Here we are, another PPV weekend. Even though we have a matchup that feels 2 years in the making, something feels a bit off about this card. I can’t really put my finger on it but something seems wrong. Oh wait. I know what it is. Dana has spread this promotion so damn thin that Niko Price vs Geoff Neal is the last fight before the co-main event. Now nothing against both of these men, they are great fighters and it should be an exciting fight, but people do not want to pay 60 bucks for this type of matchup. The PPV is supposed to be filled with names that are recognizable to the public, that can generate revenue for the brand, and essentially get people to tune in. I have been complaining for a few weeks now about how weak these cards have been and it just keeps happening week after week. That being said, I am changing up my format in protest of these garbage matchups.
For this card, I will be doing a large breakdown of Max Holloway vs Frankie Edgar, and Cris Justino vs Felicia Spencer. Every other fight I am just going to give my pick and how many units I would put on it. I want to just pretend I live in a world where Dana isn’t arrogant enough to put together a card like this and think people would pay. Fortunately, I love Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar, and this is a fight that should have happened years ago. Additionally, this card could be the beginning of the end for the women’s featherweight division, but I’ll get into that later.
Let’s dive right in to my picks for this monstrosity of a PPV:
Main Card
Max Holloway vs Frankie Edgar Featherweight Bout
This fight should’ve happened at the end of 2017 for the belt. Jose Aldo managed to step in after Frankie pulled out with an injury and Max destroyed him. Fast forward to March 2018 this bout was supposed to happen again. Max pulled out this time and Frankie got knocked out by Brian Ortega. Now, a little less than 2 years later we are finally here. I think this fight is tough for fans, having seen Max destroy people that have beaten Frankie. It is hard to give Frankie a shot at all, he is 37 years old, 5 inches shorter, and hasn’t fought in over a year. There was another point in his career that people were giving Frankie nearly no chance to win, that was his first UFC title shot against BJ Penn.
BJ was considered one of the best fighters of all time having competed in pretty much every weight class at a high level, people thought he was unstoppable at lightweight. Frankie came in with shocking wins over Sean Sherk, and Matt Veach; still had no one on his side leading into the title bout. He comes in and dominates BJ with one judge scoring it 50-45 for Frankie. I found out this week for the first time that Frankie had staph during that fight and still managed to put on a career defining performance. The public thought it was a fluke, so they had their man BJ take another whack at it only to get beaten in an even more crushing fashion with all judges scoring it 50-45 for Frankie. After all of that he had 2 great fights against Gray Maynard with the first going to a draw and the second ending in a TKO. After losing his next 2 to Benson Henderson at lightweight, he made the drop to fight Jose Aldo for the first time at featherweight for the belt and lost that too. Since then he has won 8 out of his last 10, and stands here with his possible last chance to win UFC gold again.
While I love Frankie, Max is probably the best fighter I have ever seen in this weight class. He has 13 straight wins in the featherweight division since 2014, and his loss before that was to some no name Conor Mcgregor. I won’t lie, I have been on the other side of the coin far too many times against Holloway for my liking. I thought Lamas would beat him, I thought Pettis would beat him, I thought Aldo would beat him (only the first time, wised up the second time), I thought Ortega would beat him, and finally I thought Poirier would beat him (Woo I was right!). Since the Poirier fight was at lightweight it doesn’t really count in my eyes, Max doesn’t have his crazy size and reach advantage at 155. The 145 division has only had 3 champions in its UFC history, and I think when all is said and done, Max will go down as the best.
Both men here have an incredible opportunity ahead of them on this summer night in Canada. Max has the chance to knock off the last member of the old guard, no one from that generation of the weight class will have the chance at coming back up to earn a title fight unless 15 people get injured and they see if Cub Swanson is available. Frankie on the other hand has the opportunity to cement his legacy. Only 7 fighters in UFC history have ever won belts in 2 different weight classes. A win here will vault him into a top 10 of all time conversation and show he still belongs in this weight class and promotion. Taking all of this into account, and putting my heart aside; Max Holloway wins this fight. He is the better fighter, the younger fighter, and the bigger fighter. Max has incredible takedown defense and that is pretty much the only chance that Frankie has to win this matchup.
Max Holloway by 4th Round TKO -335 3 units
Cris Justino vs Felicia Spencer
I can confidently say, I never thought I would see the day that Cyborg was going to lose. I thought the featherweight division would collapse before there was someone strong enough to compete with her in the octagon. Now she is coming off the second loss of her entire career (the first being her first pro fight) and she is matched up against one of the few true featherweights that she has ever faced. Felicia Spencer doesn’t have quite the career that Cyborg has had but damn has she been running through her competition.
Cyborg is at an interesting point in her career, previously having never had anyone compete with her in the standup game, to getting knocked out cold by a smaller fighter can crush someone mentally. Dana keeps claiming she doesn’t want the rematch with Nunes but I just refuse to believe that is true. Cyborg is a fierce competitor and she has said it herself, this isn’t the first time she lost, it isn’t the same as the Rousey situation.
Spencer on the other hand has not tasted defeat yet in her young career. She won the Invicta featherweight belt then moved straight to the UFC notching a win over Megan Anderson. She is a taekwondo black belt, a BJJ black belt, and has been practicing both well 10 years. Very few people have the guts to stand and trade with Cyborg, minus Nunes, but I don’t think Spencer will be as skittish as the rest. Here is where things get interesting though. I believe if Cyborg wins this fight, she will get her Nunes rematch. If that happens and Nunes wins, I believe the featherweight division will be removed right before our eyes. On the other side, if Spencer wins, then fights Nunes, and loses there is still reason to believe there will be a featherweight division because Cyborg can get her rematch with Spencer, then with Nunes. Hopefully in the amount of time that all takes, Dana can round out the roster. This is a risky pick, but I am going with my gut and because I want to see fresh talent in the women’s weight class, Felicia Spencer. I think her grappling will be able to wear cyborg out, she is going to be more hesitant in there after what she went through in her last bout and it will show.
Felicia Spencer by 2nd Round Submission +323 .5 unit
Geoff Neal vs Niko Price Welterweight Bout
Niko Price by 2nd Round TKO +200 1 unit
Olivier Aubin-Mercier vs Arman Tsarukyan Lightweight Bout
Arman Tsarukyan by Decision -250 2 units
Marc-Andre Marriault vs Krzystof Jotko Middleweight Bout
Krzystof Jotko by 3rd Round TKO -175 1 unit
Prelims
Alexis Davis vs Viviane Aruajo Flyweight Bout
Viviane Aruajo by Decision -189 1 unit
Hakeem Dawodu vs Yoshinori Horie Featherweight Bout
Hakeem Dawodu by 2nd Round TKO -400 3 units
Gavin Tucker vs Choi Seung-Woo Featherweight Bout
Gavin Tucker by Decision -208 1 unit
Alexandre Pantoja vs Deiveson Figueiredo Flyweight Bout
Deiveson Figueiredo by Decision +101 1 unit
Early Prelims
Gillian Robertson vs Sarah Frota Flyweight Bout
Sarah Frota by 3rd Round Submission +110 1 unit
Erik Koch vs Kyle Stewart Weltwerwight Bout
Kyle Stewart by Decision -170 1 unit
That is all I got for this event, hoping the tides turn in my favor, been pretty cold the last 2 weeks. I have a strong feeling about this one going more my way, this horrible card speaks to me on a spiritual level, hope we at least get a ton of finishes to make up for the lack of pizazz it has otherwise. Over and out.