The UFC brings its act to New Zealand this weekend, as it stages UFC Fight Night 110 at at Spark Arena in Auckland. Read on for out preview of each of the main card fights for the event, including the big one that features Derrick Lewis and Mark Hunt.
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UFC Fight Night 110: Lewis vs. Hunt
Main Event
Derrick Lewis (-130) vs. Mark Hunt (EVEN)
You don’t want to blink while watching this fight go down. Lewis and Hunt are as powerful as they come in the heavyweight division. Lewis is 18-4-0 with a no contest in his MMA career so far and 14 of his wins were knockouts. Hunt, on the other hand, is 12-11-1, 1 NC, has nine KO wins. There are a couple of glaring differences in this matchup, however. First is age. Lewis is just 32, while Hunt is 43. Lewis is also significantly taller at 6’3’, five inches more than Hunt’s 5’10’ ceiling.
But in a battle between two slow-footed mammoths, it’ll likely come down to who gets to land a bomb first. Hunt showed he could overcome a big height disadvantage when he blew seven-foot Stefan Struve into smithereens in 2013.
Hunt’s experience may come into play, too. He’s fought the likes of Brock Lesnar, Frank Mir, Fabricio Werdum, and Junior Dos Santos before so someone of Lewis’ caliber shouldn’t faze him. Lewis has momentum, though, having gone 6-0 in his last six fights. All but one victory were by knockouts during that stretch, including Lewis’ second-round annihilation of Travis Browns last February.
Writer’s Prediction: Hunt (EVEN) wins via KO.
Derek Brunson (-280) vs. Daniel Kelly (+210)
Derek Brunson (16-5-0) believes he was a victim of some chicanery when he lost a controversial one against MMA legend Anderson Silva last February. He’ll get a shot at bouncing back against Daniel Kelly, who will get inside the Octagon on the heels of four-straight wins. Brunson owns a 50 percent success rate in his strikes and has nine wins by way of knockouts. Like Brunson, Kelly (13-1-0)had a date with a UFC legend in his previous fight, notching a split decision W over former champ Rashad Evans.
Writer’s Prediction: Brunson (-280) cradles Kelly to sleep via knockout.
Ross Pearson (+135) vs. Daniel Hooker (-165)
Ross Pearson hopes to shake off a three-fight winless streak, as he takes on Daniel Hooker this weekend. He is 21-13-0 with a no contest in his MMA career. The 5’8” Pearson prefers a stand-up fight, resorting to his striking and boxing skills but he’s up against a longer fighter in the six-foot Daniel Hooker. The New Zealand-native lost in his last fight, getting UD’d b Jason Knight in November of last year.
While he has the length advantage, Hooker might opt for taking this fight to the mat as he’s got six wins via submissions. He is 14-7-0 overall and has won eight of his past 11 fights. Pearson has a reliable cardio, as evidenced by the fact that he’s gone the distance in all of his last seven fights.
Writer’s Prediction: Pearson (+135) overcomes the odds and wins by decision.
Luis Henrique da Silva (+240) vs. Ion Cutelaba (-320)
Watch out for this head-on collision of two hard-hitting big dudes. Combined, da Silva (12-2-0) and Cutelaba (12-3-0, 1NC) has 20 knockout wins between them so there’s a good chance this encounter wouldn’t last the distance. Da Silva won his first 12 MMA fights but has lost his last two. Cutelaba is also on the heels of a loss, taking a unanimous decision setback at the hands of Jared Cannonier last December.
Writer’s Prediction: Cutelaba (-320) lands a clean one and knocks out da Silva.
Tim Elliot (-250) vs. Ben Nguyen (+190)
If you gave one of the best UFC fighters a run for his money in a fight, then a lot is expected of you. That’s how things are for Tim Elliott, who, after becoming champion of The Ultimate Fighter Season 24, had lasted five rounds in a unanimous decision loss to Demetrious Johnson. He got back on track with a UD win over Luis Smolka last April in a brawl that won Fight of the Night honors.
Elliot (15-7-1) is coming in the favorite in his showdown with Ben Nguyen, who is 16-6-0 overall. Nguyen has win 10 of his last 11 fights, including his last one, a UD victory over Geane Herrera back in November.
Writer’s Prediction: Elliot (-250) wins by UD.
Alexander Volkanovski (-300) vs. Mizuto Hirota (+220)
Alexander Volkanovski is on a mean 11-fight mean streak and he’ll try to extend that even further when he takes on Mizuto Hirota this weekend. This is going to be Volkanovski’s second fight in the UFC, winning his Octagon debut via a second-round knockout of Yusuke Kasuya in November of 2016.
Volkanovski is 14-1 overall in his MMA career. The heavy-handed Australian has won 10 of his last 11 fights by knockout. He’s also dangerous on the mat with three submission victories. Hirota (18-7-2) is relatively unknown among UFC fans but could pose problems for Volkanovski nonetheless. He has won all his past six matches and has 10 KO wins under his belt.
Writer’s Prediction: Volkanovski (-300) via split decision.
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