Article

UFC 245 Predictions

UFC 245 is already shaping up to be one of the hottest fight cards and in a year full of absolute stormers this has the potential to be one of – if not the best yet. Three title fights lead on the main card and they’re supported by a pair of bantamweight scraps between very experienced performers like Jose Aldo and Urijah Faber. The prelims aren’t full of big names but have some real up and comers and a lot of experience so should make for some fun warm up viewing before the main card starts:

EARLY PRELIMS (UFC FIGHT PASS) 

The stand out match for us here at easierMMA comes from the Featherweight division – Brandon Moreno v Kai Kara-France. Whilst Kara-France (ranked #6)  has probably got the better of the fighters highlight packages due in part to his kickboxing and Muay Thai background he has also shown in previous fights to be a compact striker capable of overwhelming opponents with fast hands and quick movements. Brandon Moreno is an experienced opponent in his own right and will be desperate to make a name for himself after his first UFC spell ended with him being cut but I can see him being hit and hit hard by the Kiwi and the fight being over quite fast. Prediction – Kara France – Round 1 – TKO 

PRELIMS 

This match comes from the Women’s bantamweight division which sees Ketlin Vieira up against Irene Aldana. This interesting fight in terms of style, Ketlin is a Brazilian champion wrestler and a black belt Judoka as well as in BJJ, on paper she is the real deal and with a perfect 10-0 record coming into this fight she will be looking to brighten her star as she aims to work towards that title shot. In contrast, Irene Aldana is looking to build herself back up following a recent defeat to Raquel Pennington, she is however coming off a win in her last outing and will be looking to improve on her #10 rating in the division. Prediction – Ketlin Vieira – Round 3 – Submission 

MAIN CARD 

The main card opens with the first of two Bantamweight clashes with the exciting Russian fighter Petr Yan who is now on a 8 fight win streak which has taken him to #4 in the division with his last two wins coming against very experienced and talented fighters in Jimmy Rivera and John Dodson: Up against the challenger who is none other than the evergreen Urijah Faber, the veteran has amassed 45 MMA bouts to his name and at 40 years old he is looking to progress up the rankings following his retirement in 2017. In his last octagon appearance he rolled back the years with  performance of the night victory against Ricky Simon. Prediction – Petr Yan – Split decision

The second of the men’s bantamweight fights on this card is awash with experience and talent as Marlon Moraes takes on Jose Aldo. There isn’t much that needs to be said about these two, both veterans of the sport and both with big fight pedigree. Moraes fought it out with Henry Cejudo in his last bout and lost via 3rd round TKO but that should light a fire under him for this fight. Jose Aldo is still one of the most dangerous men in the featherweight division and he will be hoping the drop down to bantam will aid him on his search to win back some gold with the company. Prediction – Jose Aldo – split decision 

We now move onto the first championship fight on this card and it is the Female GOAT Amanda Nunes in her second fight against Germaine de Randamie with the latter losing by TKO in their last bout back in 2013. I can’t see past Amanda Nunes for this fight and even though de Randamie has some notable scalps in her 5 match win streak (including Holly Holm at UFC 208 to win the title, of which she was subsequently stripped after the fight for refusing to fight Cyborg) Nunes is still the GOAT in both divisions and should take the gold home. Prediction – Amanda Nunes – Round 2 – KO

Now onto the Co-Main event of the evening and previously the main event. Max Holloway v Alexander Volkanovski. To be honest, I am more excited for this than I am the main event because we all know Usman v Covington is going to be an absolute clinic of fantastic wrestling and grappling ability and this will be the perfect pre-cursor to that. Two extremely fun fighters to watch from a casual perspective and the average amount of strikes thrown by Max Holloway alone is enough to keep people interested so if you add another elite striker to the mix, as well as it being for the belt really does make this a mouthwatering prospect. For me, this will be the fight of the night and I can genuinely see Volkanovski upsetting Holloway with his direct approach and devastating power. IF it gets into the championship rounds then I see Holloway taking it deep and picking up the W through sheer amount of strikes landed but everyone loves an underdog so I am going to go with the Australian and predict a big upset. Prediction – Alexander Volkanovski – Round 2 – TKO

Last but certainly not least is the fight that seemingly we have been waiting and talking about for ages. Kamaru Usman puts his title on the line against the challenger and ever controversial Colby Covington. Both of these fighters appeared to find their last bouts pretty easy, the champ beat an off pace Tyron Woodley in a very odd match where he looked insanely dominant and there was a similar theme in Covington’s last fight where he took apart UFC veteran Robbie Lawler. This clash has everything a good main event should have; Good guy v Bad guy, Cardio v Attrition and all the prestige that comes with a title fight. It really does have all the ingredients to be an instant classic with both guys being great grapplers and wrestlers, we are almost certain to see a cagey stand up start followed by a gruelling few rounds and a grandstand finish. I’m sure this will be as intense in the 5th round as it was at the start with both fighters able to maintain a crazy pace and dominating the other for long periods. This is a seriously tough fight to call! Prediction – Kamaru Usman – Split Decision

easierMMA – 21/11/2019