Card two of four this weekend is in for our MMASucka staff picks. Early tomorrow morning, February 22 will see RIZIN 21 kick off from the Hamamatsu Arena in Hamamatsu, Japan. The event will begin at 12:00am ET (9:00pm PT on Friday night). Catch the pay-per-view for just $20 on FITE TV with unlimited replays!
Make sure to check out our picks for Bellator 239 going down later tonight. Also, stay tuned to MMASucka for our Bellator 240 and UFC Fight Night 168 picks tomorrow throughout the day.
The Fights
Middleweights Marcos Yoshio de Souza and Falco Neto are set to meet in the main event. Seasoned Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ace and multi-time champion de Souza hopes to find success in his second promotional fight, having suffered a defeat to Keita Nakamura in October. Despite this, he holds eight MMA victories with only a single bout going to a decision. De Souza will attempt to make his way back up the divisional ranks while in search of a potential seventh win by submission. His opponent, Neto, has had his shares of highs and lows in competition. An alteration of victories and defeats has followed his career since 2014, most recently a knockout loss to Fabian Edwards last May in Bellator. A win over de Souza would not only fit the pattern of his record but come as the biggest win of Neto’s career.
Victory Henry and Masanori Kanehara will faceoff in a highly anticipated co-main event. The two battled in June of 2018 under Japan’s QUINTET grappling promotion, Kanehara advancing that night with a late submission. Henry has racked up six straight wins in various promotions, most recently submitting Trent Girdham in August. Kanehara will make his return to MMA, the veteran’s last fight (and win) coming in 2018.
Also counted towards our staff picks will see fighters including Tri-Force Jiu-Jitsu Academy’s Mikuru Asakura, Guam’s Roque Martinez, and the aforementioned Trent Girdham. Catch the remaining fights for RIZIN 21 further below.
Staff Picks
Throughout the year, staff picks will be composed of five different MMA promotions. UFC, Bellator, ONE, and RIZIN all appeared for the 2019 season and will make returns. The newest addition for the 2020 year will see the PFL including their regular season, playoffs, and championship card. A special staff picks bonus will be introduced and discussed regarding PFL’s playoff format as time gets closer.
Main cards will makeup both UFC and Bellator picks, while the biggest fights to make up ONE, RIZIN, and PFL events will be used. The WINNER of staff picks will have a choice between receiving a championship belt from ProAmBelts or a championship chain from Championship Chains. The 2019 winner was awarded to Michael DeSantis, compiling a record of 321-178. Second-place Connor Deitrich collected a close score of 319-180 with third-place Ed Gallo not far behind totaling at 312-183.
Check out our staff picks for RIZIN 21 below.
Staff Records after UFC Fight Night 167:
1T. Wesley Riddle: 29-9
1T. Michael DeSantis: 29-9
1T. Connor Deitrich: 29-9
1T. Dan Rose: 29-9
5. Ashwin Viswanathan: 28-10
6T. Ed Gallo: 27-11
6T. Matt Bricker: 27-11
8. Ash Camyab: 26-12
9T. Jeremy Brand: 25-13
9T. Frazer Krohn: 25-13
11. Andrew Benjamin: 24-14
12. Mike Skytte: 23-15
13T. McKenzie Guardiero: 22-16
13T. Mike Lynch: 22-16
13T. Nate Freeman: 22-12, missed one card
16. Mitchell Banuelos: 20-9, missed two cards
17. Ryan Hobbs: 19-19
18. Jeremy Cook: 10-5, missed five cards
19. Jack Buchanan: 10-5, missed five cards
*Results from all cards & events this weekend will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Trent Girdham (12-3) vs. Naoki Inoue (12-2)
Jeremy Brand: Inoue via UD
Wesley Riddle: Girdham via UD
Mike Skytte: Girdham via Round 2 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Inoue via UD
Mitchell Banuelos: Inoue via UD
Ed Gallo: Inoue via UD
Matt Bricker: Inoue via UD
Connor Deitrich: Inoue via UD
Ash Camyab: Inoue via UD
