UFC 260 Fight Previews and Predictions

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(C) Stipe Miocic vs #1 Francis Ngannou 2 - UFC Heavyweight Championship

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Stipe Miocic is attempting to prove again why he is the Greatest Heavyweight of All Time. Let’s flashback to the first fight. It is January, 2018, Stipe is starting to enter the GOAT conversation after defending his Heavyweight Championship 2 times, finishing Alistair Overeem and avenging a previous loss to Junior Dos Santos. Francis is an undefeated wrecking ball coming off devastating first round KOs over Andrei Arlovski and Alistair Overeem. Francis entered the fight as the favorite and was seen as the scariest man in the world. On that fateful night in Boston, Stipe got the better of Francis. He avoided the storm in the first round and dominated the rest of the fight on his way to a Unanimous Decision. Since 2018, Miocic has defended the title 2 more times. Both victories came in his legendary trilogy with Former Double Champ Daniel Cormier. Francis has gotten back to his murderous ways as well. After dropping another Unanimous Decision to Derrick Lewis, Francis won 4 fights in a row, all by 1st round KO. His recent wins include a 2nd victory over Curtis Blaydes, a 26 second KO of former Champion Cain Velasquez, and a 20 second KO over #6 ranked Jairzinho Rozenstruik. Fast forward back to 2021 and the narrative of this fight is eerily similar. Stipe will again enter as the underdog, which baffles me. He’s the best of all time and dominated Ngannou in the first fight, but money talks I guess. Francis is now seen as a highly improved fighter, but I don’t know if I buy it. His last 4 fights seems like good ole “rush forward and throw bombs Francis.” Ngannou could turn into a massive star with a win Saturday night, but I’m not putting my money down like some people. When the GOAT is the underdog, I’ve gotta go with him. Honestly, I’d pick Stipe if he was the favorite too. He will enter this bout almost 10 pounds lighter than the first fight, but I think Stipe’s skill set could be the kryptonite to Ngannou’s power. Give me Stipe by Decision and a similar sequel for the record books.

Prediction: Miocic, Unanimous Decision

#7 Tyron Woodley vs #10 Vicente Luque

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Tyron Woodley desperately needs a win at UFC 260. The former UFC Welterweight Champion is certainly in a rough patch in his career. After winning the Welterweight belt by KO’ing Robbie Lawler, Woodley went on an impressive run as Champion. He defended the belt 3 times with wins over Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson, Darren Till, and Demian Maia. Tyron was on top of the world until a man named Kamaru Usman screwed it all up. Usman entered his title shot with Woodley as the underdog, but apparently it didn’t faze Kamaru at all. The underdog dominated all 5 rounds and coasted to a 50-45 Unanimous Decision and a shiny new gold belt. Since Usman took the strap from Woodley, Tyron hasn’t won a round. He was shut out 5-0 again by Gilbert Burns, then shut out 4-0 before Colby Convington finished him in the 5th. Woodley has looked like a tentative shell of himself in his past 3 outing. Now for Luque. Vicente has been right on the cusp of a massive fight at Welterweight. The former Ultimate Fighter contestant has made a real name for himself in the division. He is 12-3 in the octagon, but is still yet to beat that one big name. Luque has only struggled against the absolute elite of the division. 2 of his 3 UFC losses came to Top 5 contenders Leon Edwards and Stephen Thompson. He needs a win badly, and I think he is catching Woodley at the right time. I genuinely hope Woodley wins a round because his last 3 fights were depressing, but I think Luque finally gets his big win. His striking and pressure could be too much for Woodley, who has been extremely gun shy as of late. I hate to see a former Champ lose 4 in a row, but we just watched JDS get knocked out 4 times in a row, so I think I can get through this.

