The UFC was busy announcing bouts for upcoming fight cards lately, and below are my thoughts on a few of the newly-announced bouts for UFC Philadelphia and UFC Russia.
Josh Emmett vs. Michael Johnson, UFC on ESPN two Featherweight competition Josh Emmett will return from a long layoff if he takes on Michael Johnson in UFC on ESPN 2, which takes place March 30 in Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ESPN broke news of this struggle. Emmett (13-2) is currently 4-2 at the UFC but has not fought since a brutal KO loss to Jeremy Stephens in February 2018. He rocketed up the ranks with a knockout win over Ricardo Lamas however, the loss to Stephens at which he broke his nose was a big setback. Johnson (19-13) is 11-9 in the UFC and is coming from back-to-back decision wins over Andre Fili and Artem Lobov. But he’d lost three straight fights prior to that. Though Johnson is inconsistent, we understand how great he is when he’s at his best, as well as Emmett coming off of such a lengthy layoff you need to fade him and favor Johnson to win this fight.
Ray Borg vs. Pingyuan Liu, UFC on ESPN two Ray Borg will proceed up to bantamweight if he takes on Pingyuan Liu in UFC on ESPN 2. The Philly Voice broke news. Borg (11-3) is currently 5-3 at the UFC but hasn’t fought as a submission loss to Demetrious Johnson in October 2017. He was among the best flyweights in the UFC but will probably be moving up to bantamweight now and it’s going to be interesting to see if he could make a run in his new weight class. Liu (13-5) is riding a nine-fight win series including a 2-0 mark at the Octagon with wins over Damian Stasiak and Martin Day. Even though he is moving up to bantamweight, there is no doubt Borg is going to be a large favorite here just based on his UFC experience and level of competition.
Marcin Tybura vs. Shamil Abdurakhimov, UFC Fight Night 149
Heavyweights Marcin Tybura and Shamil Abdurakhimov will square off UFC Fight Night 149, set for April 20 at Yubileyny Sports Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. Tybura (17-4) is 4-3 in the UFC and won a decision over Stefan Struve in his final outing. Abdurakhimov (19-4) is 4-2 in the UFC and is coming from back-to-back wins over Andrei Arlovski and Chase Sherman. It is heavyweight MMA so you can never be certain of the result, but I think Tybura is the better fighter and ought to be preferred here.
Emil Weber Meek vs. Sultan Aliev, UFC Fight Night 149
Welterweights Emil Weber Meek and Sultan Aliev will also fulfill at UFC Fight Night 149. Meek (9-4, 1 NC) is currently 1-2 in the UFC and is coming from successive losses to Kamaru Usman and Bartosz Fabinski. Aliev (14-3) is 1-2 in the UFC and is coming from a TKO loss to Warlley Alves. Both men are disappointments in the UFC, but Meek generally gets more respect from bettors and that I assume he’ll be preferred here.
Krzysztof Jotko vs. Roman Kopylov, UFC Fight Night 149
And lastly, a middleweight bout will visit Krzysztof Jotko take on UFC newcomer Roman Kopylov at UFC Fight Night 149. Jotko (19-4) is 6-4 at the UFC however is driving a three-fight losing skid including back-to-back KO losses to Uriah Hall and Brad Tavares. Kopylov (8-0) is making his UFC debut after going undefeated in the Russian regional scene. It is hard to back Jotko following his recent win series, and I anticipate the undefeated Kopylov to be the favorite here.
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