Part two of our double-header weekend is in for our MMASucka staff picks.
In just a few hours tonight, August 20th, sees UFC 278 take place from the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. The event comes as the promotion’s second-ever event at the venue, lastly being contested in August of 2016 where Yair Rodriguez and Alex Caceres contested five rounds in a “Fight of the Night” main event. Tonight’s main card will begin at 10:00pm ET (7:00pm PT) live on pay-per-view available for purchase through ESPN+.
Live results from the entire UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards 2 event will be available here at MMASucka.
Take a look at our staff picks for this afternoon’s PFL 9 2022 playoff event from London. Also, stay tuned this upcoming Tuesday for our Dana White’s Contender Series 51 picks from Las Vegas.
The Fights
A highly anticipated rematch comes in the main event as Kamaru Usman looks to defend his UFC welterweight title against challenger Leon Edwards. The two previously met in December of 2015, as the two near-professional newcomers fought three rounds for Usman to take the unanimous decision.
The Ultimate Fighter 21 winner Usman has since won thirteen fights including his capturing of the championship over Tyron Woodley in early 2019. A victory tonight would be his sixth title defense and his first of the calendar year. Edwards has also yet to face defeat after his fight with Usman, having nine straight wins including three in twenty-five minute contests over Donald Cerrone, Rafael dos Anjos, and, most recently, Nate Diaz. He looks for not only revenge but for his first strap of gold since his temporary reign as BAMMA’s welterweight champion in 2014.
Check out our staff picks for the UFC 278 pay-per-view further below.
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.
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.
See below for our UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards 2 picks.
Staff Records after Dana White’s Contender Series 50:
1. Nate Freeman: 171-89
2. Wesley Riddle: 170-90
3. Michael DeSantis: 167-93
4. Frazer Krohn: 166-94
5. William Dong: 163-97
6. Jeremy Brand: 159-95
7. Chris Presnell: 151-103
8. Julio Monteros Jr.: 149-81
9. Andrew Benjamin: 148-111
10. Tim Wheaton: 138-82
11. Mike Lynch: 123-74
12. Brandon Joint: 111-72
13. Brian Knight: 109-50
14. Ash Camyab: 105-77
15. Coby Weinsier: 87-47
16. Chinyere Okafor: 72-38
17. Jacek Okninski: 70-58
18. Roemello Reyes: 27-16
19. Matt Bricker: 24-22
20. Joe Porter 11-5
21. Ben Jamieson: 9-10
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
*Note – PFL 9 2022 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Tyson Pedro (8-3)
vs.
Harry Hunsucker (7-5)
Light Heavyweight Division
– 205 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Pedro via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Pedro via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Pedro via Round 1 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Pedro via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Pedro via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Pedro via Round 1 SUB
Tim Wheaton: Hunsucker via Round 1 TKO
Chris Presnell: Pedro via Round 1 TKO
William Dong: Pedro via Round 1 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Pedro via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Pedro via Round 3 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Pedro via Round 1 SUB
Ben Jamieson: Pedro via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Pedro: 12
Staff picking Hunsucker: 1
Wu Yanan (12-5)
vs.
Lucie Pudilova (8-6)
Women’s Bantamweight Division
– 135 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Pudilova via Split Decision
Tim Wheaton: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Yanan via Unanimous Decision
William Dong: Yanan via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Yanan via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Pudilova via Split Decision
Ben Jamieson: Pudilova via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Yanan: 3
Staff picking Pudilova: 10
Jose Aldo (31-7)
vs.
Merab Dvalishvili (14-4)
Bantamweight Division
– 135 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Aldo via Round 3 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
William Dong: Aldo via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Aldo via Split Decision
Brian Knight: Aldo via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Dvalishvili via Split Decision
Ben Jamieson: Dvalishvili via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Aldo: 11
Staff picking Dvalishvili: 2
Paulo Costa (13-2)
vs.
Luke Rockhold (16-5)
Middleweight Co-Main Event
– 185 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Rockhold via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Costa via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Costa via Round 1 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Rockhold via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Costa via Round 3 TKO
Nate Freeman: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Chris Presnell: Costa via Round 1 TKO
William Dong: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Costa via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Costa: 11
Staff picking Rockhold: 2
Kamaru Usman (20-1)
vs.
Leon Edwards (19-3, 1 NC)
Welterweight Divisional Championship
Main Event
– 170 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Usman via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Usman via Round 5 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Usman via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Usman via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Usman via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Usman via Round 3 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Edwards via Unanimous Decision
Chris Presnell: Usman via Unanimous Decision
William Dong: Usman via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Usman via Round 4 TKO
Brian Knight: Usman via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Edwards via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Usman via Round 5 TKO
Staff picking Usman: 11
Staff picking Edwards: 2
UFC 278 FEATURED IMAGE:
Embed from Getty Images
