UFC Vegas 81 Preview and Predictions
UFC Vegas 81 is a solid night of fights from the UFC Apex. The main event promises violence and several other bouts should peak interest. The prelims will begin at 4:00 p.m. EST with the main card following at 7:00 p.m. EST. Join Vendetta Sports Media as we preview and predict each fight on the main card. You can find out prediction records below.
James: 111-68-3
Garrett: 112-67-3
Anthony: 92-56-2
Jerry: 94-53-2
Christian Rodriguez vs. Cameron Saaiman–Bantamweight Bout
James: The UFC Vegas 81 main card opens with a bantamweight bout between Christian Rodriguez and Cameron Saaiman. This fight will be an opportunity for one of these young prospects to take another step forward in their career. Rodriguez, 25, is 2-1 in the UFC. Most recently, he picked up a massive victory over Raul Rosas Jr. On the other hand, Saaiman, impressed on Dana White’s Contender Series and has continued to win in the UFC. At 22, he already has a 3-0 UFC record.
Saaiman is an impressive striker for his age and experience level. The South African has respectable boxing skills and power in both hands. That allows him to feint punches to step up his kicks. Overall, Saaiman is a well-rounded striker. Plus, his grappling has proved to be up to standard.
Rodriguez is a very underrated grappler in the bantamweight division. After his performance against Rosas, that secret has been revealed to an extent. Still, Rodriguez has great fight-ending submission skills and useful sweeps. On the feet, he has some well-timed counters and will punish fighters who make mistakes.
The UFC Vegas 81 main card opener previews to be a close fight. Rodriguez should have a slight edge on the ground while Saaiman has an edge on the feet. I lean toward Rodriguez because I think his physicality will help him get this fight to the ground. I will take Rodriguez by second-round submission.
Garrett: Saaiman via TKO
Jerry: Saaiman via KO/TKO
Anthony: Rodriguez via decision
Andre Petroski vs. Michel Pereira–Middleweight Bout
James: The UFC Vegas 81 bout between Andre Petroski and Michel Pereira previews to be the classic striker versus grappler matchup. Petroski, the grappler, has a perfect UFC record of 5-0. Meanwhile, Pereira is a fan favorite because of his wild striking style which has yielded him a 6-2 record.
Petroski is a great grappler who has a high-level wrestling background as well as legitimate submission skills. That combination makes him a threat in grappling exchanges. The issue for Petroski is that he has struggled to manage his cardio and has gassed in fights.
Pereira will be making his UFC middleweight debut. Previously, he was cutting a lot of weight to make welterweight. Now, he will be competing in a more reasonable weight class. As far as skills go, Pereira has working to reel in his wild style. This has resulted in more bodywork and energy management. Regardless, his striking is quick and powerful. Pereira’s use of speed, footwork, stance switches and angels adds a level of technician to his skills as well.
This is a very hard fight to pick. I believe Pereira’s move up in weight will yield positive results and his body work should present Petroski with trouble. At the same time, Pereira has not been tested with a grappler of Petroski’s level.
Ultimately, the deciding factor in my prediction is that Pereria can be willing to fight with his back up against the fence. That will provide Petroski will chances to attempt takedowns and get his grappling flowing. I will take Petroski by second-round submission.
Garrett: Petroski via decision
Jerry: Petroski via decision
Anthony: Pereira via KO/TKO
No. 13 Jonathan Martinez vs. No. 14 Adrian Yanez–Bantamweight Bout
James: The UFC Vegas 81 main card features a fight between bantamweight prospects Jonathan Martinez and Adrian Yanez. Martinez is riding a four-fight win streak and has established a 9-3 promotional record. The highlight of his UFC run came in his last fight when he earned a decision victory over Said Nurmagomedov to cement himself as a legit prospect. Yanez has displayed superstar potential, but dropped his most recent bout against Rob Font.
Now, he is looking to rebound and get back in the win column.
Martinez is an elite kicker. On the outside, he throws massive kicks to all three levels and does serious damage. In the clinch, he has impressive knees and elbows that round out his skills. The problem for Martinez is that he is not a great boxer which presents him issues.
Yanez is an outstanding boxer with great speed, accuracy and power. This allows him to strike in combinations, find openings in his opponent’s defense and counter. Once he gets into a rhythm, he can really hurt fighters, but the issue is that he can struggle to find a rhythm early in bouts and eat shots.
This bout will be fought in three ranges: Kicking, boxing and clinch range. The kicking and clinch range will favor Martinez while boxing favors Yanez. The fighter that can determine where this bout takes place will control the outcome. I expect this to be a close bout, but I lean toward Yanez because of his pressure and ability to catch kicks, which should increase the number of boxing exchanges. I will take Yanez by second-round knockout.
Garrett: Yanez via TKO
Jerry: Yanez via KO/TKO
Anthony: Yanez via KO/TKO
No. 9 Jennifer Maia vs. No. 11 Viviane Araujo–Women’s Flyweight Bout
James: The UFC Vegas 81 co-main event features a women’s flyweight bout between Jennifer Maia and Viviane Araujo. Both fighters are mainstays in the division, but Maia has been much more successful recently. With two consecutive wins, she has pushed her UFC record to 6-5. Meanwhile, Araujo has lost her last two fights which dropped her promotional record to 5-4.
Araujo is a very physical fighter with a lot of power, allowing her to land powerful strikes. On the ground, she has good BJJ skills and can win grappling exchanges.
Maia is a well-rounded fighter but her most valuable skill set is her boxing. Maia is capable of stringing combinations together and throwing a good amount of volume.
This should be a close fight. I usually like to pick Araujo because of her physical skills, but I am going in a different direction this time around. I think Maia is more consistent and has better cardio. In turn, she should manage to win two rounds. I will take Maia by decision.
Garrett: Maia via decision
Jerry: Maia via decision
Anthony: Maia via decision
No. 11 Sodiq Yusuff vs. No. 13 Edson Barboza–Featherweight Bout
James: The UFC Vegas 81 main event features a featherweight scrap between Sodiq Yusuff and Edson Barboza.
This fight should be an outstanding way to cap off a night of fights as both fighters and exciting strikers. Barboza is a veteran commodity known for his highlight reel finishes and lethal striking. In his last fight, he showed he could still add to his highlight reel, knocking out Billy Quarentillo with a knee. That victory pushed the 37-year-old’s UFC record to 17-11 while making his featherweight record 3-3. Meanwhile, Yusuff, 30, is the more youthful of the two fighters and owns a UFC record of 6-1.
Barboza is a great striker who is capable of landing massive shots. This can be seen in his highlight reel spinning kicks and flying knees. From a more fundamental view, he is a quick striker with kicks to all three levels and impressive straight shots.
Yusuff is a boxer-oriented fighter who looks to walk his opponent down while landing massive punches and leg kicks. Yusuff typically manages to land impactful counters. This includes counterpunches, but he also likes to throw leg kicks while his opponents attack. Once Yusuff begins to land, he uses feints to create even more avenues to strike.
This bout previews to be one of the most exciting fights on UFC Vegas 81. I am expecting Yusuff to walk Barboza down which will lead to a lot of heavy exchanges. This will result in both fighters landing punches and leg kicks. Although, that should favor Yusuff because it will limit Barboza’s ability to kick the body and the head.
Plus, Yusuff is the harder puncher. If these two land to the head at an equal clip, Yusuff will do much more damage. If the bout escapes that realm, I believe Yusuff has better offensive grappling and more submission upside. I will take Yusuff by third-round knockout.
Garrett: Yusuff via decision
Jerry: Yusuff via decision
Anthony: Yusuff via decision
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