UFC Fight Night 260 takes place tomorrow night in Perth, Australia and we’ve got our predictions for all the fights below.

Main Card

Carlos Ulberg vs. Dominick Reyes

Carlos Ulberg enters this fight riding an impressive eight-fight winning streak in the light heavyweight division and is now set to face Dominick Reyes, who has strung together three victories of his own over the past year and a half.

Ulberg’s UFC journey didn’t start smoothly as he was knocked out in his 2021 debut, but the 34-year-old has since found his rhythm and steadily climbed the rankings to reach the No.3 spot. Critics might argue his path hasn’t been the most demanding, with his standout win coming against a 42-year-old Jan Blachowicz, but there’s no doubt Ulberg’s athletic, technical kickboxing has caused his opponents a lot of problems so far. He overwhelms opponents with a mix of volume, speed, and precision, while his once-questionable grappling has improved to the point where he’s now more comfortable on the canvas and his takedown defense has become a reliable asset.

The 35-year-old Reyes has been on a very different journey to Ulberg in recent years. Despite once coming close to dethroning Jon Jones back in 2020, Reyes soon after suffered three losses in a row via T(KO), and then was out of action for 18 months. Just when it looked like he might be done, Reyes suddenly returned last summer and unexpectedly reignited his career by KO’ing Dustin Jacoby, and then following that up with two more finishes against Anthony Smith and Nikita Krylov. That proved he’s still a dangerous offensive force on the feet, albeit against fighters who were also out-of-sorts at the time. Still, Reyes has shown he still retains his athleticism, sharp footwork, volume, and power, though questions linger about his durability.

It’s been good to see Reyes get some redemption at this stage in his career, but now he has to prove he can do it against an in-form fighter, and while he certainly has offensive tools to work with here, I think Ulberg’s technical kickboxing, power and superior durability will enable him to come out on top in the striking battle to claim a 2nd round TKO finish.

Pick: Carlos Ulberg wins by TKO in Rd2.

Jimmy Crute vs. Ivan Erslan

Jimmy Crute finally snapped a six-fight winless streak back in May, and now he faces Ivan Erslan, who is still searching for his first UFC victory after an 0-2 start.

At 29, Crute is no stranger to the highs and lows of competing in the Octagon. He opened his UFC career with four wins in five outings, but then slumped to four straight defeats, including two first-round stoppages, before deciding to take an extended break from the sport. Since his return earlier this year his progress has been encouraging, winning a majority decision over Rodolfo Bellato followed by a confidence-boosting first-round submission of Marcin Prachnio. Crute remains a rugged all-rounder who can be a threat on the feet with impactful fundamental kicks and punches, though he lacks finesse and his tendency to load up on strikes can leave him open defensively. His willingness to mix in wrestling and grappling is a plus and his ground-and-pound and submission threats are often his most effective weapons, though he’s also been caught in submissions himself in the past.

The 33-year-old Erslan arrived in the UFC from Poland’s respected KSW promotion last year, where he had demonstrated his knockout power, though his form was inconsistent, going just 3-2 in his last five fighters there. Despite his habit of finding fast finishes, Erslan has yet to replicate that success inside the Octagon, dropping his first two fights by decision. His heavy hands remain his biggest weapon, but doubts remain about his ability to adapt when opponents survive his early aggression.

With the home crowd behind him and a broader skill set, Crute looks to have the edge here if he can make use of his wrestling and grappling, leading to a second-round submission finish.

Pick: Jimmy Crute wins by submission in Rd2.

Jack Jenkins vs. Ramon Taveras

Jack Jenkins enters this bout looking to rebound after dropping two of his last three UFC appearances. Standing across from him is Ramon Taveras, who has a win and a loss on his record since graduating from the Contender Series.

The 32-year-old Jenkins brings a physical, pressure-heavy style to the Octagon. He’s got a reputation for delivering uncommonly hard leg kicks that have fractured the limbs of several opponents, and backs that up with crisp boxing to both the head and body. His ability to blend striking with wrestling and ground-and-pound makes him a versatile threat, but lapses in his grappling defense have cost him in the past, with three submission defeats on his record.

The 31-year-old Taveras is primarily a boxer who has fast hands, a clean jab and aggressive combination work, while he is also a solid counter-puncher. That said, his striking defense has shown vulnerabilities and he has a couple of knockout losses to his name. He prefers to keep the fight upright, despite his regional resume including a handful of submission victories.

Overall, I think Jenkins has more ways to win, and If he can weather Taveras’ early flurries and impose his grappling, he’s likely to find success on the ground for a second round finish.

Pick: Jack Jenkins wins by TKO in Rd2.

