UFC Predictions: UFC Fight Night: Marvin Vettori vs. Roman Dolidze 2
The UFC returns to the Las Vegas APEX this weekend for another Fight Night event. The headliner sees a rematch between two highly-ranked middleweights.
UFC Fight Night: Marvin Vettori vs. Roman Dolidze 2 is not stacked with big names, but with some exciting fights on paper, the event could be decent enough.
Will it be remembered come the end of 2025? Probably not, but hopefully it'll provide at least a few highlights.
Here are the predicted outcomes for UFC Fight Night: Marvin Vettori vs. Roman Dolidze 2.
#1. UFC middleweight bout: Marvin Vettori vs. Roman Dolidze
This event's headliner is a rematch between two top fifteen-ranked middleweights, and while there wasn't much clamor for this second bout, it should at least be intriguing.
The first time Marvin Vettori and Roman Dolidze faced off was at UFC 286 in March 2023, making it nearly two years to the day by the time they'll square off this time.
That fight was won by Vettori, albeit in close fashion. Essentially, it was one of those classic bouts where one fighter, in this case Dolidze, seemed to land the more memorable blows, only to be outworked by his opponent.
To almost sum things up, 73% of Dolidze's 71 significant strikes landed to the head of Vettori, while only 56% of Vettori's 106 were to the head. 'The Italian Dream' instead used plenty of low kicks to slow 'The Caucasian' down surgically.
Essentially, then, there are two burning questions coming into this fight. Firstly, has enough changed over the past two years to suggest that the outcome will be different this time around? And secondly, will five rounds favor or hinder Dolidze?
The first question is fascinating because of what has happened to both men since. Dolidze lost to Nassourdine Imavov - more on that later - but his 2024 saw him beat both Anthony Smith and Kevin Holland in strong fashion.
'The Caucasian' didn't get a finish against Smith, but his thudding punches, largely from close range, got the job done. Holland, meanwhile, succumbed to ground-and-pound.
Vettori, on the other hand, has not fared so well. A tight loss to Jared Cannonier in June 2023 was nothing to be ashamed of, but Vettori has not fought since thanks to various injuries.
It's probably fair to argue that Dolidze hasn't improved per say, he's just fought a pair of opponents who made it easier to utliise his powerful skillset. However, there's definitely a chance that Vettori has stagnated if not gotten worse.
'The Italian Dream' does have far more experience over five rounds, but Dolidze didn't do badly in his lone five-rounder with Imavov. Despite being hurt badly in the early going, he hung tough and made the bout into a real brawl late on, suggesting he's both durable and has a strong gas tank.
Given Dolidze was beaten the first time, picking him is a risk here. However, it's simply too hard to trust a fighter in Vettori who hasn't fought in almost two years, particularly when Dolidze has a lot of momentum after his recent two wins.
Therefore, the prediction here is another close fight, with Dolidze just about edging things out this time around.
The Pick: Dolidze via decision
#2. UFC welterweight bout: Chidi Njokuani vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos
While neither of this event's co-headliners are in contention at welterweight, it's fair to say that both men are more than capable of producing a highlight reel finish. So will it be Chidi Njokuani or Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos who lands first?
It's probably fair to say that Njokuani hasn't quite lived up to the hype he received in his early days in the UFC.
'Chidi Bang Bang' exploded onto the scene with two thrilling knockouts, but then lost three bouts in a row to put his spot on the roster under threat.
His answer to this was a drop to 170 pounds. While Njokuani has won both of his fights since the move, he also hasn't finished either foe.
It's a far cry from his form as a middleweight, and fascinatingly, the pattern has remained the same throughout his career. He's a deadly knockout artist at 185 pounds, but clearly lacks the same kind of power at the lower weight.
Dos Santos, meanwhile, is about to hit a full decade of action in the UFC. In many ways, he's one of the more underrated fighters in the promotion. After losing his debut, he was able to put together a big seven-fight win streak, even knocking out Sean Strickland along the way.
