It is finally here. UFC 244, one of the hypest cards in UFC history. Led by the hypest non-title fight in UFC history. I guess that’s why Dana ended up making the BMF title. But even still, we know the BMF title isn’t a real title so this is a non-title fight. I had a rough couple of days with lack of internet and busy schedule. I only gave more info for the main card.
MAIN CARD
NATE DIAZ V. JORGE MASVIDAL
I can’t believe this matchup was never talked about before Diaz called Masvidal out after his win over Anthony Pettis. This hype for this fight has taken off like nothing we’ve seen before. Diaz and Masvidal are long time veterans to the UFC. They have always been in contention, but weren’t able to put it together to get a title. Even though they were never the best, they both had cult-like followings. It was hard to not watch them and know a battle was about to take place. For Masvial, cutting down to lightweight seemed to be what was holding him back. Since he moved up to welterweight, in 2015, he has been a different fighter. He is more explosive, and he has 5 TKO/KO’s out of 6 total wins at welterweight. Even though his striking has gotten better, he is still a strong wrestler. He’s at American Top Team, so he trains with the best wrestlers. He went 1-2 in 2017, beating Cowboy and losing to Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson. He took 2018 off to get healthy and work on some things. He came back in 2019 with a great KO of Darren Till, then the fastest KO in UFC history. The 5 second flying knee KO of Ben Askren. That launched his following from small group to main stream. It was impossible to go a day without seeing a gif of that KO on twitter for at least a month and a half. Which is insanely long on the internet.
Opposite Masvidal, is the most anti-establishment fighter in UFC history, Nate Diaz. It’s been impressive how much he has done for fighters over the last couple of years. For a guy that does not give a shit about what people think, he sure as hell gets people to cave to his demands. He is one of the people that got CBD legalized by fight commissions. Then he just went all in on calling on USADA to clear his name before a fight so he can make sure everyone knows he’s not a cheater. We have never seen USADA work so fast to clear someone. Diaz has been a fan favorite for a while, he talks trash, he always brings a fight and he is just an entertaining guy. His fandom was sent to the mainstream after his great win over Conor. Since then, he has been one of the most popular, and probably one of the highest paid, fighters. For a guy that Dana White once said wasn’t a needle mover, Diaz is headlining a UFC PPV with no title on the line. Another thing Dana White once said would never happen. Diaz took 3 years off after his 2nd fight against Conor, a bad decision win for Conor. Diaz won that fight. But even still, he took 3 years off because he wanted respect from the UFC. He was also trying to get the trilogy fight with Conor. Diaz came back August 2019 and put on a show against Anthony Pettis. Diaz dominated the fight in Diaz fashion. Diaz is an amazing boxer. He has great footwork and head movement. It is hard to land clean on Diaz. Diaz is a volume striker, he will just keep throwing punches and hitting you until you can’t take it anymore. On top of that, he trains at a Gracie gym and is a blackbelt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Eleven of his twenty career wins are by submission. In his free time, he trains for triathlons, so his cardio is on another level.
This fight will be a brawl, this is for the BMF title. Both of these guys know grappling won’t do. That said, both guys are also good grapplers, so over a 5 round fight, I wouldn’t be shocked if it gets to the mat once or twice. Especially after a knockdown. Masvidal is the more powerful striker, Diaz is the more voluminous striker. Diaz is pretty durable and has endless cardio, so Masvidal will have quite a challenge to keep up an intense pace for 5 full rounds.
Nate Diaz by decision
KELVIN GASTELUM V. DARREN TILL
This is a fun matchup I didn’t expect to ever see. Both guys are welterweights that just can’t make welterweight anymore. Kelvin moved up to middleweight for a fight in 2015 against Nate Marquardt and won. He went back to welterweight in his next fight and loss to Neil Magny. He has been at middleweight ever since. He is 5-2 as a middleweight. His two losses? Former middleweight champion Chris Weidman and current middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. It is hard to believe Kelvin is only 28 years old. He has been in the UFC forever. Kelvin is one of those guys that comes in as a good wrestler, but finds his power and falls in love with that. In his 5 round war against Adesanya he barely tried to wrestle. He would have that advantage against Till, but I don’t think Kelvin will wrestle. He is going to try to knock Till out. Kelvin has beaten Michael Bisping and Jacare Souza, so he has faced some of the best middleweights and has fared pretty well. This is Till’s first fight at middleweight, so he probably feels better than he ever has going into the fight. Till looks like a real middleweight, he was a huge welterweight, so I don’t think he will be overwhelmed by middleweight power. Till is 2-2 in his last 4 fights. He beat Cowboy Cerrone, then beat Stephen Thompson, then lost to Tyron Woodley, and lost to Masvidal in his last fight. He is moving up to welterweight, something many people have advised him to do for a while. He was a huge welterweight, so he will fit in nicely as a middleweight. He has serious power, and you have to think it will only be better without having to cut weight. But since he didn’t have to cut as much weight, is his cardio going to be there?