Prediction: Luque, Unanimous Decision

Sean O’Malley vs Thomas Almeida

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This is a battle of the past vs the present. Sean O’Malley is the present. “Sugar Sean” has burst onto the scene in a massive way since earning a contract with a KO on Dana White's Contender Series. Along with securing 1.2 million social media followers, O’Malley is 4-1 with 2 1st round KOs through his first 5 UFC bouts. His flashy striking, trash talking, and rainbow hair carried his hype to star levels. After starting his run 2-0, O’Malley KO’d Jose Quinonez and Eddie Wineland in the first round, the latter being one of the best walk-off KOs of All Time. Sean is now looking to bounce back after a controversial loss to Chito Vera in his last fight. O’Malley suffered an injury called “drop foot” after taking a leg kick from Chito. Drop foot causes a person to not be able to lift and control their foot like they should, thus making them unable to walk. O’Malley has stated he is "mentally undefeated" and still feels like a future champ. Thomas Almeida could be considered the past. He was in a similar role as O’Malley about 5 years ago. Almeida entered the UFC as an undefeated striking phenom, much like Sean. He started off his UFC career with 3 KOs, which carried him to his first UFC Main Event. His top billing would be against another hot prospect, Cody Garbrandt. One man's 0 had to go, and it was unfortunately Almeida’s. Garbrandt handed him his first ever loss, and the hype has been downhill from there. Almeida did bounce back with a win over Albert Morales, but that was his last UFC win to date. He is currently on a 3 fight losing streak and could be out the door with a loss to O’Malley. If I had a crystal ball, I would advise Almeida to begin packing. He has not looked like the same flamethrower who broke into the UFC 6 years ago. O’Malley has shown incredible striking and an ability to knock out anyone. Give me a big bounce back win for Sugar Sean.

Prediction: O’Malley, TKO, Round 1

#15 Gillian Robertson vs Miranda Maverick

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Gillian Robertson and Miranda Maverick both have a massive fight in front of them Saturday night. Robertson is a veteran of the Women’s Flyweight division. Since coming off The Ultimate Fighter, Gillian has been able to hold her own in the division. She is 6-3 with stoppage wins over Emily Whitmire, Molly McCann, and Courtney Casey. She has shown elite jiujitsu and poise beyond her years. She has been competitive enough to earn a number next to her name, but she has also struggled against the top of the division. Robertson has struggled against other ranked contenders and hot prospects. Miranda Maverick is THE hot prospect right now. Despite only having 1 UFC fight, Maverick is seen as a real threat towards the division. She dismantled Liana Jojua in her debut and enters this fight with Gillian with an 8-2 professional record. Her striking looks very powerful, which is rare for the lighter weight divisions. If she can pick apart Robertson like she did to Jojua, there are few people in the division that could beat her. If this fight stays on the feet, its Miranda’s to lose. On the ground, Robertson should be able to dominate. Gillian's inconsistency against the top of the division is keeping me from picking her. Maverick looked so good in her debut and I truly believe she is Top 10 material.

Prediction: Maverick, Unanimous Decision

Jamie Mullarkey vs Khama Worthy

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Jamie Mullarkey and Khama Worthy are being tasked with starting the Main Card off with a bang. These two powerful brawlers shouldn’t have a hard time bringing the excitement. Mullarkey has shown real toughness and grit in the octagon, but is yet to come away with a UFC victory. He is 0-2, but has held his own in tough scraps against Brad Riddell and Fares Ziam. Khama Worthy started his UFC run off with a bang. He accepted a fight on 4 day's notice to earn his shot in the promotion. He was matched up with friend and training partner Davonte Smith. Worthy admitted it was weird to be fighting a friend, but he had been waiting years for this opportunity. Once the cage door closed, it mind as well have been his mom in there. Khama didn’t care. He starched Davonte in the first round in one of the biggest upsets on the year. He then turned around and beat fan favorite Luis Pena. Now Worthy is looking to get back on track after his first UFC loss to Ottman Azaitar. This fight is huge for the career of both men. If Mullarkey loses, he could be cut from the UFC. If Worthy losses, he can kiss his dream of the Top 15 goodbye. It is a close fight, but I favor the tenacity and power of Khama Worthy. Mullarkey has looked outclassed at times throughout his first two bouts and Worthy has shown an ability to rise to the occasion. Give me Khama Worthy to kick off a solid night of fights.

Prediction: Worthy, TKO, Round 2

Prelim Quickie

Jared Gooden vs Abubakar Nurmagomedov

I’m sure that last name looks familiar to some people. The cousin of the Lightweight GOAT Khabib Nurmagomedov, Abubakar, will be battling on the prelims. Abubakar entered the UFC as a hot prospect. While not undefeated like his cousin, he came to the promotion with a professional record of 15-2. He looked to be controlling his debut against David Zawada, until Zawada caught Nurmagomedov in a triangle choke. It was a massive upset for Zawada and an immediately set back for Abubakar. He now gets his chance to bounce back against Jared Gooden. Gooden is also 0-1 in the UFC after dropping his debut to veteran Alan Jouban. I know Abubkar lost his first fight, but to bet against anyone with that last name is silly. I think Gooden is good and could have a future in the promotion, but with Khabib in Abubakar’s corner, its hard not to put your money on him.

Prediction: Nurmagomedov, Unanimous Decision

Hoops & Hooks 2021 Predictions: 30-16 (<---- Aye, Not Bad at All)