UFC Predictions: UFC Fight Night: Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza

The UFC is back at the Las Vegas APEX this weekend for another Fight Night, and this one sounds like it could be exciting.

UFC Fight Night: Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza features a handful of fights that are amongst the best of the month on paper, making this one worth watching.

Here are the predicted outcomes for UFC Fight Night: Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza.

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#1. UFC featherweight bout: Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza

Can Sodiq Yusuff pick up his biggest win to date this weekend? [Image Credit: @supersodiq on Instagram]

It’s always tricky to predict exactly whether a UFC fight will be entertaining or not, but there are some bouts that just seem to guarantee fireworks. This weekend’s headliner between Sodiq Yusuff and Edson Barboza would appear to be one of them.

A classic clash between a high-level prospect and a battle-hardened veteran, this one also pits two of the most explosive strikers in the entire 145lbs division against one another. Basically, the chances of it going the distance seem pretty low.

Of the two, we obviously know a lot more about Barboza. An octagon veteran dating back to November 2010, he’s become renowned over the past decade for his wicked kicking game in particular.

‘Junior’ has turned out the lights on the likes of Beneil Dariush, Dan Hooker, and Shane Burgos, and his wheel kick finish of Terry Etim is part of octagon legend.

The Brazilian does have some holes in his game. He’s defensively poor if he’s put on his back by a powerful wrestler who can hold him down and beat him up, and for a violent striker, he’s surprisingly not all that durable.

Despite that, he can turn the lights off on an opponent at any time, as we saw when he dispatched Billy Quarantillo in April. Overall, Barboza remains dangerous despite being 37 years old now.

Yusuff, meanwhile, is looking for a signature win to really propel him into title contention. ‘Super Sodiq’ has gone 6-1 since his debut in 2018, with his only loss coming to the excellent Arnold Allen.

That loss exposed him somewhat, as Allen largely picked him off with superior technical striking, but strikers on Allen’s level in this division are few and far between. Outside of that, Yusuff’s high-power punching game has largely been deadly, and his most recent win saw him snatch up a guillotine choke, proving he’s got a solid ground game too.

This one should come down to how Yusuff deals with the reach and kicking game of Barboza. The Nigerian will be the shorter man and will be giving up four inches of reach, and that’s worrying against someone who knows how to strike from distance like ‘Junior’ does.

In essence, ‘Super Sodiq’ should avoid booming hooks at his opponent here and would probably be better looking to time him, as Justin Gaethje did, and catch him unawares with a big shot as he comes in.

It’s a risky strategy, though, as Barboza is more than capable of hurting an opponent from distance with low kicks before moving in for the kill once his foe is hurt. Overall, then, the stylistic match appears to favor the Brazilian.

Yusuff is a powerful enough puncher that you can’t count him out of any fight, and Barboza’s chin is compromised enough to mean that one big shot might be all that it takes. However, it’s hard to look past the Brazilian’s reach advantage, and given how good he looked in his last bout, he should probably be favored to win.

The Pick: Barboza via second-round KO

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#2. UFC flyweight bout: Jennifer Maia vs. Viviane Araujo

Jennifer Maia will be looking for another title shot at 125lbs [Image Credit: @jennimaiaufc on Instagram]

This weekend’s co-main event takes place in the UFC’s flyweight division, and with Alexa Grasso still holding the title there, a window of opportunity has opened for a number of fighters there.

One such fighter is Jennifer Maia. The Brazilian fought Valentina Shevchenko for the title back in 2020, and while she’s slipped to No.9 in the rankings since, her recent wins over Maryna Moroz and Casey O’Neill have marked her out as still highly relevant overall.

A real veteran who debuted in MMA back in 2009, Maia doesn’t really have many real weaknesses. She’s a slick, aggressive striker with a strong ground game, particularly from the top position. Where she tends to fall down is against better, more explosive athletes.

Essentially, the Brazilian just doesn’t have all that much stopping power in her strikes, and she isn’t really a submission whiz either. She can outwork more flashy fighters like she proved against O’Neill, but her lack of power does leave her open to being clearly outpointed. Despite that, it’s worth noting that she’s never been finished in the octagon.

Vivane Araujo is less of a known quantity in this division, despite debuting there back in 2019 following a brief run at 135lbs. She’s never really done anything to stand out, and at 125lbs, all of her fights have gone the distance.

