4 bold predictions for UFC 263

UFC 263 will take place on June 12 at the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona. The star-studded event will be headlined by a championship bout between middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and challenger Marvin Vettori.

The co-main event will feature another title match between flyweight king Deiveson Figueiredo and challenger Brandon Moreno. Their first fight was a back-and-forth barn burner that resulted in a draw.

Nate Diaz will also be making an octagon comeback against welterweight contender Leon Edwards. The winner of that fight could potentially go on to fight for the UFC welterweight title.

The entire card is stacked from top to bottom, with fights like Eryk Anders vs. Darren Stewart and Drew Dober vs. Brad Riddell included on the prelims.

Here are four bold predictions that could come true at UFC 263.

#4 UFC 263 will be the last time Demian Maia will fight in the octagon

Demian Maia will be taking on Belal Muhammad at UFC 263. Considered to be a legend of the sport, Maia is in the twilight years of his MMA career. It's a young man's sport and in Muhammad, Maia will be facing an opponent 11 years younger than him. So, this might be his last performance in the octagon.

The submission specialist had called out Diego Sanchez for his farewell fight in the UFC but his wish could not be granted by the promotion. Lately, the UFC has been releasing a lot of veteran fighters from the promotion. Alistair Overeem, Ronaldo Souza, Junior dos Santos, Diego Sanchez, Anderson Silva and Yoel Romero are some of the big names that have been let go by the UFC in recent times.

It would not come as a surprise if the 43-year-old Brazilian fighter is released from the promotion after his fight with Muhammad. So, win or lose, this might be the last time we see Maia compete in the UFC.

#3 Deiveson Figueiredo vs Brandon Moreno 2 will not be as competitive as their first fight

In 2020, Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno went to war in a 25-minute fight which was later declared by many as the 'Fight of the Year'. The bout ended in a draw and thus, the two flyweights will share the octagon once again to settle the debate as to who is the true flyweight king in the UFC.

But there's a chance that the sequel might not live up to the hype and expectations that were created by their first encounter. This is because there were a lot of variables that resulted in the first fight being an instant classic.

'Deus Da Geurra' made a quick one-month turnaround after defending his belt against Alex Perez in November. So, the Brazilian fighter arguably did not have enough time to adequately prepare for the fight. Figueiredo also underestimated Moreno in the first fight, thinking he'd run through 'The Assassin Baby'. But the Mexican fighter was tougher than expected. The flyweight champ will not make the same mistake again.

UFC president Dana White also said the 125-pound champ was hospitalized a day before the fight. This most likely affected the champ's performance in the octagon. Another important reason why the flyweight champion might win this rematch more comfortably is that the only reason he lost the first bout was due to a point deduction. The punishment was the result of an illegal blow. The chances of the same thing happening again are very slim.

So 'Deus Da Geurra' should probably come out with his hand raised in the rematch, most likely by submission.

#2 Eryk Anders vs. Darren Stewart will be the 'Fight of the Night'

Darren Stewart and Eryk Anders will be running it back in the octagon at UFC 263 after their first fight in March ended in a no contest. Anders landed an illegal knee on a downed Stewart, causing an abrupt end to the fight.

But before the unfortunate incident, the fight was as exciting as it could be, with both Stewart and 'Ya Boi' throwing heavy strikes at each other. Anders showed his toughness against Khalil Rountree and 'The Dentist' has never been knocked out in his career. So the chances of this fight taking home the 'Fight of the Night' honor is very high.

#1 Leon Edwards will stop Nate Diaz

This might be the boldest and riskiest prediction for the UFC 263 event but there is enough reason to believe that Leon Edwards will win his fight against Nate Diaz via KO/TKO.

Diaz is a UFC darling and it is evident by the efforts made by the promotion to please the Stockton fighter. First, they made a special 'BMF' belt for him and now he is competing in the first non-title non-main event five-round fight with Leon Edwards.

The reason for Diaz's popularity is his tough and resilient fighting style where, no matter how much beating he takes, the '209' fighter keeps coming back. But 'Rocky' is an elite welterweight who can put on a relentless pace throughout a 25-minute fight. The last time Diaz faced a high-level fighter, he was thrashed for three rounds by Jorge Masvidal. The chances of that happening again are very high.

To make matters worse, there is a lot of scar tissue on Diaz's face. If he gets cut during the fight, there is a chance the doctor might stop the bout, similar to the anti-climactic ending at UFC 244.