UFC 288: Sterling vs Cejudo Predictions, Picks, Odds

Aljamain Sterling vs Henry Cejudo - Bantamweight Championship

On what will be almost three years from the date he retired, former two-division UFC champion and Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo will return to the octagon to challenge Aljamain Sterling for the title he retired with.

Cejudo last fought in May of 2020 at UFC 249 where he defended his title against Dominick Cruz via second-round TKO. He retired holding both the bantamweight and flyweight titles.

Current champion Aljamain Sterling won his title in controversial fashion from Petr Yan, who was disqualified due to an illegal knee. However, Sterling silenced the doubters when the two rematched and Sterling earned a split-decision win over Yan at UFC 273.

Sterling defended his title once more against another returning champion in T.J. Dillashaw. Sterling won the fight, which took place last October, via second-round TKO.

Despite his recent wins coming with some controversy, you can’t write Sterling out of this one. Cejudo is a very credentialed fighter - one of the best combat sports athletes of all time. But a three-year layoff is likely going to cause problems.

Belal Muhammad vs Gilbert Burns - Welterweight Division

In yet another quick turnaround, Gilbert Burns will participate in what will already be his third fight of 2023 when he takes on Belal Muhammad in a five-round co-main event. Five-round co-main events are incredibly rare and it is believed that the winner of this bout will be next in line to fight Leon Edwards for the UFC welterweight championship.

Burns defeated Neil Magny via first-round submission this past January and is coming off of a unanimous decision win over Jorge Masvidal that took place just one month ago on April 8 at UFC 287.

Muhammad has yet to fight in 2023 but is currently riding an eight-fight winning streak (with one no-contest). He most recently defeated Sean Brady via second-round TKO at UFC 280 last October.

Muhammad will have a slight edge in reach but his powerful wrestling may be nullified by the third-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu held by Gilbert Burns.

Jessica Andrade vs Yan Xiaonan - Women’s Strawweight Division

Former women’s strawweight champion Jessica Andrade left for a stint in the flyweight division but returned to strawweight in 2022 and has since gone 2-1.

Andrade lost her most recent bout at the hands of Erin Blanchfield, who submitted the former champ in the second round of their Fight Night main event this past February.

Her opponent, Yan Xiaonan, recently snapped a two-fight losing streak with her recent win over Mackenzie Dern in their main event bout last October.

Movsar Evloev vs Bryce Mitchell - Featherweight Division

Some may be surprised to see BJJ black belt Bryce Mitchell listed as the biggest underdog on the main card (+225) despite the fact that he was undefeated up until his most recent bout in which he lost via second-round submission to Ilia Topuria at UFC 282 last December.

Prior to the loss, Mitchell had won 15-straight, including six in a row in the UFC.

However, others may not be surprised by these odds as Mitchell is set to take on the undefeated Movsar Evloev.

Evloev has won 16-straight, including six in a row in the UFC. His most recent win came via a unanimous decision over Dan Ige last June.

Mitchell is the taller man but Evloev, a wrestling specialist, will have a 2.5-inch reach advantage.

Kron Gracie vs Charles Jourdain - Featherweight Division

Grappling world champion with a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt to his name, Kron Gracie - a member of the legendary Gracie family that helped popularize the sport of mixed martial arts, returns to action this Saturday with hopes of returning to the win column.

Gracie debuted with the UFC in 2019, winning his debut over Alex Caceres via submission. However, in his most recent bout against Cub Swanson in October 2019, Gracie was defeated via unanimous decision. This will be his first fight in more than three years.

He takes on Charles Jourdain, a fighter in the midst of a two-fight losing streak. 

Also a BJJ black belt, Jourdain dropped two decisions in 2022 against Shane Burgos and Nathaniel Wood. This will be his first fight of 2023.

Both men stand at equal height but Gracie will have the one-inch advantage in reach. And, despite both men holding black belts, Gracie’s caliber of grappling is definitely a step above that of Charles Jourdain. However, likely due to his inactivity, Gracie is the one listed as the +160 underdog.