Rafael Estevam vs Zhalgas Zhumagulov Pick, 5/6/2023 Predictions UFC 288 Odds

Rafael Estevam vs Zhalgas Zhumagulov

UFC 288

Prudential Center in Newark, NJ

Saturday, May 6, 2023

Rafael Estevam will enter the Octagon with Zhalgas Zhumagulov at UFC 288 on Saturday, May 6, 2023. The odds have Estevam priced at -175 while Zhumagulov is coming in at +145.

Rafael "Macapa" Estevam walks into the cage with a mark of 11-0-0. The 26-year-old is weighing in at 125 lbs and comes in at 5'8". The orthodox fighter extends his reach 69". Zhalgas Zhumagulov stands 5'4" and is fighting at 125 lbs. The switch fighter looks to add a win to his total of 14-8-0. The 34-year-old has a wingspan of 66". With respect to significant strikes, Rafael Estevam is connecting on 6.47 per min and Zhalgas Zhumagulov connects on 4.87 significant strikes per minute. Estevam is connecting on 80% of the significant strikes he throws and Zhumagulov connects on 46%. Concerning their defense in the cage, "Macapa" allows 0.40 significant strikes per min while Zhumagulov absorbs 5.37. Estevam also stops 50% of the significant strikes that are directed at him and Zhumagulov is able to deflect 53% of the strikes thrown his way.

In terms of takedowns, Rafael Estevam is the more efficient grappler as he takes his opponents down 4.04 times per 3 rounds. Estevam is taking his opponents to the canvas on 50% of his tries and defending 15% of all takedown attempts. Zhumagulov is taking his opponents down on 19% of his takedown tries and stopping 66% of the attempts against him. Regarding going for the sub, Estevam is the more experienced of the two fighters by attempting 0.5 submissions per 3 rds while Zhumagulov attempts 0.2 submissions per 3 rds.

In his last appearance in the Octagon, Rafael Estevam fought Joao Elias and wound up getting the win via punches to the head in round 2. Elias landed 7 of 12 of the strikes he let go in total for this contest. Estevam finished this fight landing 120 of 180 total strikes. When talking about significant strikes, Elias ended up landing 3 of 6, which gave him a percentage of 50%. He landed 0 of 3 significant strikes aimed at the head. On the other side of the cage, Estevam landed 80% of his significant strikes by landing 48 of 60. Of all the significant strikes, he connected on 47 of 58 pointed at the head. 100% of the significant strikes landed by Elias and 2% of them landed by Estevam were done at distance.

In the last fight for Zhalgas Zhumagulov, he went up against Charles Johnson and wound up taking the loss via split decision in round 3. Johnson landed 87% of the significant strikes he attempted at distance while Zhumagulov ended up connecting on 94% of the significant strikes he tried at a distance. Zhumagulov ended up connecting on 50% of his significant strikes attempted by landing 119 of 234. He connected on 36 of 119 significant strikes aimed at the head. Johnson ended up connecting on 115 of 209 significant strikes in that battle. Of all the significant strikes, he ended up landing 64 of 142 aimed at the head. Regarding total strikes that he let go in that contest, Johnson was 141 of 237 and Zhumagulov was 141 of 258 of all the strikes he attempted.

Other fights to keep an eye on

Another bout that you're not going to want to miss is when Joseph Holmes meets Claudio Ribeiro. Holmes walks into the cage with a record of 8-3-0. The 27-year-old tips the scales at 185 lbs and stands 6'4". The orthodox fighter has a wingspan of 80". Ribeiro stands in at 6'1" and weighs in at 185 lbs. The orthodox fighter looks to add a win to his career total of 10-3-0. The 30-year-old has an arm span of 77". When it comes to grappling, Joseph Holmes takes his opponents to the mat 1.41 times per 15 min and Claudio Ribeiro takes his opponents to the mat 0.70 times per 15 min. In the striking category, Holmes connects for an average of 3.10 strikes/minute and landing 51% of the strikes that he attempts. Joining him in the Octagon is Claudio Ribeiro, who connects on 62% of the strikes he attempts and connects on 3.91 per min.

If you're going to be watching the fights, don't miss when Johnny Munoz is set to clash with Daniel Santos. Santos steps into the Octagon holding a record of 11-2-0. The 28-year-old weighs 135 lbs and comes in at 5'7". The orthodox fighter stretches 67". Munoz measures 5'9" and records a weight of 135 lbs. The orthodox fighter holds a career mark of 12-2-0. The 30-year-old has an arm span of 71". In the category of takedowns, Daniel Santos is thwarting 57% of the takedowns his opponents attempt and is taking his opponents down on 33% of the times he tries. Munoz is taking his opponents to the mat on 25% of the tries he takes and is able to stop 66% of all takedown tries against him. Concerning striking, Santos is taking 7.52 strikes/minute while he connects on 4.82 strikes/minute. Munoz, on the contrary, absorbs 2.30 strikes per minute and is dishing out 3.69 per minute.

Who will win tonight's UFC match against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take Zhalgas Zhumagulov (+145)

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