The second of four total fight cards this non-calendar week are ready to go for our MMASucka staff picks.
UFC Vegas 41, also titled as UFC Fight Night 196, will take place in just a short hour today, October 23 from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fights will begin at an earlier start time of 4:00pm ET (9:00pm BST / 1:00pm PT) on ESPN+ in the United States and BT Sports in the United Kingdom.
See all of our picks for Bellator 269: Fedor vs. Johnson taking place in Moscow, as a section of the fight card will run concurrently with UFC Vegas 41.
Stay tuned to MMASucka this upcoming Tuesday, October 26 for our Dana White’s Contender Series 45 picks as well as Wednesday, October 27 for the highly-anticipated PFL 10 2021 featuring six championship fights.
The Fights
Rivals Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori look to settle bad blood in our thrilling main event. The pairing will take place in the light heavyweight division (205 lbs.) instead of their usual middleweight class (185 lbs.), as the weight cut for Costa would not have been possible.
Costa’s undefeated professional run ended in September of last year, looking to start a new winning streak today following his second-round loss for the title against Israel Adesanya. The striker will look for a possible eleventh victory by way of knockout in his 13 total successes. Costa’s opponent, Vettori, also fell short in his last outing versus the aforementioned Adesanya by decision in June. The Italian will look to utilize his ground game that helped in prior wins; both five-round decisions within the past year over Jack Hermansson and Kevin Holland.
Exciting lightweights (155 lbs.) make up the co-main slot between Grant Dawson and Ricky Glenn. 27-year-old prospect Dawson aims for his ninth straight victory, lastly stopping Leonardo Santos in the final second of their March fight by knockout. Former WSOF featherweight champion Glenn returned to the octagon in June after nearly two and-a-half years of inactivity finishing Joaquim Silva with strikes in just 37 seconds.
See which fighters are being picked by the MMASucka staff for victory at UFC Vegas 41 further below.
Staff Picks
Throughout the calendar year, staff picks will be composed of main card fights from both UFC and Bellator events. Main card fights and selected preliminary fights will be selected for PFL MMA. Dana White’s Contender Series will be composed of the full fight card.
The WINNER of staff picks in 2021 will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from ProAmBelts or a chain from Championship Chains. For the third straight year, Michael DeSantis captured the 2020 victory compiling a record of 201-88.
Who are the MMASucka staff picking to win at UFC Vegas 41: Costa vs. Vettori? Find out below.
Staff Records after Dana White’s Contender Series 44:
1. Nate Freeman: 200-108
2. Wesley Riddle: 195-113
3. Michael DeSantis: 192-112
4. Frazer Krohn: 183-125
5. Mike Lynch: 170-128
6. Ash Camyab: 169-115
7. Jeremy Brand: 163-141
8. Andrew Benjamin: 121-124
9. Tim Wheaton: 108-82
10. Chris Presnell: 74-34
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
*Note – Bellator 269 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Nicolae Negumereanu (10-1) vs. Isaac Villanueva (18-12)
Jeremy Brand: Villanueva via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Negumereanu via Round 2 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Villanueva via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Negumereanu via Unanimous Decision
Mike Lynch: Villanueva via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Negumereanu via Round 3 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Villanueva via Round 2 TKO
Chris Presnell: Negumereanu via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Negumereanu: 4
Staff picking Villanueva: 4
Francisco Trinaldo (26-8) vs. Dwight Grant (11-3)
Jeremy Brand: Trinaldo via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Trinaldo via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Trinaldo via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Trinaldo via Unanimous Decision
Mike Lynch: Grant via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Grant via Split Decision
Tim Wheaton: Grant via Split Decision
Chris Presnell: Trinaldo via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Trinaldo: 5
Staff picking Grant: 3
Alex Caceres (18-12, 1 NC) vs. Seung Woo Choi (10-3)
Jeremy Brand: Caceres via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Woo Choi via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Woo Choi via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Caceres via Split Decision
Mike Lynch: Woo Choi via Round 3 TKO
Nate Freeman: Woo Choi via Split Decision
Tim Wheaton: Woo Choi via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Woo Choi via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Caceres: 2
Staff picking Woo Choi: 6
Jessica-Rose Clark (9-6, 1 NC) vs. Joselyne Edwards (10-3)
Jeremy Brand: Clark via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Clark via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Clark via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Clark via Unanimous Decision
Mike Lynch: Edwards via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Clark via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Edwards via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Clark via Round 1 SUB
Staff picking Clark: 6
Staff picking Edwards: 2
Grant Dawson (17-1) vs. Ricky Glenn (22-6-1)
Jeremy Brand: Dawson via Round 2 SUB
Wesley Riddle: Dawson via Round 2 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Dawson via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Dawson via Round 3 TKO
Mike Lynch: Dawson via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Dawson via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Dawson via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Dawson via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Dawson: 8
Staff picking Glenn: 0
Paulo Costa (13-1) vs. Marvin Vettori (17-5-1)
Jeremy Brand: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Vettori via Round 4 SUB
Frazer Krohn: Vettori via Round 5 TKO
Mike Lynch: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Vettori via Split Decision
Chris Presnell: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Costa: 1
Staff picking Vettori: 7
UFC VEGAS 41 FEATURED IMAGE:
Embed from Getty Images
