Tomorrow night in Sweden ‘UFC On Fuel TV 2’ goes down and we’ve got our predictions for the nights big fights for you below.
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Main Card:
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Thiago Silva
This should be a competitive fight and it’ll be a good test to see whether Gustafsson is the real deal or not. Silva has the advantage on the deck, but he’ll struggle to make use of that as Gustafsson has good takedown defense. Stand-up wise both men are good, but I like the more mobile Gustafsson to outfight Silva from range. I also favor Gustafsson here because Silva’s bound to be somewhat rusty after another spending another year out due to a steroid suspension, while it’s not clear whether his back injury has ever truely been fixed 100%. Silva’s a tough guy though, so this one may well end up in the hands of the judges.
Alexander Gustafsson to win by decision.
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Brian Stann vs. Alessio Sakara
Two guys who love to stand and trade here so we can expect plenty of leather to be thrown in the early stages of this fight. Both men certainly have power in their hands, but I think overall Stann hits harder and has the better chin. I also think he’ll have an advantage if the fight goes to the later rounds with Sakara’s gas tank being questionable here, especially after a long injury layoff. Overall it seems like a fight that’s stacked in Stann’s favor.
Brian Stann to win by TKO in Rd2.
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Siyar Bahadurzada vs. Paulo Thiago
Bahadurzada makes his UFC debut with a bit of a buzz behind him after stringing together a six fight winning streak including winning the United Glory Welterweight GP. His level of opposition jumps up here considerably though as he’s been thrown in against Paulo Thiago. Bahadurzada certainly could be competitive with Thiago on the feet with his all-action style against Thiago’s slightly awkward stand-up technique, but the Brazilian is the more well-rounded of the two and has a big advantage on the ground. If Thiago weather’s the early storm I believe he can emerge with a submission victory here.
Paulo Thiago to win by submission in Rd2.
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Dennis Siver Vs Diego Nunes
After a solid stint at lightweight Siver moves down to featherweight and he could certainly make an impact there with his robust striking game that places an emphasis on powerful kicks along with a reasonable ground game to back it up. We’ll find out for sure how well he’s going to fare pretty quickly as he’s immediately been thrown in with a tough opponent in Nunes who is a well-rounded fighter and gave Kenny Florian a run for his money when he attempted to drop down to 145lb last year. Assuming the weight cut hasn’t taken too much out of him I think Siver will be the stronger fighter here though and will land the most damaging blows on the way to a competitive decision victory.
Dennis Siver to win by decision.
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DaMarques Johnson vs. John Maguire
Johnson is a crafty customer on the ground, but in Maguire he faces someone who is also an active player on the mat. Meanwhile on the feet there’s no definitive edge for either man in my opinion. Yes, Johnson did get a KO last time out, but in general I don’t see him as a big hitter and he’s been hurt himself a number of times on the feet. Tough one to call overall, but when I think of Johnson I always recall him getting completely overrun by another Brit James Wilks, and I can see Maguire bringing a similar energy level to this one and gaining the upperhand as a result.
John Maguire to win by decision.
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Brad Pickett vs. Damacio Page
Pickett’s UFC debut didn’t go according to plan after being comprehensively beaten by one of the bantamweight divisions rising stars Renan Barao, but he’s got another chance to make an impact now against Page. Pickett is a well rounded, gritty fighter who’ll happily trade toe-to-toe and has good boxing, though he’s sometimes a little too willing to take a punch in order to throw one in return. His ‘One Punch’ nickname is deceptive though as he’s much more likely to finish opponents on the ground via submission, and I think that could well be what happens in this fight as Page has had a weakness to subs in the past.
Brad Pickett to win by submission in Rd1.
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Prelims:
Magnus Cedenblad vs. Francis Carmont
James Head vs. Papy Abedi
Eric Wisely vs. Jason Young
Simeon Thoresen vs. Besam Yousef
Reza Madadi Vs Yoislandy Izquierdo
