UFC on Fox 19: Bleacher Report Main Card Staff Predictions
Cub Swanson vs. Hacran Dias
Steven Rondina
It hurts me to say this, but Cub Swanson seems to be on his way out the door. The 2013 version of Swanson probably wins this easily. The 2016 version probably loses this by decision.
Hacran Dias, unanimous decision
Nathan McCarter
Dias is a dangerous opponent, but Swanson should take this. The big thing with any Swanson fight is if he fights a smart fight, or if he goes a bit overboard. Going overboard against someone like Dias will get you caught. Knowing he needs a win, Swanson just does enough to get by without getting caught in a bad spot.
Swanson, unanimous decision
Craig Amos
After back-to-back losses, Swanson is in dire need of a win. He enters Saturday's contest as the favorite, but Dias is a live underdog. I'm going to borrow Harris' upset alarm and pull the lever, or ring the bell or whatever he does to sound the damn thing. Dias ekes out a close decision, piling up points with takedowns.
Dias, unanimous decision
Sydnie Jones
Swanson has been out for nearly a year and is on a two-fight losing streak. But his losses were to Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar—two very talented fighters who can hang with the best of the best. Dias has also lost to strong competitors, but unlike Swanson, his wins in the UFC have been decisions over mid-level fighters. It's possible Swanson will hang it up soon, but he's talented enough that beating Dias is still well within the realm of possibility.
Swanson, submission, Round 2
Scott Harris
Call this the main card of long layoffs. This is only the fourth fight in the past two years for both of these competitors. With ring rust canceling itself out, I think experience and punching power wins the day. I hereby decline to authorize the use of my upset alarms.
Swanson, unanimous decision
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Darrell Horcher
Rondina
Darrell Horcher has been good on the indie circuit, but unless Khabib Nurmagomedov has been absolutely destroyed by his recent injuries, he should have this easily.
Nurmagomedov, unanimous decision
McCarter
Credit to Horcher for even taking this fight. He’s going to get destroyed, but seeing as the ink still isn’t dry on his contract he’ll get a second fight. Nurmagomedov gets a stoppage.
Nurmagomedov, TKO, Round 2
Amos
Horcher was probably ecstatic to get a call from the UFC. That's a big deal. When told he'd be a late replacement, it might have dampened the occasion a mite, but I'm sure his excitement remained palpable. Then the UFC told him he'd be fighting Nurmagomedov, and the realization that he is going to be taken down a few hundred times must have set in. Assuming The Eagle hasn't been completed debilitated by injuries, he'll hold serve.
Nurmagomedov, submission, Round 1
Jones
With Nurmy out for two years, choosing him still feels like considerably less of a risk than picking the more recently active but debuting Horcher. The Eagle has probably spent much of the past couple years sharpening his talons to immediately plunge into his opponent's heart—the kind of heart commentators always say the losing fighter has in spades.
Nurmy, KO, Round 1
Harris
In a fight with major implications for the 160-pound catchweight division, Nurmagomedov is going to be hard to beat. Here's hoping the UFC does the right thing and gives Horcher a more reasonable shot as a consolation prize for stepping in and allowing Nurmagomedov to truck him.
Nurmagomedov, submission, Round 1
Rose Namajunas vs. Tecia Torres
Rondina
Rose Namajunas is most likely the better fighter at this point, but Tecia Torres' clinch game will keep things very, very close. I'll lean toward Namajunas on this one, but don't be surprised if Torres takes a controversial split decision here.
Namajunas, split decision
McCarter
Their first fight was close, but I don’t expect this one to be. Torres has stagnated since that date, but Namajunas has transformed into a legitimate contender who is realizing her elite potential. Will she get a stoppage? It’s possible, but Torres is still a tough competitor. It’ll go to the lopsided scorecards.
Namajunas, unanimous decision
Amos
Namajunas already owns a loss to Torres, so the outcome of Saturday's bout will show just how far she's come since 2013. She looked excellent on The Ultimate Fighter, and even better since. My guess is she vaults herself into the title picture by avenging that early-career defeat.
Namajunas, unanimous decision
Jones
Torres was such a promising prospect when she signed on to The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned. She lost exhibitions decisions to Randa Markos and eventual champ Carla Esparza, beating only Bec Rawlings while in the competition. Since then, she's maintained her technically unbeaten record, with decision wins over Angela Magana and Angela Hill. If she couldn't stop Magana, who's just not good, or Hill, who was (and is) relatively new to MMA at the time, I don't see her being able to stop Namajunas. And after the beating Namajunas put on Paige VanZant—who can clearly take a punch or 500—I'm skeptical Namajunas will want this to go to a decision.