Despite this lack of flash, ‘Vivi’ has won five of her nine visits to the octagon and holds solid wins over Roxanne Modafferi and Andrea Lee. Like Maia, she’s a decent fighter in all areas, but like her opponent this weekend, she lacks any kind of stopping power.

Essentially, then, it’d be a surprise if this one doesn’t go the distance, and in that sense, it should come down to which fighter can outwork the other. Overall, Maia feels like the slightly better fighter in all areas, and so the pick is the former title challenger in a relatively close one.

The Pick: Maia via decision

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#3. UFC Fight Night: The Main Card

The dangerous Adrian Yanez is back in action this weekend [Image Credit: @adrianyanez93 on Instagram]

In an exciting-sounding bantamweight clash, Adrian Yanez takes on Jonathan Martinez. With both of these men ranked in the top fifteen at 135lbs, this could be a crucial fight in the division.

Yanez returns after suffering the first defeat of his octagon career, as he went down to veteran Rob Font in April. Prior to that, his quick hands and nasty power had earned him five straight wins, including four knockouts and five performance bonuses.

The loss to Font exposed Yanez somewhat in terms of his durability, but it’s still likely that if he can tighten up his recklessness somewhat, he could develop into a genuinely dangerous contender.

Martinez, meanwhile, is riding a five-fight win streak. ‘The Dragon’ has been with the UFC now since 2018 and has an underrated record, winning nine of his 12 trips to the octagon. He’s less explosive than Yanez but might have more rounded skills overall.

Basically, this one should come down to whether Yanez can catch Martinez before he either gets caught himself or begins to slow down. Given the Texan’s sheer ferocity and the fact that he’ll be gunning to get back to his winning ways, the pick is Yanez via KO in a thriller.

In a fascinating middleweight bout, Michel Pereira faces Andre Petroski. This will be Pereira’s first fight at 185lbs after he struggled to make 170lbs too many times. It’s unlikely that ‘Demolidor’ will be giving up much size as a middleweight, though, as he’s truly huge.

Overall, the Brazilian has developed his skills a lot since his 2019 octagon debut. Once considered a flashy wildman with little substance, he’s now a highly dangerous striker with a penchant for flash, but who can also take his foes down.

He’d probably be better to avoid taking Petroski down, though. The TUF 29 veteran is a slick grappler with a heavy top game, and he’s riding a five-fight win streak.

The issue for him here, though, is that he’s taken the fight on late notice, replacing Marc-Andre Barriault on around a week’s notice. Will he really be at his best? That’s questionable, and if he can’t get Pereira down, he may be in trouble. The pick, therefore, is Pereira via KO.

In a flyweight bout, Edgar Chairez battles Daniel da Silva. This is a rematch of their fight in September which saw referee Chris Tognoni make a premature stoppage, believing that da Silva had been choked out by Chairez in the first round.

Unfortunately for the Brazilian, this remains a bad fight for him. Chairez looked comfortable in their first meeting, and while he didn’t actually submit da Silva, it seemed like only a matter of time before he found a way to win.

Add in da Silva’s previous 0-4 octagon record, and the pick has to be Chairez, probably via submission if the last fight is anything to go on.

Finally, Christian Rodriguez meets the unbeaten Cameron Saaiman in a bantamweight bout. South Africa’s Saaiman has amassed some hype in his brief UFC career, as he’s already gone 3-0, with two of those fights ending with finishes.

‘MSP’ has yet to fight anyone truly outstanding, though, and Rodriguez already stopped one hype train this year when he beat Raul Rosas Jr. Can he grind Saaiman down, though? That’s debatable. He’s a slick grappler, but he lacks the explosive nature of the South African, who, unlike Rosas Jr, has just as much experience.

This one could probably go either way, but the pick is Saaiman via decision.

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#4. UFC Fight Night: The Prelims

Picks in bold

UFC featherweight bout: Darren Elkins vs. TJ Brown

UFC bantamweight bout: Irina Alekseeva vs. Melissa Dixon

UFC bantamweight bout: Chris Gutierrez vs. Heili Alateng

UFC strawweight bout: Ashley Yoder vs. Emily Ducote

UFC bantamweight bout: Tainara Lisboa vs. Ravena Oliveira

UFC lightweight bout: Brendon Marotte vs. Terrance McKinney

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