The first of two TUF Finales takes place in Australia tomorrow night and we’ve got our predictions for all the fights below.
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Main Card:
Ross Pearson vs. George Sotiropoulos
Two good fighters here with Pearson having the better striking game and Sotiropoulos wielding the advantage on the mat.
While I think it’s the Australian who has the better chance of finishing the fight if he can grab a hold of a submission, I think he’ll struggle to get Pearson to the mat with his weak takedowns and instead will get outpointed on the feet due to Pearson’s crisp boxing and movement.
Ross Pearson to win by decision.
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Hector Lombard vs. Rousimar Palhares
This should be a cracking contest. Lombard was disappointing in his UFC debut, but on his day he’s a menace on the feet and is well versed in BJJ, while Palhares is less dangerous on the feet, but terrorizes his opponents on the mat with a devastating arsenal of leg-based submissions.
In front of his home fans I expect a better performance out of Lombard this time around, and I think he’s got the ground skills to frustrate Palhares on the mat if it comes to it, but is more likely to give him all he can handle on the feet to produce a stoppage victory.
Hector Lombard to win by TKO in Rd2.
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Brad Scott vs. Robert Whittaker
Whittaker tore through the competition On TUF: Smashes with two first round knockouts and I fancy him to carry that momentum in the final where he’ll find the going tougher against Scott, but will ultimately come out on top to become the 170lb ‘Ultimate Fighter’ winner.
Robert Whittaker to win by TKO in Rd2.
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Colin Fletcher vs. Norman Parke
The second TUF final takes place in the lightweight division with both Fletcher and Parke being submission specialists. Fletcher is the better stand-up fighter and I feel has the edge on the mat so I’m picking him to produce a late finish in this one.
Colin Fletcher to win by submission in Rd3.
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Prelims: (Predicted winners in bold)
Joey Beltran vs. Igor Pokrajac
Chad Mendes Vs Yaotzin Meza
Seth Baczynski vs. Mike Pierce
Ben Alloway vs. Manuel Rodriguez
Brendan Loughnane vs. Mike Wilkinson
Cody Donovan vs. Nick Penner
