I think it’s still a fascinating bout. Oh, and he tore Overeem's face off his head in his most recent bout. Thanks for signing up. And, that may be the call. I just hope it doesn’t look very heavyweight. Henry Cejudo by TKO. The Reem is a martial arts legend, a man who bridges the gap between the old days of MMA and the more technical brand of modern fighting we see today. That and he’s got way better handspeed and movement. All the best, most interesting, and unquestionably coolest fights the UFC needs to book, following their latest UFC Fight Island 6 event on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. That's just what the doctor ordered against a fighter as exciting but uneven as Stephens. As a fan of styles and storylines, that would surely be a nice moment to witness, but logically, I’m expecting the opposite. Would Jacare in his prime be able to broadly replicate what Mousasi did, but better? The flip side of this is that I’m really not loving Esparza’s cardio lately, so if she does gas late in the fight, Waterson could be right there, just the way Grasso was to really start running her over. Cejudo is a (mostly) career flyweight for a reason—at 5'4", he's a tiny guy who is going to be outsized every time he competes at 135 pounds. I like Kattar's precision and accuracy to score the nod in the judges' eyes in a super-fun throwdown that turns some heads. Uriah Hall might just win this by landing a huge shot against someone who is starting to look his age in the cage. Vicente Luque by TKO, round 2. Jeremy Stephens by TKO. Zane Simon: On paper, this is a fight Uriah Hall just loses. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+. But, the problem is hardly anyone is technical and agile enough to avoid his 83 inch reach for long enough - or any longer than 2 minutes, really - to survive and win. It would be amazing if Cruz won this but I just cannot envision him having enough offensive success to win rounds against the King of Cringe. I ain’t gotta like it, but (Max Holloway voice) it is what it is. I will say, however, that Oleinik is a deceivingly hard puncher. His never-ending deluge of spinning shit and constant offense is so hard to solve, but we’ve also seen him start slowly and nearly pay the price. Price is still a wild man who relies more on shocking power than anything else. Jairzinho Rozenstruik by decision. He doesn’t have the cardio he used to, but neither does Oleinik, and otherwise I have a lot more faith in both his guard and top games. Welp. Make your picks for all five main card fights inside: His tendency to be a slow starting backfoot counterpuncher pretty much sets him up perfectly to get taken down and out-grappled. I suspect that streak continues here. This fight is also likely to suck and it’s on the actual paid portion of the event. Anthony Pettis by TKO. He could revert to the Gaethje who did lose to Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier. A sign that maybe camp didn’t go that well, and that he just gutted through it as best he could. 1 guy. Ferguson's style is so inimitable that it would seem like a decent idea to pick the more aesthetically pleasing Gaethje to score the big upset. MMASucka staff picks are locked in and ready to go for Bellator 249. Zane Simon: Both men have a reputation as surprisingly aggressive, submission minded grapplers, and somewhat unorthodox strikers. Stephens can wrestle, and Kattar can answer him in that department. Check out the Bloody Elbow staff’s picks and predictions for Saturday’s UFC 249 card in Jacksonville, FL. Staff picking Hardy: Harry, Zane, Lewis, Shak, VictorStaff picking De Castro: Ed, Phil, Dayne, Stephie, Mookie, Ram. Vai Cavalho by armbar. I guess I’m gonna go with Cerrone. Fabricio Werdum by TKO. Or this ends with Hall backing himself up against the fence, getting taken down, and treated like a grappling dummy. Phil Mackenzie: There’s only one thing to really consider here, and it’s whether Luque has been badly damaged by the wars he’s been in lately. They ain’t good. Calvin Kattar by decision. Perhaps that will be interesting. It’s so goddamn good. I’m not making any of that up. He’s just hard to track down, keeps a good pace, scrambles hard and throws all four limbs. My hope for the spectacular is mostly based around the idea that I think Rozenstruik is just a little too technical and prepared to use his tools to have the kind of stalemate that Lewis had with Ngannou. Thankfully there’s no post-fight interview after this or else I’d reach for the mute button. I’m just here dreading the thought of this devolving into ugly, gassed out kickboxing. The BE team has made its predictions for UFC 249, and most of us are backing Justin Gaethje to win the UFC interim lightweight title over Tony Ferguson. Jacare Souza by submission, round 2. Carla Esparza by decision. Pettis isn’t likely to pressure Cerrone a lot, necessarily, but Cerrone is also more likely than most of Pettis’ recent opponents to give ‘Showtime’ exactly the range and time he needs to get comfortable at distance. That was a big win for his UFC debut, but Hardy's decision loss to Alexander Volkov in September 2019 is the kind that will only help make the former All-Pro NFL standout a better prospect.