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#7 The Prelims: ESPN+ card
All of this weekend’s prelims will be shown on ESPN+ meaning it’ll be another marathon night for any fan choosing to watch the whole thing.
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At the top of the card is a Middleweight clash between Alen Amedovski and John Phillips. Unsurprisingly it’s a fight with heavy European flavour, Phillips being a Welshman and Amedovski hailing from Macedonia.
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Amedovski showed basically nothing in his UFC debut as Krzysztof Jotko outwrestled him for three rounds, but this is a more favourable match against the plodding brawler Phillips. Given Phillips was largely outstruck by Jack Marshman in March and appears to be slower than Amedovski, I like the Macedonian’s chances here. Phillips has never been KO’d, though, so Amedovski via decision is my pick.
At Middleweight, Italy’s Alessio Di Chirico takes on newcomer Makhmud Muradov, a late replacement for Peter Sobotta. Di Chirico has looked steady in the UFC thus far and he’s more experienced at this level, but I like Muradov here.
The Uzbek native looks strong, powerful and he’s got a lot of KOs on his ledger. He also hasn’t lost since a clavicle injury in 2016. There’s a chance his conditioning lets him down but I’m taking him by TKO.
Veteran Siyar Bahadurzada returns at 170lbs to take on young gun Ismail Naurdiev in what sounds like a tricky fight for him. Bahadurzada is a heavy hitter and is underrated in all areas really, but he’s also 35 now, probably past his prime, and up against a strong grappler who somehow got past the infuriating Michel Prazeres in his UFC debut. Naurdiev via decision is my pick.
At Featherweight, tough brawler Brandon Davis faces off with Georgian newcomer Giga Chikadze, who has experience in kickboxing in the Glory promotion. Chikadze lost in his appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2018 but has since been training with Kings MMA and looks greatly improved on the ground to go along with his dangerous striking. Davis is tough but I’m thinking he might be overmatched here on the feet, and I like Chikadze to win via TKO.
In a Bantamweight showdown Macy Chiasson takes on Lina Lansberg. Lansberg is a dangerous striker, particularly from the clinch, but I don’t like her chances here; Chiasson is a huge 135lber with a 7” reach advantage and a highly dangerous ground game. If she gets Lansberg down I think this one is over, so I’m taking her via submission.
At Lightweight, exciting strikers Lando Vannata and Marc Diakiese face off. Diakiese was looking like a busted prospect this time last year, but he then pulled out a career-best showing to beat Joseph Duffy in March. Both men love to throw flashy strikes but I think Vannata’s wilder, risky style could harm him here, particularly if Diakiese fights as patiently as he did against Duffy. Diakiese via decision is my pick.
Finally Bantamweights Jack Shore and Nohelin Hernandez square off in the opener. This is Welshman Shore’s UFC debut after a tremendous run in Cage Warriors that has seen him go 11-0; Hernandez meanwhile is more of a journeyman who lost his UFC debut to Marlon Vera earlier this year. I like Shore here, he appears to have well-rounded, strong skills, and in Europe, should be more at home too. I’ll go Shore via decision.
