UFC Predictions: UFC Fight Night: Islam Makhachev vs. Bobby Green

#3. UFC Fight Night: The main card

The underrated Arman Tsarukyan features in this weekend’s main card against fellow prospect Joel Alvarez.

In a flyweight bout, Ji Yeon Kim faces Priscila Cachoeira. In a sign of the overall weakness of this card, both women are coming off losses, and have an overall UFC record of 5-8. The likelihood of either challenging Valentina Shevchenko any time soon appears slim.

Cachoeira, though, at least looks like a dangerous athlete who hits pretty hard. Sure, she has been overwhelmed on the ground before, but Kim doesn’t seem capable of doing that, even if she would likely not succumb to strikes easily. The pick here is Cachoeira via decision.

In a fascinating lightweight tilt, Arman Tsarukyan takes on Joel Alvarez. Tsarukyan has just one loss to his name – a decision against Islam Makhachev. Outside of that, he has beaten four foes in the octagon, outgrappling three of them before stopping Christos Giagos with strikes.

Alvarez also looks like a red-hot prospect, having stopped four straight opponents in his own right, making this one very tricky to pick. There could well be a chance for the winner to break into the lightweight rankings. However, overall, Tsarukyan’s grappling might give him the advantage, allowing him to take a decision.

Finally, Armen Petrosyan faces Gregory Rodrigues in a middleweight clash. Petrosyan has emerged from Dana White’s Contender Series, and looks like a dangerous striker. Meanwhile, Rodrigues also shone in his last octagon visit, a knockout of the tough Jun Yong Park.

This one is another tricky one to pick, and it could be exciting, too – but Rodrigues’ experience might see him win. The pick here is ‘Robocop’ via KO.

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#4. UFC Fight Night: The prelims

Picks in bold

UFC lightweight bout: Zhu Rong vs. Ignacio Bahamondes

UFC lightweight bout: Terrance McKinney vs. Fares Ziam

UFC strawweight bout: Jinh Yu Frey vs. Hannah Goldy

UFC bantamweight bout: Alejandro Perez vs. Jonathan Martinez

UFC welterweight bout: Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Micheal Gillmore

UFC flyweight bout: Victor Altamirano vs. Carlos Hernandez

UFC featherweight bout: Josiane Nunes vs. Ramona Pascual.