Jake Matthews vs. Neil Magny

Jake Matthews comes into this matchup on a three-fight winning streak, and will try to extend his run against seasoned veteran Neil Magny, who notched up a TKO win just a month ago.

At 31, Matthews has finally broken free from the inconsistent ‘win-one, lose-one’ form that he’s been trapped in for a few years. Grappling has always been a standout aspect of Matthews game, even back in his UFC early days in the promotion as a promising youngster. That remains true today, with his most recent win being a slick submission over Anthony Njokuani, the 9th of his career. Meanwhile his striking has steadily improved over time, but it remains more functional than fearsome, built upon steady fundamentals and a durable chin.

Magny is getting up there in years at 38, but continues to be an active presence in the 170lb ranks. He has slipped down the pecking order though as age shows signs of catching up with him, especially last year when he suffered consecutive first-round stoppage losses. Despite that, his rangy frame, well-rounded skill set and experience can still be a tricky problem for fighters at a certain level. He’ll enjoy a significant size advantage in this bout, standing four inches taller than Matthews and boasting a seven-inch reach edge. Magny uses that length to his advantage, peppering opponents with long, straight punches and kicks from distance, but is perhaps more effective grinding them down in the clinch alongside occasional takedowns. His lack of stopping power means he can struggle to deter more aggressive strikers though, and alongside his declining durability he has also had issues with his submission defense at times over the years.

Magny can be good at using his jack-of-all-trades skill-set to exploit opponent’s weaknesses, but in this instance Matthews matches up fairly well with him, and in addition to being younger and more durable, I think he’ll prove to be the better grappler and will hand Magny the 7th submission loss of his career in the 2nd round.

Pick: Jake Matthews wins by submission in Rd2.

Tom Nolan vs. Charlie Campbell

Tom Nolan enters this fight riding a three-fight win streak, while his short-notice opponent Charlie Campbell looks to build on a 2-0 start to life in the promotion.

At 6ft 3″, 25-year-old lightweight Nolan lives up to his ‘Big Train’ nickname, but his opponent’s own above-average frame minimizes that advantage to just three inches in height and one inch in reach. Nolan works well on the outside with his active kickboxing, mixing his punches and kicks nicely to keep his opponent’s occupied, and has also found good success with knees. So far he has wins via strikes on his 9-1 record, including a first-round TKO in his debut, but he’s also been composed enough to win on the judges’ scorecards in his last two fights.

Campbell, 30, shares a similar record at 9-2 and like Nolan was also previously on the Contender Series. He’s a powerful, aggressive striker who may lack Nolan’s finesse but compensates with raw stopping power and punishing leg kicks. With six finishes to his name, Campbell is always a threat in high-octane exchanges, but he’s used to being the bigger man, which won’t be the case on Saturday night.

I think Nolan is the better fighter from range here and is technical enough to use that to steer clear of Campbell’s bigger shots and outpoint him on the scorecards.

Pick: Tom Nolan wins by decision.

Justin Tafa vs. Louie Sutherland

Justin Tafa enters this bout looking to end a two-fight skid, while Louie Sutherland makes his UFC debut wielding a 10-3 pro-record.

The 31-year-old Tafa is a pudgy, power-punching heavyweight whose physique belies the fact that he does have speed in his punches and can surprise opponents with sharp counters and the occasional head kick. All seven of his career wins have come via strikes, but his UFC run has been inconsistent, going 4-5 with one no-contest. He suffers from being overly-reliant on his chin defensively, which failed him last time out when he suffered a 35-second TKO loss to Tallison Teixeira, and he’s very limited on the mat.

The also 31-year-old Sutherland arrives with experience from Bellator and PFL’s Challenger Series, though he faced setbacks in both promotions. He’s currently riding a four-fight winning streak in the Dutch LFL circuit though and, like Tafa, has a good finishing rate, with strikes finishing 8 of his 10 career wins. While not the most polished striker, Sutherland brings solid physicality, power and durability, while he enjoys the clinch, and is willing to pursue takedowns to set up his effective ground-and-pound.

If these two just slug it out then it could be either way, but I think Sutherland has the capability to mix things up and punish Tafa for his weakness on the mat to find a ground-and-pound stoppage by the mid-way point of the fight.

Pick: Louie Sutherland wins by TKO in Rd2.

Prelims (Predicted winners in bold)

Navajo Stirling vs. Rodolfo Bellato
Loma Lookboonmee vs. Alexia Thainara
Jonathan Micallef vs. Oban Elliott
Cameron Rowston vs. Andre Petroski
Colby Thicknesse vs. Josias Musasa
Jamie Mullarkey vs. Rolando Bedoya
Michelle Montague vs. Luana Carolina
Brando Peričić vs. Elisha Ellison