*Islam Makhachev submits Renato Moicano with a vicious d’arce choke. Credit: Zuffa LLC.*

The UFC heads to Madison Square Garden in New York City with an absolutely stacked pay-per-view card. This entire event is loaded from top to bottom with high-level matchups, ranked contenders, and titleholders all looking to earn a victory on the biggest stage in the sport. In the co-main event, we’ll witness two of the greatest female fighters of all-time go toe-to-toe for the women’s Flyweight title when Valentina Shevchenko takes on Zhang Weili. In the main event, former dominant Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev moves up to the Welterweight division to challenge current champion and lethal striker Jack Della Maddalena. First, we’ll take a look at two select preliminary bouts, then break down the full main card.

Prelims

Roman Kopylov vs. Gregory Rodrigues

*Roman Kopylov lands a devastating kick to the head of Claudio Ribeiro. Credit: Yahoo Sports.*

Middleweight Bout

Roman Kopylov: 14-4-0, 12 KO/TKO, 0 Sub.

Gregory Rodrigues: 17-6-0, 11 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.

Kopylov has won three of his last five fights and holds UFC victories over Chris Curtis (32-12-0), César Almeida (7-1-0), and Punahele Soriano (12-4-0). He’s a sniper on his feet, using precision and power to dismantle his opponents. He has solid distance management and fights behind his jab, constantly pumping it out and tagging his opponent when they enter the pocket. Kopylov does an excellent job of varying his shots, constantly damaging his opponent’s legs, body, and head without telegraphing or loading up. He’s highly durable and has never been knocked out, always willing to eat a shot to land one and exchange blows on the inside. Training with Raty Team, he will occasionally mix takedowns into his striking offense and land devastating ground and pound from top position. Kopylov carries his power and speed throughout the fight and has secured all of his UFC finishes in the second or third round.

*Gregory Rodrigues clips Brad Tavares with a heavy right hand. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Rodrigues has won four of his last five bouts, holding UFC victories over Jack Hermansson (24-9-0), Christian Leroy Duncan (13-2-0), and Brad Tavares (21-12-0). He is a world-class grappler with serious knockout power. He’s always coming forward and constantly looking to blitz into the pocket so he can unload heavy combinations. Training at Kill Cliff FC, Rodrigues has one-shot knockout power and throws everything with power, regularly unloading massive hooks and overhands, especially with his right hand. He’s comfortable on his feet and in a brawl, but has outstanding grappling skills and various accolades in BJJ and wrestling. He has smothering top pressure and is smart on top, working methodically and looking for openings to damage or find submissions. Rodrigues has earned back-to-back bonuses in his last two fights and will never back down from a scrap.

Bo Nickal vs. Rodolfo Vieira

*Bo Nickal submits Cody Brundage with a tight rear naked choke. Credit: Zuffa LLC.*

Middleweight Bout

Bo Nickal: 7-1-0, 2 KO/TKO, 4 Sub.

Rodolfo Vieira: 11-3-0, 1 KO/TKO, 9 Sub.

Nickal has won four of his last five outings and has UFC victories over Paul Craig (17-10-1), Val Woodburn (9-2-0), and Cody Brundage (11-7-1). He is a former three-time NCAA D1 collegiate wrestling champion with excellent submissions and solid punching power. Despite his grappling skills, he’s comfortable on his feet and won’t get desperate for takedowns. Nickal favors power to volume in his striking, throwing everything with power and often lunging forward with big, heavy overhands. He has outstanding takedowns and often lands them with little resistance, then immediately works to improve his position or find a finish. Training at American Top Team, he advances with impressive speed on the ground but is efficient, not wasting energy or getting sloppy and losing his position. Nickal has earned four professional wins in a minute or less and is always pursuing a quick finish.

*Rodolfo Vieira secures an arm triangle choke on Armen Petrosyan. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Vieira has won three of his last five fights, with UFC victories coming over Cody Brundage (11-7-1), Dustin Stoltzfus (16-8-0), and Armen Petrosyan (9-5-0). He is among the most credentialed Jiu-Jitsu players in MMA and has won gold medals in various high-level BJJ competitions. He’s averaging over three takedowns landed per fifteen minutes and has excellent timing, usually landing them quickly but willing to shoot repeatedly to bring the fight to the mat. Over his UFC tenure, he’s improved his striking considerably and is much more willing to stay standing. He has decent power in his hands and fights behind his jab, constantly putting it out and following it with heavy straights and hooks. Training with the Fighting Nerds, he has excellent top control and will constantly work and improve in top position. Vieira is a submission ace with outstanding chokes, especially his arm triangle choke, with which he has secured five victories in his pro career.

