UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. Du Plessis

WSN

20 January 2024

UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs. Du Plessis - Picks & Predictions

Raquel Pennington vs. Mayra Bueno Silva - Vacant Women’s Bantamweight championship

Our pick: Raquel Pennington (+142)

Neil Magny vs. Mike Malott - Welterweight division

Our pick: Mike Malott (-340)

Chris Curtis vs. Marc-Andre Barriault - Middleweight division

Our pick: Marc-Andre Barriault (+145)

Arnold Allen vs. Movsar Evloev - Featherweight division

Our pick: Movsar Evloev (-180)

Sean Strickland vs. Dricus du Plessis - Middleweight Championship

Known for being one of the most active fighters on the UFC roster, Sean Strickland will be making his first middleweight title defense in this Saturday’s main event just four months after winning the belt.

Now on a three-fight winning streak, Strickland surprisingly dominated the former champion Israel Adesanya on his way to winning a unanimous decision and thus the championship.

In his first title defense, he will take on the fighter that was originally planned to take on Adesanya before Strickland was given the opportunity: Dricus du Plessis.

Du Plessis is undefeated in the UFC and has won his last eight in a row. He is coming off of an absolutely dominant performance over former champion Robert Whittaker, whom du Plessis defeated via second-round TKO at UFC 290.

He was offered the next shot at Adesanya’s title after the two had a battle of words in the octagon but the turnaround was too quick for du Plessis and Strickland stepped in.

These two fighters are almost physically identical as they share the same reach and have only one inch of height and two years of age separating them. However, Strickland does carry more experience into the cage, which the oddsmakers seem to be leaning into as the champion is listed as the -135 favorite to win.

Raquel Pennington vs. Mayra Bueno Silva - Women’s Bantamweight Championship

Vacant since June 10, 2023, when Amanda Nunes retired following her win at UFC 289, the women’s bantamweight title will finally have a new holder as former title challenger Raquel Pennington will take on number-three-ranked Mayra Bueno Silva in the co-main event.

Silva had won her last four fights in a row, but that fourth fight - a submission win over Holly Holm - was overturned to a no-contest after Silva tested positive for a banned substance. Regardless of this, she will get her opportunity at bantamweight gold this Saturday.

Raquel Pennington fought for the gold once before in a losing effort against Amanda Nunes at UFC 224 back in 2018. She is currently on a five-fight winning streak and is the number-two ranked bantamweight in the UFC.

There is only a one-inch reach difference between these two women, in favor of Pennington. But despite her winning streak, Pennington will enter this weekend’s co-main event as a +142 underdog a DraftKings.

Neil Magny vs. Mike Malott - Welterweight Division

UFC veteran Neil Magny will have his hands full this Saturday when he takes on Ontario, Canada native Mike Malott. Malott has won his last six fights in a row and has finished all three of his UFC fights (and one on the Contender Series) within the first two rounds.

Malott most recently defeated Adam Fugitt by second-round submission at UFC 289, earning him a performance of the night bonus.

Magny himself has had mixed success over the past few years as he continues to struggle to get a big win over a top-ten contender. However, he can still hold his own against prospects like Malott.

3-3 in his last six fights, Magny most recently dropped a decision to number-ten-ranked Ian Garry at UFC 292 last August.

Although listed at +270 at DraftKings, Magny will still be looking to take advantage of his two-inch height and seven-inch reach advantages.

Chris Curtis vs. Marc-Andre Barriault - Middleweight Division

Long-time training partner of UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland, Chris Curtis hasn’t seen the success he’s used to in recent years.

Curtis was 2-2 heading into his most recent bout against Nassourdine Imavov, but that bout ended as a no-contest after an accidental clash of heads rendered Curtis unable to continue.

His opponent will be Marc-Andre Barriault, another Canadian on this Toronto card. Barriault is 3-2 in his last five fights but has won his most recent two bouts back-to-back. After earning a TKO over Julian Marquez last March, Barriault made a quick turnaround to defeat Eryk Anders by decision the following June.

Barriault will be the taller man in this bout but Curtis will have a two-inch reach advantage. The training partner of a champion, Curtis is listed as the -175 favorite.

Arnold Allen vs. Movsar Evloev - Featherweight Division

Number-four-ranked featherweight Arnold Allen will give number-nine-ranked Movsar Evloev his chance to climb the rankings as Allen looks to test his own mettle against the undefeated Russian fighter.

Allen recently had a 12-fight winning streak snapped at the hands of featherweight great and former champion Max Holloway last April. He holds wins over the likes of Calvin Kattar and Dan Hooker.

Movsar Evloev is 17-0, with seven of those wins coming in the UFC. His most recent win was over Diego Lopes, whom he defeated at UFC 288 via unanimous decision last May. He also holds impressive wins over Dan Ige and Hakeem Dawodu.

One inch of height separates these two but Evloev will have a more substantial 2.5-inch reach advantage and is listed at -180 to win at DraftKings.