FORMER HEAVYWEIGHT (265 LIMIT) CHAMPION MIR IN MAIN EVENT
Mir A Mere Shadow Of Former Self?
Los Angeles, CA– From the Gigantinho Gymnasium in Porto Alegre, Brazil, Brazil, Frank Mir (16-9) takes on Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva (18-6-1, 1 NC) of Brazil in the main event of UFC Fight Night: Bigfoot vs Mir. You can catch all the action on Fox Sports 1 as Mir will attempt to snap a 4-fight losing streak. I do not think Mir will break this streak versus Silva, a guy who was caught with performance-enhancing drugs in his system who will be fighting in a country notorious for lenient drug testing. With or without steroids, I feel Silva is too young and too strong for the former champ, and may just be the final UFC opponent for Mir.
LIGHTWEIGHT PICK ‘EM IN CO-MAIN
Edson Barboza (15-2) has a great deal of skill, but not too much chin. Michael Johnson (15-8) has a good chin, but
not as much skill as Barboza. I lean toward Brazil’s Barboza in this fight, but would not be shocked if Johnson managed to land a shot and put Barboza away.
ALVEY WILL UPSET THE HOME FANS
Middleweight (185) Sam Alvey (24-6, 1 NC) is just 1-1 in the UFC, but has enough experience to defeat Carlos Ferreira (8-3). Ferreira has already been knocked out twice in his young career, and Alvey has 15 stoppages on strikes to his name. This seems like a recipe for disaster for Ferreira. Continuing in that spirit, I give Russian Rustam Khabliov (17-2) the edge over Adriano Martins (26-7) in their lightweight bout.
AS USUAL, BRAZILIANS MAINLY FAVORED
Bantamweight (135) Iuri Alcantara (31-5, 1 NC) will be too much for Frankie Saenz (9-2) on Saturday night, and I expect the Brazilian to beat the American. The main card will begin at 8PM/5PM ETPT with a middleweight clash between Santiago Ponzinibbio (19-2) and Sean Strickland (15-0). I give the advantage to the Brazilian here, though Strickland has a shot.
FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS AT 6PM/3PM ETPT
BANTAMWEIGHTS:
Jessica Aandrade (12-3) vs Marion Reneau (5-1)
WELTERWEIGHTS:
Matt Dwyer (7-2) vs William Macario (7-2)
BANTAMWEIGHTS:
Mike De La Torre (12-4) vs Thiago dos Santos e Silva (19-4-2)
WELTERWEIGHTS:
Wendell de Oliveira Marques (24-8) vs T.J. Waldburger (16-9)
UFC FIGHT PASS EARLY PRELIMS AT 5PM/2PM ETPT
BANTAMWEIGHTS:
Cody Gibson (12-5) vs Douglas Silva de Andrade (22-1)
LIGHTWEIGHTS:
Ivan Jorge (25-4) vs Josh Shockley (11-3)
2015 MMA Picks Record: 19-10
2015 Overall Picks Record: 24-10
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