Namajunas, submission, Round 3
Harris
Torres is just not a stopper. That's not who she is. Namajunas is a very good and improving fighter, and she'll have the striking edge (not to mention a size advantage) over Torres. But Torres is a fire hydrant of a strawweight, and sooner or later she'll get inside on Namajunas and smother that dynamism with her clinch and top control. So what you want to do right now is, you want to sound the alarms. Torres spoils the party and grinds out a scorecard win.
Torres, split decision
Glover Teixeira vs. Rashad Evans
Rondina
Evans is among the most underappreciated fighters in MMA history but, alas, his best days are long gone. It's not crazy to think that Teixeira could be out-wrestled in two out of three rounds, but in all likelihood, Tex is going to take this one on points.
Teixeira, unanimous decision
McCarter
Evans-Teixeira reminds so much of Evans-Rampage, and we know how that went. Teixeira has big power, but Evans is a hard target to hit clean. The speed and level changes are what will push Evans back into the win column. It won’t be overly exciting and it will go the distance.
Evans, unanimous decision
Amos
Both Evans and Teixeira are looking to work their way back from abortive title runs, so a win is imperative for both guys. I'm siding with Teixeira, who has inspired more confidence than Evans of late.
Teixeira, TKO, Round 3
Jones
The way Evans' career has been going the last several fights, I feel like he's trying to rage against the dying of the light. Unfortunately for Evans, Teixeira is going to dim that light even more. Evans is on his way out, and Teixeira is only going to hasten that process, perhaps relegating Evans to the newsdesk for good.
Teixeira, KO, Round 4
Harris
This is only Evans' third fight in the past three years. While Evans has nursed injuries, Teixeira has stayed busy, and he's currently on a two-fight win streak. Evans is more fun to watch if he's on his game, but that's a big "if" at this stage of his career, and he'll probably be an underdog in big fights like this unless he proves something else should be the case. Teixeira's bruising meat-and-potatoes games win the day.
Teixeira, unanimous decision
Cub Swanson vs. Hacran Dias
Steven Rondina
It hurts me to say this, but Cub Swanson seems to be on his way out the door. The 2013 version of Swanson probably wins this easily. The 2016 version probably loses this by decision.
Hacran Dias, unanimous decision
Nathan McCarter
Dias is a dangerous opponent, but Swanson should take this. The big thing with any Swanson fight is if he fights a smart fight, or if he goes a bit overboard. Going overboard against someone like Dias will get you caught. Knowing he needs a win, Swanson just does enough to get by without getting caught in a bad spot.
Swanson, unanimous decision
Craig Amos
After back-to-back losses, Swanson is in dire need of a win. He enters Saturday's contest as the favorite, but Dias is a live underdog. I'm going to borrow Harris' upset alarm and pull the lever, or ring the bell or whatever he does to sound the damn thing. Dias ekes out a close decision, piling up points with takedowns.
Dias, unanimous decision
Sydnie Jones
Swanson has been out for nearly a year and is on a two-fight losing streak. But his losses were to Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar—two very talented fighters who can hang with the best of the best. Dias has also lost to strong competitors, but unlike Swanson, his wins in the UFC have been decisions over mid-level fighters. It's possible Swanson will hang it up soon, but he's talented enough that beating Dias is still well within the realm of possibility.
Swanson, submission, Round 2
Scott Harris
Call this the main card of long layoffs. This is only the fourth fight in the past two years for both of these competitors. With ring rust canceling itself out, I think experience and punching power wins the day. I hereby decline to authorize the use of my upset alarms.
Swanson, unanimous decision
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Darrell Horcher
Rondina
Darrell Horcher has been good on the indie circuit, but unless Khabib Nurmagomedov has been absolutely destroyed by his recent injuries, he should have this easily.
Nurmagomedov, unanimous decision
McCarter
Credit to Horcher for even taking this fight. He’s going to get destroyed, but seeing as the ink still isn’t dry on his contract he’ll get a second fight. Nurmagomedov gets a stoppage.
