strong enough wrestler to neutralize his takedowns once he gets there. This is basically a coin-flip fight, but the pick is for Breese to get the better of grappling exchanges and win a decision. ODDS: Breese (-135), Heinisch (+115)Featherweights
Danny Henry (12-2) vs. Dan Ige (10-2): Henry has already done much better than expected. As a Scottish grappler who had to go to South Africa to find success, Henry figured to have difficulty translating his game up to this level of competition. To his credit, he has made it work, mostly by taking advantage of opportunities his opponents have provided. Daniel Teymur simply wore himself out beating up the defensively lax Henry, while Hakeem Dawodu did not respect Henry’s awkward striking game and wound up eating a big counter before being submitted. Henry looks to make it three in a row against Hawaii’s Ige, who has looked solid in his UFC career so far. Ige is an aggressive jack of all trades, master of none type, and his success mostly depends on his ability to take down his opponent. He can probably set a pace and do that here. Henry should remain dangerous throughout, but Ige has shown the ability to work for 15 minutes without getting tired. The pick is Ige via decision. ODDS: Ige (-160), Henry (+140)Women’s Flyweights
Molly McCann (7-2) vs. Priscila Cachoeira (8-1): Two flyweights look to rebound from disappointing UFC debuts in this one. “Meatball” McCann has the potential to be a cult star, given her charisma and her fun fighting style, but her debut served as a rude awakening. McCann was the obvious fan favorite in her hometown of Liverpool, but Gillian Robertson showed that the Brit’s defensive wrestling, which was just getting by at a regional level, could get absolutely blown through against better competition. Even so, McCann is a solid boxer with some power for this division, so if she gets a willing dance partner, she still has the potential to put on a show. Brazil’s Cachoeira certainly qualifies as such, as her regional fights are absolutely ridiculous bits of violence, with Cachoeira winging huge, looping punches in an attempt to knock out her opponents. She did not get the chance to show any of that in her infamous UFC debut against Valentina Shevchenko, who destroyed Cachoeira in a beatdown that became extended to the point of being uncomfortable. This should be a dumb bit of violence, but McCann should be able to pick apart Cachoeira during her huge windups, and as long as the Brit does not get knocked out early, she should also be able to exploit Cachoeira’s complete lack of a gas tank. A clean knockout is not likely, but the pick is for McCann to apply the volume and earn a third-round stoppage. ODDS: McCann (-185), Cachoeira (+160)Featherweights
Mike Grundy (11-1) vs. Nad Narimani (12-2): If nothing else, it is a sign of progress that this bout between two British fighters is going to come down to wrestling. Grundy has been on the verge of a UFC callup for a while, and wrestling is in fact his bread and butter. He has represented England in a few international competitions, and what little striking he does is with the intent to immediately set up a takedown. He will look to get that going against Narimani, who looked like a solid, well-rounded fighter on the regional scene and has done the same in the UFC. Fights against bigger names like Nasrat Haqparast and Enrique Barzola have fallen through, so instead, Narimani has just used his own strong wrestling game to grind out wins against the UFC’s bottom tier. Grundy might just be able to push his one competency and grind out a win, but Narimani looks sturdy enough to have some success in that phase and has more tools to use. The pick is Narimani via decision. ODDS: Narimani (-210), Grundy (+175)Related Articles
