Here we go, we're back in Mexico City for this awesome fight night! This card is stacked and we're so excited to give our preview and predictions. We'll see the former Flyweight champion, Brandon Moreno attempt to get back into the win column against Brandon Royval. The co-main bout is also a cracker! With Brian Ortega taking on Yair Rodriguez at flyweight. A win in either of these fights puts each man back in title contention.
Main Event: Moreno v Royval 2
This is a cracker, who wins? How does it go down? Well, these two actually have some history, which ended in an unfortunate fashion last time. Royval's shoulder actually popped out back in 2021. This will be the first time Moreno will fight without a title at stake for 4 years. Moreno is unquestionably one of the best Flyweights to do it, with a 4-fight title trilogy against Deiveson Figueiredo cemented under his belt. Royval is also looking to get back in the win column after his title loss to Pantoja. Where is lost in a pretty one-sided decision.
For me, I think this is Moreno's fight to win. He's more well-rounded, has loads of championship experience and has fought some tougher competition. The main issue I see for Royval is his takedown defense, which was exploited pretty heavily against Pantoja. It is also true that Moreno struggled against Pantoja, but found the feet more often. Royval was taken down 8 times and controlled for more than 50% of the fight. If these guys choose to stand, it's pretty even. Both are lightning-quick and technical, but I feel like Moreno will start to mix in the takedowns in those later rounds. He loves the early chaos, but also fights at a pace that is hard to match. For this reason, I think he could find a submission in round 3-4. I do think Royval has been working on his TD defence, but I don't think it will be enough.
Prediction: Royal via submission $4.40
Brian Ortega v Yair Rodriguez
This is another interesting fight in the featherweight division. With Volk recently losing the belt to Ilia at UFC 298, this opens up an opportunity to fight for the gold. This is a 5 round co-main, and a rematch 2 years in the making. A slick striker takes on a crafty grappler. Their previous meeting also ended prematurely, with Ortega suffering a shoulder injury in the final minute of the first round. This will be the first time we see Ortega enter the octagon and he's facing the same man. For Yair, he captured the interim belt back in Australia in 2023 at UFC 284, but couldn't unify against Volkanovski at UFC 290.
This is no doubt a very tough fight for somebody coming back after 2 years of ring rust. Ortega is looking for a re-birth as he returns to the UFC, but the challenge isn't easy. Both men have pretty incredible resumes and 6-fight win streaks to their names. Yair is one of the most dangerous strikers in the game. He pieced up Josh Emmett and who can forget his 5-round slug fest against the Korean Zombie. For Ortega, I think inactivity will be a factor. Being 5 rounds, Yair has more time to settle in and control the pace at a distance. I think Ortega's leaves too many gaps on the feet. We saw this against Volk and Max Holloway. Yair only needs a few lapses in concentration to find his timing. If it goes to ground, Ortega has a better chance, but it has to get there. Yair may be too sharp for Ortega, and with 5 rounds he has the time to get to work. Because of how these guys fight, I predict this one to end in a finish.
Prediction: Fight to not go the distance $1.65
Daniel Zellhuber v Francisco Prado
Lightweight prospects Daniel Zellhuber and Francisco Prado find themselves on a main-card in Mexico city this weekend. Both fighters are coming off a finish and are serious threats with 22 combined finishes and just 2 losses. Zellhuber is a serious striker, with one of the longest reaches in the division. He has lovely combinations and sets up his offence well. At times he can be careless in the scrap, but his gameplan is to walk you down. For Prado, his power and his ability to wrestle make him a very dangerous opponent. He can, however, struggle with longer opponents.
This is a very even matchup, It's a hard one to predict. I think this is just the beginning for these young prospects. Being in Mexico, Zellhuber will have the crowd behind him, so I expect him to be pushing the pace. However, Prado has serious power, and could catch him and turn the lights off if there's an opening. However, I think Zellhuber will be more measured and will edge out the rounds.
Prediction: Zellbuber to win $1.38
Paul Rosas Jr v Ricky Turcois
A bantamweight matchup between two hungry opponents in their early UFC infancy. Rosas got back in the win column with a first-round TKO after suffering his first UFC defeat, while Turcois also saw a split decision win in his last outing. Rosas (2-1 in the UFC) is looking to bring up a winning streak in front of a home crowd. Turcois, is looking to stop the hype train in hostile territory.
This should be a good old-fashioned bantamweight brawl. I don't think either fighter has reached their potential in the UFC yet. Turcois seems to throw from quite a distance, and didn't land much of significance against Zahabi. Rosas is an elite grappler and I think that's the difference here. Rosas will look to get on the inside and control it on the ground, that's where I see scoring. I don't see Turcois hurting Paul, but I do see Paul taking him down and keeping it there.
Prediction: Paul Rosas Jr by decision $2.95
View our other Fight Night Previews and Predictions!
.png)
.png)
0 Comments