Main Card

#9 Beneil Dariush vs. #13 Benoît Saint Denis

*Beneil Dariush fires a heavy kick at Renato Moicano. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Lightweight Bout

Beneil Dariush: 23-6-1, 5 KO/TKO, 8 Sub.

Benoît Saint Denis: 15-3-0, 4 KO/TKO, 11 Sub.

Dariush has won three of his last five bouts and has UFC victories over #7 ranked Lightweight Mateusz Gamrot (25-4-0), #11 ranked Lightweight Renato Moicano (20-7-1), and Drew Dober (28-15-0). He’s a well-rounded scrapper with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and excellent Muay Thai. He is more than willing to brawl on the feet, regularly getting into slugfests and hanging in the pocket, unleashing powerful shots. Training at Kings MMA, Dariush has a solid arsenal of kicks and can do serious damage without much space, particularly with his knees. He’s landing, on average, about two takedowns per fifteen minutes and has excellent wrestling and top control. He’s patient in top position, always choosing position over submission and never putting himself in bad spots. In his 17 UFC victories, he’s secured eight finishes and five post-fight bonuses, always leaving everything inside the Octagon.

*Benoît Saint Denis blasts Kyle Prepolec with a thudding elbow. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Saint Denis has won three of his last five outings, holding UFC victories over #15 ranked Lightweight Mauricio Ruffy (12-2-0), Ismael Bonfim (20-6-0), and Thiago Moisés (19-9-0). A versatile combatant, he has powerful striking and outstanding grappling skills. A decorated veteran and former French SAS paratrooper, he’s incredibly tough and capable of enduring impressive damage. He throws everything with fight-ending intentions and is always in pursuit of a finish. Saint Denis is an excellent grappler with plenty of experience, holding a black belt in Judo and a brown Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Training at CYFIT, he has great takedowns and heavy top control, constantly looking to posture up in top position and do damage or secure a submission. Saint Denis always pushes a heavy pace and has only left the second round a single time in his UFC tenure.

#4 Leon Edwards vs. #9 Carlos Prates

*Leon Edwards knocks out Kamaru Usman with a powerful head kick. Credit: Zuffa LLC.*

Welterweight Bout

Leon Edwards: 22-5-0, 7 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.

Carlos Prates: 22-7-0, 17 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.

Edwards has won three of his last five fights and has UFC victories over #5 ranked Welterweight Kamaru Usman (21-4-0), #11 ranked Welterweight Colby Covington (17-5-0), and Rafael Dos Anjos (32-17-0). He is a very polished striker with an outstanding kicking game and sharp boxing. He has excellent footwork and distance management, always looking to force his opponent to the outside and put them on their back foot. Edwards has excellent takedown defense and is most comfortable on his feet, but is solid on the mat and willing to grapple. Averaging over one takedown landed per fifteen minutes, he has heavy ground and pound and holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Training at Renegade MMA, he’s highly accurate and remains technical throughout, constantly varying his attacks and targets and rarely telegraphing anything. Edwards has great cardio and can comfortably fight for 25 minutes, but also holds the sixth fastest knockout in UFC history and is dangerous at all times.

*Carlos Prates clips Neil Magny with a stiff right hook. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Prates has won four of his last five outings, with UFC victories coming over #13 ranked Welterweight Geoff Neal (16-7-0), Neil Magny (31-14-0), and Charles Radtke (11-5-0). He’s a destructive, technical striker with serious power in his hands. He favors power to volume but is highly accurate, throwing every shot with fight-ending intent. Prates does an excellent job varying his targets and angles and is a very fluid striker, regularly mixing knees and kicks into punch combinations. Training with the Fighting Nerds, he keeps his hands down, remaining unpredictable throughout the fight and firing vicious spinning attacks without telegraphing them. He’s unlikely to take the fight to the mat but has solid takedown defense, capable of defending shots both in open space and against the cage. Prates has exceptional knockout power and rarely sees the judges' scorecards, having won 11 of his last 12 fights by knockout.

#2 Sean Brady vs. #8 Michael Morales

*Sean Brady taps out Leon Edwards with a tight guillotine choke. Credit: Bloody Elbow.*

Welterweight Bout

Sean Brady: 18-1-0, 3 KO/TKO, 6 Sub.

