A lone fight card will be counted this weekend for our MMASucka staff picks.
UFC Vegas 55, also titled as UFC Fight Night 206, will take place later tonight, May 20 from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Five fights will take place on the main card beginning at 7:00pm ET (4:00pm PT) live for subscribers on ESPN+.
Results from the entire UFC Vegas 55: Holm vs. Vieira fight card will be available here at MMASucka.
Staff picks will return with UFC Vegas 56: Volkov vs. Rozenstruik on June 4.
The Fights
Top-ranked bantamweights Holly Holm and Ketlen Vieira will meet in the night’s featured main event.
Former divisional champion Holm makes her long-awaited return after a long break following her last appearance with a unanimous decision win over Irene Aldana in October of 2020. A win tonight would be her third straight putting the Jackson Wink MMA talent in line for a shot at the winner of July’s championship fight between Julianna Pena and Amanda Nunes. The same could be said for her opponent, Vieira, showing vast improvements to her game following a main event decision victor win November over former title holder Miesha Tate.
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Fireworks could be expected in the co-main event between Santiago Ponzinibbio and Michel Pereira. Argentina’s Ponzinibbio looks to recover in the win column after a back-and-forth decision went in the hands of Geoff Neal last December, while the unpredictable Pereira targets his fifth straight win and his second of 2022.
See further below for our main card UFC Vegas 55 staff picks.
Staff Picks
Staff picks in 2022 will follow the same set of rules from the 2021 season. 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 included for PFL MMA. Dana White’s Contender Series will be composed of the entire fight card; dates for this promotion’s return are soon-to-be announced.
The WINNER of staff picks in 2022 will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from ProAmBelts or a chain from Championship Chains. A winner is determined simply by the individual correctly picking the most victorious fighters at the year’s end. Nate Freeman secured his first victory with MMASucka in 2021 with a compiled record 243-136.
Find out who the MMASucka staff are picking to win at UFC Vegas 55: Holm vs. Vieira below.
Staff Records after UFC Vegas 54:
1T. Michael DeSantis: 92-47
1T. Nate Freeman: 92-47
3. Wesley Riddle: 91-48
4. Jeremy Brand: 90-49
5. Frazer Krohn: 88-51
6. William Dong: 87-52
7T. Mike Lynch: 86-53
7T. Tim Wheaton: 86-48
7T. Julio Monteros Jr.: 86-42
10T. Chris Presnell: 85-54
10T. Brandon Joint: 85-48
12T. Andrew Benjamin: 84-55
12T. Coby Weinsier: 84-45
14. Ash Camyab: 79-45
15. Jacek Okninski: 69-54
16. Chinyere Okafor: 56-26
17. Brian Knight: 53-29
18. Jack Goodwillie: 43-22
19. Matt Bricker: 24-22
20. Joe Porter: 8-4
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
Polyana Viana (12-4), +100
vs.
Tabatha Ricci (6-1), -130
Strawweight Division, 115 lbs.
Jeremy Brand: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Ricci via Split Decision
Michael DeSantis: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Ash Camyab: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Viana via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Mike Lynch: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Ricci via Split Decision
Chris Presnell: Viana via Unanimous Decision
Brandon Joint: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Ricci via Unanimous Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Ricci via Round 2 SUB
Staff picking Viana: 2
Staff picking Ricci: 11
Eryk Anders (14-5, 1 NC), +165
vs.
Jun Yong Park (13-5), -195
Middleweight Division, 185 lbs.
Jeremy Brand: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Yong Park via Unanimous Decision
Ash Camyab: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Mike Lynch: Yong Park via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Anders via Split Decision
Chris Presnell: Yong Park via Unanimous Decision
Brandon Joint: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Anders via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Anders via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Anders via Split Decision
Staff picking Anders: 10
Staff picking Yong Park: 3
Chidi Njokuani (21-7, 1 NC), -275
vs.
Dusko Todorovic (11-2), +220
Middleweight Division, 185 lbs.
Jeremy Brand: Njokuani via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Njokuani via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Njokuani via Round 1 TKO
Ash Camyab: Todorovic via Round 3 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Njokuani via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Todorovic via Round 2 TKO
Mike Lynch: Njokuani via Round 3 SUB
Nate Freeman: Njokuani via Round 1 TKO
Chris Presnell: Njokuani via Round 1 TKO
Brandon Joint: Todorovic via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Todorovic via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Todorovic via Unanimous Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Njokuani via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Njokuani: 8
Staff picking Todorovic: 5
Santiago Ponzinibbio (29-5), +120
vs.
Michel Pereira (27-11, 2 NC), -140
Welterweight Co-Main Event, 170 lbs.
Jeremy Brand: Ponzinibbio via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Pereira via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Pereira via Unanimous Decision
Ash Camyab: Ponzinibbio via Round 2 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Pereira via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Pereira via Round 3 TKO
Mike Lynch: Ponzinibbio via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Pereira via Split Decision
Chris Presnell: Ponzinibbio via Round 3 TKO
Brandon Joint: Ponzinibbio via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Ponzinibbio via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Pereira via Split Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Pereira via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Ponzinibbio: 6
Staff picking Pereira: 7
Holly Holm (14-5), -240
vs.
Ketlen Vieira (12-2), +195
Bantamweight Main Event, 135 lbs.
Jeremy Brand: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Holm via Round 4 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Ash Camyab: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Holm via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Mike Lynch: Holm via Round 3 TKO
Nate Freeman: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Brandon Joint: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Holm via Round 4 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Holm via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Holm: 13
Staff picking Vieira: 0
*Fight odds from DraftKings*
UFC VEGAS 55 FEATURED IMAGE:
Embed from Getty Images
