The UFC is back in London, with Darren Till once again fighting on home soil as he takes on Jorge ‘Gamebred’ Masvidal in a huge bout at Welterweight. Further down the card we have a another fight which could have big implications in the Light Heavyweight division, as Dominick Reyes looks to keep his unbeaten record against Volkan Oezdemir.
Prelims:
Featherweight: Mike Grundy (11-1-0) vs Nad Narimani (12-2-0)
Prediction: Nad Narimani
Women’s Flyweight: Molly McCann (7-2-0) vs Priscilla Cachoeira (8-1-0)
Prediction: Priscilla Cachoeira
Featherweight: Danny Henry (12-2-0) vs Dan Ige (10-2-0)
Prediction: Danny Henry
Middleweight: Tom Breese (11-1-0) vs Ian Heinisch (12-1-0)
Prediction: Tom Breese
Light Heavyweight: Nicolae Negumereanu (9-0-0) vs Saparbek Safarov (8-2-0)
Prediction: Nicolae Negumereanu
Lightweight: Marc Diakiese (12-3-0) vs Joe Duffy (16-3-0)
Prediction: Joe Duffy
Featherweight: Arnold Allen (13-1-0) vs Jordan Rinaldi (14-6-0)
Prediction: Arnold Allen
UFC 147 Main Card
Middleweight: Jack Marshman (22-8-0) vs John Phillips (21-8-0 1 NC)
Prediction: Jack Marshman
Welterweight: Danny Roberts (16-3-0) vs Claudio Silva (12-1-0)
Prediction: Claudio Silva
Bantamweight: Nathaniel Wood (15-3-0) vs Jose Alberto Quinonez (7-2-0)
Prediction: Nathaniel Wood
Light Heavyweight: Volkan Oezdemir (15-3-0) vs Dominick Reyes (10-0-0)
It seems as though contenders in the Light Heavyweight division spring out of nowhere, pulling together some impressive wins in a surge to a title fight, and then fade back into the mire of the division after being dominated by the champion. This is the situation we’ve dealt with at 205 since Jon Jones won the title back in 2011, and it was the same product with Daniel Cormier on top.
Just over a year ago Volkan Oezdemir was seen as one of the brightest contenders in the division, with scary knockout power and a generally well rounded game. Obviously no-one expected him to defeat DC, however his loss to Anthony Smith in October has set him back a long way in a hunt for a second crack at the title.
On the other hand, Dominick Reyes is now the surging contender. With an unblemished professional record, and four wins in the UFC alone, his last outing was an impressive showing against veteran Ovince Saint-Preux. It’ll be interesting to see what happens when these two men clash, when you have the power of Oezdemir, anything can happen.
Prediction: Volkan Oezdemir
Welterweight: Leon Edwards (16-3-0) vs Gunnar Nelson (17-3-1)
Two men who are no strangers to the UFC Octagon, Leon Edwards and Gunnar Nelson look to face off tonight. While it isn’t the most important Welterweight fight on the card, it could still have a large impact on the division going forwards. Nelson is looking to regain his form, struggling over his last five fight, going 3-2. An impressive win against Alex Olivera last time out has set him back on the right track, and he’ll be hoping he can continue with that against Edwards.
However, Edwards is currently riding a very impressive six fight winning streak that spans back to 2016, his last loss coming against newly minted champion Kamaru Usman in 2015. Rocky has picked up some impressive victories during this streak, most notably in his last time out, taking a decision victory over Donald Cerrone.
Prediction: Leon Edwards
Main Event
Welterweight: Darren Till (17-1-1) vs Jorge Masvidal (32-13-0)
This is a very difficult fight to call, and it’s one that a lot of fans have struggled to predict. Till comes into this bout on the back of his loss to Tyron Woodley, the first of his career, and it is always interesting to see how a fighter responds to their first loss. He was certainly seen as one of the most dominant contenders in the division before that loss, and he’ll be looking to regain that reputation with an impressive win over Gamebred tonight.
Masvidal on the other hadn comes into this fight on the back of a two fight skid, which saw him come out on the wrong end of decisions against Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson. He hasn’t fought since that loss against Thompson at the back end of 2017, however he is always a dangerous fighter and will be looking to take it to Till and make his presence known back in the division.
This fight could truly go either way, and if he is to be believed, Ben Askren awaits the winner… though he has made no secret of which man he expects to win/wishes to face. Even mentioning UFC 238 as a potential date.
Prediction: Jorge Masvidal
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