Michael Morales: 18-0-0, 13 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Brady has won four of his last five outings and has UFC victories over #4 ranked Welterweight Leon Edwards (22-5-0), #12 ranked Welterweight Gilbert Burns (22-9-0), and Kelvin Gastelum (21-10-0). He is an outstanding grappler and submission ace with excellent Muay Thai striking. Training at Renzo Gracie Philly, he methodically and efficiently breaks down his opponents, constantly making them defend submissions and absorb damage until he can secure a finish. He has outstanding takedowns and timing and can land takedowns in open space or in the clinch, with excellent double legs and trips. Brady has smothering top control, especially on the back, and will take his opponent’s back with blinding speed. He has fast, accurate hands and heavy kicks, regularly mixing them into his combinations. Brady becomes more dangerous as the fight goes on and earned four of his last five finishes in the third round or later.

*Michael Morales rains down brutal ground and pound onto Gilbert Burns. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Morales comes into this fight undefeated, holding UFC victories over #12 ranked Welterweight Gilbert Burns (22-9-0), Jake Matthews (22-8-0), and Max Griffin (20-12-0). He’s a heavy-hitting, precise kickboxer who can produce a finish in the blink of an eye. He’s big for a Welterweight and uses it well, fighting his opponent at range and landing long straights and low kicks before closing the distance and unloading combinations. Morales has excellent distance management, moving in and out of the pocket without taking much damage, and can do damage from anywhere. Training at Entram Gym, he’s a solid grappler and won’t usually pursue takedowns, but is dangerous in top position and will land vicious ground and pound. Morales rarely absorbs much damage and has outlanded all the opponents he’s faced in his UFC tenure.

(C) Valentina Shevchenko vs. #1 (SW) Zhang Weili

*Valentina Shevchenko fires a kick to the head of Alexa Grasso. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Women’s Flyweight Title Bout

Valentina Shevchenko: 25-4-1, 8 KO/TKO, 7 Sub.

Zhang Weili: 26-3-0, 11 KO/TKO, 8 Sub.

Shevchenko has won three of her last five fights with one draw and has UFC victories over #1 ranked Flyweight Manon Fiorot (13-2-0), #3 ranked Flyweight Alexa Grasso (16-5-1), and #1 ranked Bantamweight Julianna Peña (13-6-0). She holds black belts in Taekwondo and Judo and the rank of Master of Sports in Taekwondo, Judo, Muay Thai, Kickboxing, and Boxing. One of the best strikers in the sport, she throws everything in combination with lethal power and serious speed. Training at Tiger Muay Thai, Shevchenko does a great job of varying her shots and remains unpredictable, constantly attacking the head, body, and legs without any tell. She’s landed, on average, over four takedowns per fight in her last five appearances and has excellent top control, ground and pound, and submissions. She has outstanding footwork and distance management, moving in and out of the pocket with impressive speed and rarely taking significant damage. One of the most prolific champions in UFC history, she has the most fight time, title victories, takedowns landed, and knockout wins in the Women’s Flyweight division, among many other accolades and records.

*Zhang Weili lands a thunderous right hand on Tatiana Suarez. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Zhang is on a five-fight win streak and has UFC victories over #2 ranked Strawweight Tatiana Suarez (12-1-0), #4 ranked Strawweight Yan Xiaonan (19-5-0), and #5 ranked Strawweight Amanda Lemos (15-5-1). She’s a marauder who pushes a heavy pace and can finish a fight from anywhere, at any time. She throws every shot with power, is highly accurate, and will regularly add heavy kicks to the end of her punch combinations. Training at Beijing Black Tiger, she’s very light on her feet and can close distance with impressive speed, quickly darting into the pocket to let her hands go before returning to range. She’s averaging over 2 takedowns landed per 15 minutes and is extremely active in top position, constantly firing ground and pound and looking for submission openings. She has smothering, heavy top pressure, rarely conceding a position, and often using her superior strength to reverse or sweep her opponent. Of Zhang’s twelve UFC appearances, eight of them have been for titles, and she’s exclusively faced the best of the best since entering the promotion.

(C) Jack Della Maddalena vs. #1 (LW) Islam Makhachev

*Islam Makhachev looks to unload ground and pound after dropping Alexander Volkanovski. Credit: Zuffa LLC.*

Welterweight Title Bout

Jack Della Maddalena: 18-2-0, 12 KO/TKO, 2 Sub.

Islam Makhachev: 27-1-0, 5 KO/TKO, 13 Sub.