Nurmagomedov, TKO, Round 2
Amos
Horcher was probably ecstatic to get a call from the UFC. That's a big deal. When told he'd be a late replacement, it might have dampened the occasion a mite, but I'm sure his excitement remained palpable. Then the UFC told him he'd be fighting Nurmagomedov, and the realization that he is going to be taken down a few hundred times must have set in. Assuming The Eagle hasn't been completed debilitated by injuries, he'll hold serve.
Nurmagomedov, submission, Round 1
Jones
With Nurmy out for two years, choosing him still feels like considerably less of a risk than picking the more recently active but debuting Horcher. The Eagle has probably spent much of the past couple years sharpening his talons to immediately plunge into his opponent's heart—the kind of heart commentators always say the losing fighter has in spades.
Nurmy, KO, Round 1
Harris
In a fight with major implications for the 160-pound catchweight division, Nurmagomedov is going to be hard to beat. Here's hoping the UFC does the right thing and gives Horcher a more reasonable shot as a consolation prize for stepping in and allowing Nurmagomedov to truck him.
Nurmagomedov, submission, Round 1
Rose Namajunas vs. Tecia Torres
Rondina
Rose Namajunas is most likely the better fighter at this point, but Tecia Torres' clinch game will keep things very, very close. I'll lean toward Namajunas on this one, but don't be surprised if Torres takes a controversial split decision here.
Namajunas, split decision
McCarter
Their first fight was close, but I don’t expect this one to be. Torres has stagnated since that date, but Namajunas has transformed into a legitimate contender who is realizing her elite potential. Will she get a stoppage? It’s possible, but Torres is still a tough competitor. It’ll go to the lopsided scorecards.
Namajunas, unanimous decision
Amos
Namajunas already owns a loss to Torres, so the outcome of Saturday's bout will show just how far she's come since 2013. She looked excellent on The Ultimate Fighter, and even better since. My guess is she vaults herself into the title picture by avenging that early-career defeat.
Namajunas, unanimous decision
Jones
Torres was such a promising prospect when she signed on to The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned. She lost exhibitions decisions to Randa Markos and eventual champ Carla Esparza, beating only Bec Rawlings while in the competition. Since then, she's maintained her technically unbeaten record, with decision wins over Angela Magana and Angela Hill. If she couldn't stop Magana, who's just not good, or Hill, who was (and is) relatively new to MMA at the time, I don't see her being able to stop Namajunas. And after the beating Namajunas put on Paige VanZant—who can clearly take a punch or 500—I'm skeptical Namajunas will want this to go to a decision.
Namajunas, submission, Round 3
Harris
Torres is just not a stopper. That's not who she is. Namajunas is a very good and improving fighter, and she'll have the striking edge (not to mention a size advantage) over Torres. But Torres is a fire hydrant of a strawweight, and sooner or later she'll get inside on Namajunas and smother that dynamism with her clinch and top control. So what you want to do right now is, you want to sound the alarms. Torres spoils the party and grinds out a scorecard win.
Torres, split decision
Glover Teixeira vs. Rashad Evans
Rondina
Evans is among the most underappreciated fighters in MMA history but, alas, his best days are long gone. It's not crazy to think that Teixeira could be out-wrestled in two out of three rounds, but in all likelihood, Tex is going to take this one on points.
Teixeira, unanimous decision
McCarter
Evans-Teixeira reminds so much of Evans-Rampage, and we know how that went. Teixeira has big power, but Evans is a hard target to hit clean. The speed and level changes are what will push Evans back into the win column. It won’t be overly exciting and it will go the distance.
Evans, unanimous decision
Amos
Both Evans and Teixeira are looking to work their way back from abortive title runs, so a win is imperative for both guys. I'm siding with Teixeira, who has inspired more confidence than Evans of late.
Teixeira, TKO, Round 3
Jones
The way Evans' career has been going the last several fights, I feel like he's trying to rage against the dying of the light. Unfortunately for Evans, Teixeira is going to dim that light even more. Evans is on his way out, and Teixeira is only going to hasten that process, perhaps relegating Evans to the newsdesk for good.
Teixeira, KO, Round 4
Harris
This is only Evans' third fight in the past three years. While Evans has nursed injuries, Teixeira has stayed busy, and he's currently on a two-fight win streak. Evans is more fun to watch if he's on his game, but that's a big "if" at this stage of his career, and he'll probably be an underdog in big fights like this unless he proves something else should be the case. Teixeira's bruising meat-and-potatoes games win the day.
Teixeira, unanimous decision
