The Final ‘UFC On FOX’ event of year takes place tomorrow night and we’ve got our full predictions for all the fights below.
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Main Card:
Demetrious Johnson vs. Joseph Benavidez
These two fought to a split decision last time out, with Johnson just edging it, and I’d expect to see another closely fought encounter tomorrow night.
Benavidez holds the power advantage and if he’s to win here then it’s likely to come by using that to his advantage to end this fight before the final bell. Johnson is extremely fast though and uses distance well while still finding plenty of opportunities to lay hands on his opponents – albeit not with fight-ending blows.
Johnson’s been dropped before, and one of these days he’s going to get caught with something that brings a halt to his string of title defenses, but while Benavidez has that ability I still think that it’s more likely that ‘Mighty Mouse’s busier workrate leads to him claiming another decision victory.
Demetrious Johnson to win by decision.
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Urijah Faber vs. Michael McDonald
This is certainly an interesting one. These days Faber has a knack of being able to win against all but the very highest level fighters at 145lbs and more recently 135lbs, so the question here is whether McDonald fits into that category or not.
In terms of knockout power McDonald is certainly up their with the very best in the division and could test even Faber’s hardy chin. McDonald is good elsewhere, but I don’t think he offers anything Faber hasn’t seen before, and I suspect the former WEC champ will be looking to prove that by attempting to take this fight to the mat early and often.
McDonald is a real talent and at just 22 years old he’s only going to keep improving, but overall I think Faber’s experience will help him edge this one, perhaps by submission, though I think I’ll go for a grapple-heavy decision.
Urijah Faber to win by decision.
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Chad Mendes vs. Nik Lentz
Lentz is very confident that he can pose Mendes problems, but while his wrestling can certainly pose problems for many opponents, perhaps he’s underestimating his opponents prowess in that department.
Mendes is an excellent wrestler too, though he has evolved to become a dangerous striker to over the years, and I think that leaves him with more ways to win this fight.
Chad Mendes to win by TKO in Rd2
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Joe Lauzon vs. Mac Danzig
Once in the a while Lauzon underperforms – his last loss to Michael Johnson being one example, and against Sam Stout a few years ago springing to mind as another. For the most part he’s generally pretty reliable though, and I think he’s got a good chance to win against Danzig who’s never really strung together a consistent run of wins during his lengthy tenure in the UFC.
I feel Lauzon has better hands, is craftier on the ground and generally has the finisher’s instinct that his opponent lacks. Chalk me down for Lauzon to tap Danzig out in the second round.
Joe Lauzon to win by submission in Rd2.
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Prelims: (Predicted winners in bold)
Court McGee vs. Ryan LaFlare
Scott Jorgensen Vs Zach Makovsky
Danny Castillo vs. Edson Barboza
Bobby Green vs. Pat Healy
Abel Trujillo vs. Roger Bowling
John Moraga vs. Darren Uyenoyama
Sam Stout vs. Cody McKenzie
