Part three for our triple-header weekend for MMASucka staff picks are in.
Closing out the day sees UFC on ESPN 47 set for action later today, June 17th, from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Preliminary fights begin at 7:00pm ET (4:00pm PT) on both and ESPN 2 followed by the main card at 10:00pm ET (7:00pm PT) on ESPN. All fights are available to watch for subscribers to ESPN+.
Live results from UFC on ESPN 47: Vettori vs. Cannonier are available here at MMASucka.
Be sure to recap our staff picks from Friday’s Bellator 297: Nemkov vs. Romero event in Chicago and PFL 5 2023 from Atlanta.
The Fights
A pivotal main event awaits for the UFC’s middleweight division as Marvin Vettori and Jared Cannonier faceoff in a potential five-round exchange. The two sit third and fourth within their divisional rankings, respectively, and look for momentum towards a second shot in a championship fight with both losing decisions in their first opportunities to Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya.
Italy’s Vettori is set for his second fight of the calendar year after securing a unanimous decision over Roman Dolidze in March at UFC 286. After a recent switch to train out of Xtreme Couture, the well-versed combat athlete looks to climb his way back towards a shot to the title and his 20th professional victory dating back to his first MMA win nearly ten years ago. Vettori’s opponent, Cannonier, closed the UFC’s 2022 with split decision over Sean Strickland in his first fight back after coming up short in his chance at the title. Since dropping to the 185 pound division, the 39-year-old has become one of the world’s best as he targets a seventh victory out of nine total at middleweight.
Arman Tsarukyan and Joaquim Silva look to steal the show in the night’s co-main event at lightweight. Master of Sport in MMA and Freestyle Wrestling, Tsarukyan, aims for two in-a-row after a unanimous decision last December over Damir Ismagulov. The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 4 competitor, Silva, gets his biggest test to date after his thrilling finish of Jesse Ronson at UFC Vegas 61 in October.
Due to the late main card addition of Nicolas Dalby and Muslim Salikhov due to an injury to Miles Johns in his scheduled fight with Raoni Barcelos, this fight will not be included in our picks. Find the five fights counted at UFC on ESPN 47: Vettori vs. Cannonier further below.
Former MW title challengers go head-to-head 👀💥@MarvinVettori vs Jared Cannonier star in your main event tomorrow night!!! #UFCVegas75 | Jun 17 | Main Card 10pmET | LIVE on @ESPN pic.twitter.com/pYBRS7b5dC
— UFC (@ufc) June 16, 2023
2023 Staff Picks
MMASucka staff picks are composed of five promotions: 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, who picked the most victorious fighters, will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from ProAmBelts or a chain from Championship Chains. Staff picks in 2022 was won by Wesley Riddle with a record of 264-135.
Claim your bonus and bet on UFC on ESPN 47 at DraftKings Sportsbook.
See below for our UFC on ESPN 47: Vettori vs. Cannonier picks.
Staff Records after UFC 289:
1T. Michael DeSantis: 123-61
1T. Ben Jamieson: 123-61
3. Jeremy Brand: 119-65
4. Nate Freeman: 118-66
5. Frazer Krohn: 116-68
6. Wesley Riddle: 115-69
7. Tim Wheaton: 105-60
8. Julio Monteros Jr.: 102-66
9. Brian Knight: 94-51
10. Andrew Benjamin: 91-77
11. Jack Goodwillie: 90-53
12. Roemello Reyes: 62-34
13. Jonathan Andrade: 29-21
14. Brandon Joint: 12-9
15. Andrew Harbaugh: 10-7
16. Joshua Yule: 7-6
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
*Note – Bellator 297 & PFL 5 2023 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Manuel Torres (13-2), -190
vs.
Nikolas Motta (13-4), +160
Lightweight Division
– 155 LBS. ~ 70.3 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Torres via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Torres via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Torres via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Torres via Round 2 SUB
Nate Freeman: Torres via Round 3 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Torres via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Motta via Unanimous Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Torres via Round 2 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Torres via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Torres: 8
Staff picking Motta: 1
Pat Sabatini (17-4), -180
vs.
Lucas Almeida (14-1), +155
Featherweight Division
– 145 LBS. ~ 65.8 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Sabatini via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Sabatini via Split Decision
Michael DeSantis: Sabatini via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Almeida via Round 1 SUB
Nate Freeman: Sabatini via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Sabatini via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Almeida via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Sabatini via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Sabatini via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Sabatini: 7
Staff picking Almeida: 2
Armen Petrosyan (8-2), +140
vs.
Christian Leroy Duncan (8-0), -165
Middleweight Division
– 185 LBS. ~ 83.9 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Petrosyan via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Leroy Duncan via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Leroy Duncan via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Leroy Duncan via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Leroy Duncan via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Petrosyan via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Leroy Duncan via Unanimous Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Leroy Duncan via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Leroy Duncan via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Petrosyan: 2
Staff picking Leroy Duncan: 6
Arman Tsarukyan (19-3), -1050
vs.
Joaquim Silva (12-4), +700
Lightweight Division
– Co-Main Event –
– 155 LBS. ~ 70.3 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Tsarukyan via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Tsarukyan via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Tsarukyan via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Tsarukyan via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Tsarukyan via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Tsarukyan via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Tsarukyan via Round 1 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Tsarukyan via Round 3 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Tsarukyan via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Tsarukyan: 9
Staff picking Silva: 0
Marvin Vettori (19-6-1), -125
vs.
Jared Cannonier (16-6), +105
Middleweight Division
– Main Event –
– 185 LBS. ~ 83.9 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Vettori via Split Decision
Michael DeSantis: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Vettori via Split Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Vettori via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Vettori: 9
Staff picking Cannonier: 0
UFC ON ESPN 47 FEATURED IMAGE:
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JUNE 16: (L-R) Opponents Arman Tsarukyan of Georgia and Joaquim Silva of Brazil face off during the UFC weigh-in at UFC APEX on June 16, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