Kelvin Gastelum by decision
STEPHEN THOMPSON V. VICENTE LUQUE
The main event is for the Baddest Mother Fucker title. This fight should be for the Nicest Mother Fucker. These are two true martial artists. They don’t use anger to power their fighting. They both show a lot of respect towards their opponents, and it isn’t the worst thing in the world. Even though these guys are nice, they are still absolute killers. In their combined 19 UFC wins, 11 are by TKO/KO. Luque is coming in on a 6 fight winning streak, with 5 finishes. He is coming off that decision win to Mike Perry, fight of the year contender. That was the fight where Luque rearranged Perry’s face. It was brutal. Wonderboy has beaten some of the best welterweights in the world. He has wins over Jorge Masvidal, Rory MacDonald, former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks, former middleweight champion (before move to middleweight) Robert Whittaker. Wonderboy’s losses have come to Tyron Woodley and Anthony Pettis, and Darren Till won a shady decision on a UK card. These guys are both explosive strikers. Wonderboy’s karate stance makes him very hard to hit, and his footwork and head movement are impressive. Luque is a straightforward fighter. He is explosive and has decent footwork, but he is more apt to brawls. Wonderboy is more of a point fighter.
Stephen Thompson by decision
DERRICK LEWIS V. BLAGOY IVANOV
Derrick Lewis is finally fighting on two good knees. That should help him out coming off a two fight skid, losing to Daniel Cormier and Junior dos Santos. Both are former champions so they aren’t the worst losses. Before that DC fight, he had the literal last second KO of Alexander Volkov. Before that, was the worst fight ever against Francis Ngannou. The knee surgery should bring back the explosive striking that put Derrick Lewis on the map. He is going up against a strong new face in the UFC. I would say up and comer, but Blagoy Ivanov is 33 years old and his hardly up and coming. He is 18-2 in his career, 2-1 since joining the UFC. He debuted in a loss to JDS, but followed that up with a decision win over Ben Rothwell and a decision win over Tai Tuivasa. Ivanov has great stamina for a heavyweight, and he has a strong chin. Him and JDS went to a decision. He also didn’t get caught by Rothwell or Tuivasa. Ivanov is a sambo fighter and even has a win over Fedor Emelianko. Ivanov is looking to make a name for himself and crack the top ten.
Blagoy Ivanov by decision
KEVIN LEE V. GREGOR GILLESPIE
Kevin Lee has been a different fighter since he lost to Tony Ferguson in October 2017. He is 1-3 in his last 4 fights. He lost to Ferguson, Raging Al Iaquinta, and Rafael dos Anjos (at welterweight), but has a solid TKO over Edson Barboza. Even still, Kevin Lee has lost some of his trademark swagger. That seemed to end after losing to Raging Al, it was his second lost to him. Kevin Lee is a strong wrestler, his ground and pound is pretty good. On the feet, he serviceable. He is going up against the least hyped 6-0 UFC lightweight in Gregor Gillespie. Gillespie is 6-0 with 3 TKO/KO, 2 submission, and 1 decision. Gillespie is a lot better wrestler than Kevin Lee. His ground and pound is dangerous. This would be the biggest win of his career. These guys have the same strengths. I think this could go on the ground and the strongest wrestler will prevail.
Gregor Gillespie by 2nd round TKO
PRELIMS
COREY ANDERSON V. JOHNNY WALKER
Johnny Walker by 1st round TKO
SHANE BURGOS V. MAKWAN AMIRKHANI
Shane Burgos by decision
EDMEN SHAHBAZYAN V. BRAD TAVARES
Edmen Shahbazyan by 2nd round submission
ANDRE ARLOVSKI V. JAIRZINHO ROZENSTRUIK
Jairzinho Rozenstruik by 1st round TKO
KATLYN CHOOKAGIAN V. JENNIFER MAIA
Jennifer Maia by decision
LYMAN GOOD V. CHANCE RENCOUNTRE
Lyman Good by 2nd round TKO
JULIO ARCE V. HAKEEM DAWODU
Hakeem Dawodu by 2nd round TKO
FIGHT OF THE NIGHT
Too hard to pick one, the last 3 fights of the card are going to be great, but I am going with:
JORGE MASVIDAL V. NATE DIAZ