UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Shahbazyan Prelims Undercard Betting Predictions

The UFC returns to its APEX Facility in Las Vegas, Nevada for this weekend’s action. Following the removal of Irene Aldana and the cancellation of the latter’s bout against former UFC women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm, the UFC’s Fight Night event on August 1, 2020, has been shuffled.

Derek Brunson meets prospect Edmen Shahbazyan in the new main event. Joanne Calderwood meets flyweight sensation Jennifer Maia in the co-main event while Vicente Luque takes on Randy Brown in a welterweight encounter. Before the main card, there’s half-a-dozen prelims fight that should provide fireworks before the main card.

Let’s take a look at the prelims undercard bouts for UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Shahbazyan:

Frankie Saenz vs Jonathan Martinez

Frankie Saenz is a veteran who has been competing since 2009. The 39-year old from Phoenix, Arizona is a former King of Cage flyweight champion and a former World Fighting Federation featherweight champion. He joined the UFC in 2014 and is 5-4 inside the UFC octagon. He stands 5-6 tall with a reach of 66 inches and is an orthodox fighter. Saenz has a record of 13-6 with three knockouts and two wins via submission. He is 2-4 in his last six bouts.

Jonathan Martinez fought for XFL, Legacy FC, and Fist Fight Night before joining the UFC in 2018. This 26-year old from Plainview, Texas is 2-2 inside the octagon and he has a record of 11-3 with six knockouts and two wins via submission. Martinez is a southpaw who stands 5-8 tall with a reach of 70 inches. He is coming off a split decision loss to Andre Ewell at UFC 247.

Saenz has decent wrestling and that should work against an opponent whose main weakness is grappling and fighting on the mat. However, Martinez is two inches taller than Saenz and has a 3.5-inch advantage in reach. I think that Martinez has the edge in striking and with his edge in size, he can pick Saenz apart from a distance. Saenz is older and has more wear and tear. Martinez should be able to take advantage of that and outhustle the older man inside the cage.

Prediction: Jonathan Martinez (-245)

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Ed Herman vs Gerald Meerschaert

Ed Herman competed for Pancrase and Strikeforce. He was a finalist at The Ultimate Fighter 3 prior to joining the UFC. Herman has been competing in the UFC since 2007 and he has earned six post-fight bonuses inside the octagon. This 39-yer old from Vancouver, Washington has a record of 25-14 with seven knockouts and 13 wins via submission. Herman is 6-1 tall with a reach of 77 inches and is an orthodox fighter.

Gerald Meerschaert is a former RFA middleweight champion who also competed for Titan FC and King of the Cage. This 32-year old from Racine, Wisconsin joined the UFC in 2016 and has amassed an octagon record of 6-5. His overall record stands at 31-13 with six knockouts and 23 wins via submission. GM3 is 6-1 tall with a reach of 77 inches and is a southpaw fighter.

Herman is already 39-years old and has taken plenty of damage. Meerschaert’s body attack is going to slow down Herman as the fight progresses. Herman will struggle to outwork GM3 and the latter also has more punching power between these two. Meerschaert also has good grappling in case Herman decides to take this fight to the ground. GM3 should work at range and he will have more volume on the feet and win by decision.

Prediction: Gerald Meerschaert (-170)

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Ray Borg vs Nathan Manes

Ray Borg fought is the former SCS flyweight champion who also fought for King of the Cage and Legacy Fighting Championship. The 26-year old known as the Tazmexican Devil is 7-5 inside the octagon and has an overall record of 13-5 with one knockout and six wins via submission. He stands 5-4 tall with a reach of 63 inches while fighting out of the orthodox stance.

Nathan Manes is a former TKO MMA champion. The 29-year old Kentucky-based fighter also fought for HRMMA and has a record of 11-1 with four knockouts and two wins via submission. His only loss came in his last bout against former UFC fighter Taylor Lapilus. Maness stands 5-10 with a reach of 72 inches and is an orthodox fighter.