However, 'Capoeira' lost to Li Jingliang in late 2019 and hasn't really managed to get back on track since, looking inconsistent even in the fights he's won.
At his best, he's a wildly athletic, flashy striker who is also capable of landing shots thanks to his strong fundamentals and movement.
At his worst, he's more flash than substance, and can often find himself out of gas, as he did in his defeat to Randy Brown.
Where the Brazilian might find this one hard going is the fact that he's giving up a lot of height - five inches in total - to Njokuani. It's highly likely that his method to get around that will involve a lot of low kicks, but 'Chidi Bang Bang' is no stranger to that and will likely look to come over the top with heavy counters.
Given that Njokuani looks like the slightly better fighter in the clinch too, and the styles here favor him by a hair.
It isn't an easy pick to make, purely because Njokuani's power just doesn't seem to translate all that well to 170 pounds, which gives dos Santos the chance of catching him and putting him away.
However, at the age of 38, 'Capoeira' may also be slowing down, and so the smart money is on 'Chidi Bang Bang' to do enough to pick up a win.
The Pick: Njokuani via decision
#3. UFC Fight Night: The Main Card
In a featherweight bout, Seung Woo Choi faces Kevin Vallejos. A skilled striker, Choi came into the UFC way back in 2019, and has had a largely patchy run. He's shown some flashes of brilliance, like his knockout of Julian Erosa, but he's also 1-3 in his last four and is clearly limited.
Vallejos is making his octagon debut and is somewhat of an unknown quantity despite a thrilling knockout win on Dana White's Contender Series. However, the fact that his lone loss was a decision to Jean Silva is impressive in its own right. Given Choi's current weak run, the pick is Vallejos via KO.
In a battle of lightweight veterans, Alexander Hernandez takes on Kurt Holobaugh. Both of these fighters have been around for a long time, and have followed a similar path of never really stringing together consistency despite some nice wins.
Overall, though, Hernandez ought to be favored here. 'The Great Ape' is a far better athlete than his foe, and his explosive nature means he can be a threat both on the feet and with his takedowns. Overall, the pick is Hernandez via decision.
In a bantamweight clash, Da'Mon Blackshear faces Cody Gibson. Gibson is actually on his second run with the UFC, and his current two-fight win streak in the octagon is his best one there.
However, he could be in some trouble here. Blackshear's record of 15-7-1 is not the best, but 'Da Monster' is a very dangerous grappler. He dispatched Cody Stamann via submission in his last fight, and has also won via twister in the octagon.
Blackshear isn't unbeatable, but given his only two recent losses came to two ranked fighters in Mario Bautista and Montel Jackson, it's likely he'll come out on top here. The pick is Blackshear via submission.
Finally, in a bantamweight clash, AJ Cunningham takes on Su Young Yu. Both of these men have similar records, but it's worth noting that while Cunningham hasn't fought since losing his octagon debut, Yu has three wins in the same time frame.
Does that mean 'You-Jitsu' is on his way to a win? It's not guaranteed, as the South Korean hasn't fought top-level competition yet. However, it's arguable that outside of Ludovit Klein, neither has Cunningham. This could go either way, but the pick is Yu via decision.
#4. UFC Fight Night: The Prelims
Picks in bold
UFC heavyweight bout: Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Ryan Spann
UFC strawweight fight: Stephanie Luciano vs. Sam Hughes
UFC light-heavyweight bout: Diyar Nurgozhay vs. Brendson Ribeiro
UFC bantamweight bout: Carlos Vera vs. Josias Musasa
UFC flyweight bout: Daniel Barez vs. Andre Lima
UFC bantamweight bout: Josiane Nunes vs. Priscila Cachoeira
UFC lightweight bout: Evan Elder vs. MarQuel Mederos
UFC flyweight bout: Yuneisy Duben vs. Carli Judice