Ryan Hobbs: Inoue via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Girdham via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Inoue via Round 2 TKO
McKenzie Guardiero: Inoue via UD
Dan Rose: Inoue via UD
Mike Lynch: Inoue via Round 1 SUB
Jeremy Cook: N/A
Ashwin Viswanathan: Girdham via UD
Nate Freeman: Inoue via UD
Jack Buchanan: Inoue via Round 2 SUB
Staff picking Girdham: 4
Staff picking Inoue: 14
Roque Martinez (14-5-2) vs. Hideki Sekine (7-3)
Jeremy Brand: Martinez via UD
Wesley Riddle: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Mike Skytte: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Mitchell Banuelos: Martinez via Round 2 TKO
Ed Gallo: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Matt Bricker: Martinez via Round 3 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Ash Camyab: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Ryan Hobbs: Sekine via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Martinez via UD
McKenzie Guardiero: Martinez via Round 2 TKO
Dan Rose: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Sekine via UD
Jeremy Cook: N/A
Ashwin Viswanathan: Martinez via Round 3 TKO
Nate Freeman: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Jack Buchanan: Martinez via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Martinez: 16
Staff picking Sekine: 2
Mikuru Asakura (12-1, 1 NC) vs. Daniel Salas (16-6-1)
Jeremy Brand: Asakura via UD
Wesley Riddle: Asakura via Round 1 TKO
Mike Skytte: Asakura via UD
Michael DeSantis: Asakura via Round 2 TKO
Mitchell Banuelos: Asakura via UD
Ed Gallo: Asakura via Round 1 TKO
Matt Bricker: Asakura via Round 2 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Asakura via Round 1 TKO
Ash Camyab: Asakura via Round 3 TKO
Ryan Hobbs: Salas via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Asakura via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Asakura via Round 2 TKO
McKenzie Guardiero: Salas via UD
Dan Rose: Asakura via UD
Mike Lynch: Salas via UD
Jeremy Cook: N/A
Ashwin Viswanathan: Asakura via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Asakura via UD
Jack Buchanan: Asakura via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Asakura: 15
Staff picking Salas: 3
Victor Henry (19-4) vs. Masanori Kanehara (27-13-5)
Jeremy Brand: Henry via Round 2 SUB
Wesley Riddle: Henry via SD
Mike Skytte: Henry via UD
Michael DeSantis: Henry via UD
Mitchell Banuelos: Henry via UD
Ed Gallo: Henry via Round 2 SUB
Matt Bricker: Henry via Round 3 SUB
Connor Deitrich: Henry via Round 2 SUB
Ash Camyab: Henry via Round 1 SUB
Ryan Hobbs: Henry via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Henry via UD
Frazer Krohn: Henry via SD
McKenzie Guardiero: Henry via UD
Dan Rose: Henry via Round 3 SUB
Mike Lynch: Henry via Round 2 SUB
Jeremy Cook: N/A
Ashwin Viswanathan: Henry via UD
Nate Freeman: Henry via Round 2 TKO
Jack Buchanan: Henry via UD
Staff picking Henry: 18
Staff picking Kanehara: 0
Marcos Yoshio de Souza (8-2) vs. Falco Neto (11-10)
Jeremy Brand: Neto via UD
Wesley Riddle: de Souza via Round 1 SUB
Mike Skytte: Neto via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: de Souza via Round 1 SUB
Mitchell Banuelos: de Souza via Round 1 SUB
Ed Gallo: de Souza via UD
Matt Bricker: Neto via Round 1 TKO
Connor Deitrich: de Souza via UD
Ash Camyab: Neto via Round 3 TKO
Ryan Hobbs: de Souza via UD
Andrew Benjamin: de Souza via Round 1 SUB
Frazer Krohn: de Souza via Round 2 SUB
McKenzie Guardiero: de Souza via UD
Dan Rose: Neto via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Neto via Round 2 TKO
Jeremy Cook: N/A
Ashwin Viswanathan: de Souza via Round 2 SUB
Nate Freeman: de Souza via Round 1 SUB
Jack Buchanan: de Souza via Round 3 SUB
Staff picking de Souza: 12
Staff picking Neto: 6
FEATURED RIZIN 21 IMAGE:
Victor Henry (left) and Masanori Kanehara (right) pose for the cameras ahead of their RIZIN 21 co-main event fight taking place Saturday, February 22nd from the Hamamatsu Arena in Hamamatsu, Japan (photo credits to RIZIN Fighting Federation)