Maddalena is on an eighteen-fight win streak and has UFC victories over #1 ranked Welterweight Belal Muhammad (24-4-0), #8 ranked Welterweight Gilbert Burns (22-9-0), and Kevin Holland (28-15-0). He is an excellent striker with technical boxing and bricks for hands who carries power going forward and backward. He’s outlanded seven of his eight UFC opponents and always pushes a heavy pace, averaging 89 significant strikes landed in his last five outings. Maddalena throws everything in combination, excels at changing levels, attacks the head and body evenly, and regularly mixes body kicks and knees into punch combinations. He is an excellent counterstriker, utilizing outstanding head movement and footwork to remain elusive while landing offense of his own. Training at Scrappy MMA, he fights behind his jab and often strings together long, powerful combinations, cracking his opponent with seven or eight shots before returning to range. While Maddalena won’t usually go to the ground, he’s shown great scrambles, takedown defense, and an ability to escape deep waters.

*Jack Della Maddalena blasts Belal Muhammad with a stinging right hand. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Makhachev is on a fifteen-fight win streak and has UFC victories over Featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski (27-4-0), #2 ranked Lightweight Arman Tsarukyan (22-3-0), and #3 ranked Lightweight Charles Oliveira (36-11-0). He is a dominant wrestler who wastes little time taking it to the mat and pursuing a finish. Training at AKA, he’s dangerous on the mat but willing to stay on his feet and let his hands go. Makhachev has serious knockout power, educated hands, and an excellent chin, always willing to hang in the pocket and exchange. He averages over three takedowns landed per fifteen minutes and applies smothering top pressure, controlling his opponent while constantly hunting for a submission. He rarely sees the judges’ scorecards, having scored finishes in eight of his last nine wins. Makhachev holds various records in the Lightweight division, including the longest win streak, most title wins, most title defenses, and the most consecutive title defenses.

Best Bets

Carlos Prates Moneyline: This is an exciting matchup of a former champion and a quickly rising star. Both are dangerous strikers, but with very different styles. Edwards is a very measured, technical striker, using precise shots and a steady pace to break down opponents and put them away. Prates, while also very technically skilled, favors his power and flashy attacks like spinning kicks and elbows to secure highlight-reel finishes. Their careers seem to be trending in opposite directions at the moment: Edwards has suffered back-to-back devastating losses, while Prates is coming off the biggest win of his career. Although this is Edwards' first matchup against a true striker since before his title reign, I believe that may be to his detriment. With his last five fights coming against fighters who primarily grapple, he hasn’t faced a striker at the level of Prates in some time, if at all in the UFC. I expect Prates to push a heavy pace from the opening bell, staying right in front of Edwards and not allowing him to fight with his usual technical, point-fighting style. As Prates stays on his front foot and makes it into a dogfight, I anticipate Edwards being forced to take more risks and, in doing so, absorb more damage and big shots from Prates. Edwards has never been knocked out, so while I’m not willing to predict a finish, I’m confident that Prates will have his hand raised at the end of this bout.

Zhang Weili by Decision: This is an absolutely massive superfight between the absolute best of the best in women’s MMA, and I’ve been looking forward to it. Both have been dominant champions in their respective weight classes, and now Zhang is coming up to Flyweight to challenge Shevchenko in a matchup for the ages. Both are dangerous absolutely everywhere, with outstanding, well-rounded skill sets and serious finishing abilities. While they match up very similarly in terms of size and skill, I think Zhang's strength could be a difference-maker. I expect plenty of close striking exchanges early on in the fight, and for both to pursue takedowns and grappling as the fight goes on, and that’s where I believe Zhang will take over. I anticipate her overpowering and overwhelming Shevchenko on the mat, controlling her and landing ground and pound while slowly wearing down Shevchenko’s cardio. When the fight reaches the championship rounds, I expect Zhang to take full control and not waste much time on the feet, shooting powerful takedowns and preventing Shevchenko from landing her own offense. I still believe this will be a close and competitive fight, but I also believe it will ultimately be a decisive victory, earning Zhang a second title.

Della Maddalena vs. Makhachev to Not Go the Distance: This is another huge superfight with massive implications featuring two excellent champions. While both have proven to have excellent, well-rounded skills, they’re also prolific finishers who never back down from a brawl. In their combined 48 professional fights, they have produced 32 finishes with 17 knockouts and 15 submissions, with 19 of those finishes coming in the first round. They have gone to just 13 decisions between the two of them and are rarely in boring fights. This is also, obviously, an enormous fight for both of these men; for Makhachev, it’s a chance to become a double champion and establish himself among the best of all time. For Maddalena, a victory here would not only instantly legitimize him as a champion but also put him into the top three of the pound-for-pound fighters in the promotion. Both fighters have their own distinct advantages in this matchup, and while it’s much tougher to predict who makes better use of those advantages, I’m very confident that this fight will not see the end of all five rounds.

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