UFC Fight Night 178: Covington vs. Woodley - Predictions and Picks

#4 UFC Light Heavyweight Division: Johnny Walker vs. Ryan Spann

Can Johnny Walker get his hype train back up and running against Ryan Spann this weekend?

The UFC’s Light Heavyweight division remains arguably the strangest male division in the promotion right now. Home to some exciting prospects with massive holes in their game as well as some of the UFC’s most shopworn veterans, the 205lbs class does tend to give fans exciting fights. But they’re often sloppy ones too.

However, with longtime dominant champ Jon Jones dropping his title to move up to Heavyweight, things are suddenly wide open for one of those prospects – or one of said shopworn veterans – to make a run at the top.

Walker and Spann both fall into the former category. Interestingly, Spann has a better UFC record despite not garnering anywhere near the hype that Walker did in 2019.

That’s because the Brazilian looked like he was set to skyrocket up the UFC’s rankings at a ridiculous rate. Debuting in the UFC in late 2018 with a knockout of Khalil Rountree via elbows, Walker then took out Justin Ledet with a spinning backfist and Misha Cirkunov with a flying knee.

Standing at 6’5” and seemingly gifted with ludicrous athleticism, Walker was taking opponents out with moves that most Light Heavyweights wouldn’t even try. Unfortunately, though, his run came to an abrupt end last November, when he was knocked out by Corey Anderson.

Since then, he’s fought just once – being outworked by Nikita Krylov in a fight that saw both men tire out pretty badly. Walker’s hype train has largely been derailed, but another flashy win here would probably see it get back on the tracks quickly. But can he do it?

Spann is much more of a meat-and-potatoes fighter. ‘Superman’ put together a solid but spotty record leading into his 2017 fight with Karl Roberson on Dana White’s Contender Series, but found himself knocked out in quick fashion. From there, he moved back to his more natural 205lbs and eventually won his way into the UFC a year later.

Since then, Spann has reeled off four straight UFC wins, defeating Luis Henrique, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Devin Clark, and Sam Alvey. We can basically skip over the first two – Henrique wasn’t a UFC-level fighter while Nogueira was essentially a walking zombie at the time of their fight.

It’s definitely worth looking at the other two wins, though. Clark seemed to be ahead in the opening round of his fight with Spann before ducking his head a little too much. And ‘Superman’ quickly finished him with a standing guillotine.

Alvey, meanwhile, was comprehensively outfought in all areas by Spann until a third-round rally that almost put ‘Superman’ out cold. Overall then, how does Spann match up with Walker here?

I think it’s a pretty tough fight to call. Obviously, Walker has the more flashy offense, is the better athlete, and definitely has the capability to take out Spann in a rush. But if he can’t do that, then I’d argue that Spann’s more straightforward style, as well as his superior cardio, should be enough for him to outwork the Brazilian.

Overall, I’m leaning towards Spann here. ‘Superman’ has been TKO’d twice in his career, but both losses came in fights that saw him cut to 185lbs – a big weight cut for a guy who stands at 6’5” and clearly walks around above 220lbs. And the toughness he showed against the heavy hands of Alvey suggests to me that he’s got a pretty solid chin.

Walker, meanwhile, has not only shown a penchant for gassing out, but he was also clearly outworked on the ground by Krylov. And I see no reason why Spann – who appears to be a superior wrestler at least – can’t do the same.

To see Walker take out Spann in the first round wouldn’t stun me. But overall, I think ‘Superman’ will grind him down for his fifth UFC win.

The Pick: Spann via unanimous decision