This is a very winnable fight for Ray Borg. Maness has the advantage in size but he is vulnerable to pressure and Borg likes to put on the pressure and push his opponents against the fence. I think that Borg will threaten Maness with takedowns and do excellent work in the pocket. Manes has good power but Borg has proved to be a durable fighter and has shown that he can return fire even when he’s hit. Speed and aggression will be the key for Borg here.

Prediction: Ray Borg (-240)

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Eric Spicely vs Markus Perez

Eric Spicely competed for RFA and CES MMA. He was a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Joanna vs Team Claudia. He signed with the UFC in 2016 and has picked up a record of 4-6 inside the octagon. Overall, Spicely is 12-5 with four knockouts and six wins via submission. He stands 6-1 tall with a reach of 73 inches and is an orthodox fighter. Spicely heads to this bout coming off a decision loss against Deron Winn.

Markus Perez is a former Legacy Fighting Alliance middleweight champion who also fought for Jungle Fight. This 30-year old from Sao Paulo in Brazil also competed for The Ultimate Fighter Brazil 3 tournament but lost in the opening round. He joined the UFC in 2017 and is 2-3 inside the octagon. Perez is 6-1 tall with a reach of 73 inches and is an orthodox fighter. His overall record is 12-3 with three knockouts and six wins via submission.

Perez has issues with his wrestling and durability. However, he should be able to hold his own against Spicely on the feet and he should be able to take his opponent to the ground without much problem. Spicely has impressive wrestling but has not been able to translate that strength to success in MMA. I think that Perez chokes out Spicely here or he wins a decision by taking top control throughout the bout.

Prediction: Markus Perez (-202)

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Jamall Emmers vs Timur Valiev

Jamall Emmers fought for Hero FC, RFA, and LFA before joining the UFC earlier this year. Emmers also appeared in the Contender Series in 2018. He stands 5-10 tall with a reach of 74 inches and is an orthodox fighter. He has a record of 17-5 with seven knockouts and three wins via submission. Emmers lost to Giga Chikdaze via split decision in his UFC debut at UFC 248.

Timur Valiev is a former Pankration world champion and a Russian Grappling Federation open winner. The 30-year old from Dagestan has fought for promotions like WSOF and PFL. He has a record of 14-2 with four knockouts and two wins via submission. Valiev stands 5-6 tall with an undisclosed reach and he fights out of the orthodox stance. Valiev has won four straight bouts since losing to Chris Gutierrez at WSOF 28.

Emmers has the height and reach advantage but even then, Valiev has shown that he can hold his own against 145ers. Emmers tends to start slow and he usually wrestles when he’s already down a round. That won’t work against the Dagestani who has a good balance and can get off his back in a hurry. He also uses movement and volume to offset his size disadvantage and all those should be enough to get the win here.

Prediction: Timur Valiev (-162)

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Chris Gutierrez vs Cody Durden

Chris Gutierrez is the former SCS and WFC bantamweight champion. The 29-year old from Boston, Massachusetts also fought for Bellator, WSOF, and LFA. He stands 5-9 tall wit ha reach of 67 inches and is an orthodox fighter. Gutierrez is 3-1 inside the Octagon and he has a record of 15-4 with seven knockouts and one win via submission. Gutierrez is coming off a TKO win against Vince Morales at UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs Burns last May 30th.

Cody Durden will be making his promotional debut this weekend. The American Top Team Atlanta standout fought for NFC and Valor Fighting Challenge before getting the call to replace Luke Sanders on Saturday’s event. He is 5-7 tall with a reach of 70 inches and is a southpaw fighter. Durden is 11-2 with five knockouts and five wins via submission. He heads to this bout on a seven-fight winning streak.

Durden looks like a good prospect who has decent striking and a strong wrestling pedigree. However, he’s untested and hasn’t faced quality opposition. Durden also took this fight on short notice and that could play a factor in this bout. Gutierrez has great footwork and a steady diet of leg kicks that should make it hard for Durden to take this fight to the mat. Shutting down Durden’s wrestling should take him off his game. Gutierez breaks him down steadily before finishing him in the second round.

Prediction: Chris Gutierrez (-320)

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