MMASucka staff picks are locked in for the second-half of our double-header night.
UFC Vegas 68, also titled as UFC Fight Night 218, will take place tonight, February 4th, and continue on throughout the early morning hours of February 5th from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Preliminary fights will kick off at 10:00pm ET (7:00pm PT) with the main card beginning at 1:00am ET (10:00pm PT). All fights will be available to ESPN+ subscribers.
Results from UFC Vegas 68: Lewis vs. Spivak are available here at MMASucka.
Be sure to check out our picks for tonight’s Bellator 290: Bader vs. Fedor 2 event from Inglewood, California.
The Fights
Heavyweight finishers collide in the night’s featured main event between Derrick Lewis and Sergey Spivak. The two were originally to meet in November of last year until a medical issue forced Lewis out of the pairing and Spivak without an opponent.
Former divisional title challenger Lewis hopes for a much-needed victory after facing back-to-back defeats in 2022. His last win, a first-round finish over Chris Daukaus, saw the striking specialist move to first in UFC history with 13 promotional knockouts; the 21st of 26 wins to his resume. Lewis’s opponent, Spivak, rides opposite momentum with his two knockouts last year over Greg Hardy and Augusto Sakai. The Moldovan, who turned 28 years of age a week and-a-half ago, will look to make the most of his first headlining bout in his tenth octagon walk.
In the co-main event, Da Un Jung and Devin Clark are set to clash in the light heavyweight division. Jung saw his 15-fight win streak snap to Dustin Jacoby last July by knockout as the former HEAT light heavyweight champion looks to start a new streak. Sioux Falls native Clark also looks to rebound after suffering a knockout loss last August to the undefeated Azamat Murzakanov.
Also on the main card sees the return of fan-favorite finisher Doo Ho Choi who will clash with Ontario’s Kyle Nelson.
Four matchups on the preliminary card (not counted towards staff picks) will see Road to UFC’s tournament finals in the flyweight, bantamweight, featherweight, and lightweight divisions.
See the other fights and our picks for the main card of UFC Vegas 68 further below.
The big boys are ready to put on a show 👊@TheBeast_UFC and Serghei Spivac finally go head-to-head TOMORROW NIGHT!
[ #UFCVegas68 | Feb 4 | 10pmPT Main Card on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/PhcwHZn8vR
— UFC (@ufc) February 3, 2023
Staff Picks
MMASucka staff picks are composed of five promotions throughout all of 2023: the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Bellator MMA, ONE Championship, the Professional Fighters League (PFL), and Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS). UFC and Bellator events feature picks from only main cards. PFL will feature select fights from the main and preliminary card while DWCS sees all fights counted from the event. ONE Championship returns to picks for the first time since 2020 and will feature only mixed martial arts (MMA) fights selected from cards with a minimum three matchups.
The WINNER of staff picks at the end of 2023 will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from ProAmBelts or a chain from Championship Chains. Wesley Riddle won staff picks in 2022 with a record of 264-135.
Find out who the MMASucka staff are picking to win at UFC Vegas 68: Lewis vs. Spivak below.
Staff Records after UFC 283:
1T. Nate Freeman: 9-4
1T. Ben Jamieson: 9-4
3T. Jeremy Brand: 8-5
3T. Tim Wheaton: 8-5
3T. Brian Knight: 8-5
3T. Roemello Reyes: 8-5
7T. Wesley Riddle: 7-6
7T. Frazer Krohn: 7-6
7T. Brandon Joint: 7-6
7T. Jack Goodwillie: 7-6
7T. Joshua Yule: 7-6
12T. Michael DeSantis: 6-7
12T. Andrew Benjamin: 6-7
12T. Andrew Harbaugh: 6-2
15. Julio Monteros Jr.: 3-2
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
Yusaku Kinoshita (6-1), -350
vs.
Adam Fugitt (8-3), +290
Welterweight Division
– 170 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Fugitt via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Kinoshita via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Kinoshita via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Kinoshita via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Kinoshita via Round 2 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Kinoshita via Round 2 TKO
Brandon Joint: Kinoshita via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Kinoshita via Round 3 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Kinoshita via Round 2 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Kinoshita via Round 1 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Kinoshita via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Kinoshita: 10
Staff picking Fugitt: 1
Dooho Choi (14-3), -190
vs.
Kyle Nelson (13-5), +160
Featherweight Division
– 145 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Choi via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Choi via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Choi via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Choi via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Choi via Split Decision
Tim Wheaton: Choi via Unanimous Decision
Brandon Joint: Nelson via Split Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Choi via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Choi via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Choi via Round 1 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Choi via Round 3 TKO
Staff picking Choi: 10
Staff picking Nelson: 1
Marcin Tybura (23-7), -140
vs.
Blagoy Ivanov (19-4, 1 NC), +120
Heavyweight Division
– 265 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Tybura via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Tybura via Split Decision
Michael DeSantis: Tybura via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Ivanov via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Ivanov via Split Decision
Tim Wheaton: Ivanov via Unanimous Decision
Brandon Joint: Tybura via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Tybura via Majority Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Tybura via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Tybura via Split Decision
Ben Jamieson: Tybura via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Tybura: 8
Staff picking Ivanov: 3
Da Un Jung (15-3-1), -255
vs.
Devin Clark (13-7), +215
Light Heavyweight Division
Co-Main Event
– 205 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Jung via Round 1 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Jung via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Jung via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Jung via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Jung via Unanimous Decision
Tim Wheaton: Clark via Round 2 TKO
Brandon Joint: Clark via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Jung via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Jung via Round 2 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Jung via Round 2 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Jung via Round 3 SUB
Staff picking Jung: 9
Staff picking Clark: 2
Derrick Lewis (26-10), +200
vs.
Sergey Spivak (15-3), -240
Heavyweight Division
Main Event
– 265 lbs. –
Jeremy Brand: Lewis via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Spivak via Round 2 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Lewis via Round 3 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Lewis via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Spivak via Round 3 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Lewis via Round 1 TKO
Brandon Joint: Lewis via Round 1 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Lewis via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Spivak via Round 1 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Spivak via Round 2 SUB
Ben Jamieson: Spivak via Round 1 SUB
Staff picking Lewis: 6
Staff picking Spivak: 4
