UFC Fight Night 142: Dos Santos vs. Tuivasa - Predictions and Picks

#8 The Prelims: Fight Pass card

Mizuto Hirota faces Christos Giagos on the Fight Pass portion of the show

Headlining the Fight Pass part of the show is a Lightweight fight between Japanese veteran Mizuto Hirota and grappler Christos Giagos. Hirota has been around for years – since 2005 – and it’s nearly a decade since his famous win over Satoru Kitaoka in Sengoku. His performances in the UFC have been spotty at best, but he’s still a solid fighter. Giagos meanwhile was cut from the UFC with a record of 1-2 in 2015, but a run of 4-2 on the regional scene was enough to bring him back. Giagos has always had issues with better grapplers, but I think his athleticism might be enough to take him past the aged Hirota in a likely slower kickboxing-based fight. Giagos by decision is my pick.

Finally, it’s a really strange battle of newcomers at 155lbs as Alex Gorgees takes on Damir Ismagulov. Initially, this should’ve seen Ross Pearson facing Joseph Duffy (!) but injuries to both men resulted in this last-minute fight being thrown together. Gorgees is 6-0, but has only fought on the Australian regional scene, while Ismagulov is a different kind of animal – he’s 16-2, is riding an 11-fight win streak and was the M-1 Global Lightweight champion. This looks like a mismatch to me so I’ll take Ismagulov via first round submission.