UFC 302 will be live from the sold out Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey which has slipped under the radar as the home of the highlight reels.
This will mark the tenth event the UFC has had in history and boy do we have a card on our hands?
Islam Makhachev will finally defend his title against his first lightweight contender which is long overdue, and Dustin Poirier is not a walk in the park by any means.
Before the main event showcase, Sean Strickland will square off with Paulo Costa in what’s expected to be an all-out war for the middleweights.
Speaking of middleweights, we can’t forget about Kevin Holland who will jump back into the familiar 185-pound division against Michal Oleksiejczuk.
Numbers, stats, and UFC 5 were consumed to make my picks and my best plays are down below.
UFC 302 will close out with a dream matchup of Islam Makhachev vs Dustin Poirier and writing about this gives me goosebumps – that’s how excited I am.
It’s about time a lightweight champion defends his title against a lightweight contender for a change (sorry Volk, but the division needs to move forward).
Dustin Poirier will step in for the third time as the challenger and the talk of the town suggests that this may be his last shot.
Poirier will by far be the toughest test for Islam with the future Hall Of Famer who seems to be more motivated than ever to win his first world title.
“Diamond” as he’s referred to, has won four of his last six bouts including an incredible performance against Benoit Saint-Denis paying an overpriced $2.85.
Well now he’s $5.75 at the time of writing and to quote my favourite fast-food joint “I’m lovin’ it”
In an open and candid interview with CBS, Poirier discussed the idea of retirement if he fails to capture gold for the third consecutive time going on to say “This is it for me. This could be the last one. I’m still on the fence, win or lose. I just want to be content with my career. It’s a thing where I have to digest it and be okay with it [if I lose], because that’s how life goes”
If this happens to be the last fight for the “Diamond” there’s only one song I want him walking out to.
The Co-Main that’s got everyone talking, with former middleweight champ Sean Strickland and the Brazilian Paulo Costa in a five-round battle!
You can’t help but think that the winner of this all-out war will be the number one contender for the title once DDP defends against Israel Adesanya in a rumoured fight in Perth for UFC 305.
Paulo Costa has a history of going the distance in big fights, and Sean Strickland has 11 knockouts to his name, so a play on the double chance for Strickland to win via KO/TKO or points will get plenty of units in my eyes.
Natural entertainer Kevin Holland is back and returning to the Middleweight division!
He is coming off consecutive losses to Aussie Jack Della Maddalena and Michael “Venom” Page, however, he’s still the fan-favourite in our eyes.
Alternatively, Michal Oleksiejczuk has not had the best of form, suffering submission losses to both Caio Borralho and Michael Pereira in his last three fights.
He’s returning to the 185-pound division and a dabble on him to win via KO/TKO or submission is the play for me.