Two championships and MMASucka staff picks will be settled tonight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
UFC 292 will take place later today, August 19th from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, coming as the promotion’s return to the state and capital city for the first time since UFC on ESPN 6: Reyes vs. Weidman in October of 2019. The early preliminary card kicks off at 6:30pm ET (3:30pm PT) on UFC Fight Pass followed by the regular preliminary card at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) on both cable ESPN and ESPN+ for subscribers. Pay-per-view matchups are available to watch with purchase through ESPN+.
Stay tuned to MMASucka for live UFC 292: Sterling vs. O’Malley results.
Take a look at our staff picks from Friday night’s PFL 8 2023 Playoffs from New York City. Also, be sure to catch our picks this upcoming Tuesday, August 22nd for our Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 7, Week 2 picks from Las Vegas.
The Fights
The first of two thrilling title fights sees current UFC Bantamweight Champion Aljamain Sterling set to defend against challenger Sean O’Malley in the five-round main event.
New York’s own Sterling claimed the divisional championship in March of 2021 following a controversial disqualification over Petr Yan. The Serra-Longo Fight Team talent silenced doubters a year later with his unification, defense, and rematch win over Yan and has since defended the belt two additional times over former champions: a second-round knockout over T.J. Dillashaw last October and a split decision over Henry Cejudo in May. Sterling’s opponent, O’Malley, will make his eleventh appearance with the UFC dating back to his electric 2017 contract-winning knockout on season one of Dana White’s Contender Series over Alfred Khashakyan. With only one professional defeat to Marlon Vera in his 18 fights, the 28-year-old looks to make the most of his first shot at gold.
Taking place in the co-main event sees dangerous finishers Zhang Weili and Amanda Lemos ready to contest for the UFC’s Strawweight Championship. Two-time Kunlun Fight and UFC Champion, Weili, recaptured the title with a dominant performance over Carla Esparza in November of last year en route to a second-round rear-naked choke. Challenger and former Jungle Fight Bantamweight Champion, Lemos, earned her rightful shot following back-to-back stoppages last year over Michelle Waterson by guillotine and Marina Rodriguez by technical knockout.
Former Cage Warriors Welterweight Champion, youthful prospect Ian Machado Garry, aims to keep his undefeated streak intact as he battles well-rounded UFC veteran Neil Magny in the welterweight division. Magny stepped in on less than two weeks’ notice after originally-scheduled Geoff Neal was forced out due to an undisclosed medical issue.
Two additional fights make up the pay-per-view ahead with both being contested at bantamweight. Former Cage Fury FC Bantamweight Champion Da’Mon Blackshear faces off against MMA Lab’s Mario Bautista, and the aforementioned Marlon Vera takes on former RFA Bantamweight Champ and scrappy contender Pedro Munhoz in a must-watch, main card opener.
Find our staff picks and predictions for UFC 292: Sterling vs. O’Malley further below.
FUNK MASTER vs SUGA SEAN FOR THE WORLD TITLE 🏆@FunkMasterMMA and @SugaSeanMMA for the bantamweight throne TOMORROW!
[ 10pmET / 7pmPT | LIVE on @ESPNPlus PPV: https://t.co/wE9PL5aRTn ] pic.twitter.com/xyreqH3qaW
— UFC (@ufc) August 18, 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.
See below for our pay-per-view staff picks from UFC 292: Sterling vs. O’Malley.
Staff Records after Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 7, Week 2:
Ben Jamieson: 191-101
Michael DeSantis: 186-106
Jeremy Brand: 183-109
Nate Freeman: 181-111
Wesley Riddle: 178-114
Frazer Krohn: 175-117
Julio Monteros Jr.: 163-98
Jack Goodwillie: 139-83
Andrew Benjamin: 137-118
Brian Knight: 126-79
Tim Wheaton: 105-60
Roemello Reyes: 62-34
Jonathan Andrade: 31-24
Brandon Joint: 12-9
Andrew Harbaugh: 10-7
Joshua Yule: 7-6
Chris De Santiago: 6-6
Antwyn Jackson: 5-6
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
*Note – PFL 8 2023 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Marlon Vera (20-8-1), -185
vs.
Pedro Munhoz (20-7), +154
Bantamweight Division
– 135 LBS. ~ 61.2 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Vera via Split Decision
Michael DeSantis: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Vera via Round 3 TKO
Brian Knight: Vera via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Vera via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Vera: 10
Staff picking Munhoz: 0
Da’Mon Blackshear (14-5-1), +180
vs.
Mario Bautista (12-2), -218
Bantamweight Division
– 135 LBS. ~ 61.2 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Bautista via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Bautista via Split Decision
Michael DeSantis: Bautista via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Blackshear via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Bautista via Split Decision
Nate Freeman: Bautista via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Bautista via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Bautista via Round 3 SUB
Jack Goodwillie: Bautista via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Bautista via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Blackshear: 1
Staff picking Bautista: 9
Neil Magny (28-11), +380
vs.
Ian Machado Garry (12-0), -500
Welterweight Division
– 170 LBS. ~ 77.1 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Magny via Round 2 SUB
Wesley Riddle: Machado Garry via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Machado Garry via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Benjamin: Magny via Round 3 SUB
Frazer Krohn: Machado Garry via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Machado Garry via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Machado Garry via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Machado Garry via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Machado Garry via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Machado Garry via Round 3 TKO
Staff picking Magny: 2
Staff picking Machado Garry: 8
Zhang Weili (23-3), -325
vs.
Amanda Lemos (13-2-1), +260
Women’s Strawweight Divisional Championship
– Co-Main Event –
– 115 LBS. ~ 52.2 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Weili via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Weili via Round 3 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Weili via Round 2 SUB
Andrew Benjamin: Weili via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Weili via Round 4 TKO
Nate Freeman: Weili via Round 2 SUB
Julio Monteros Jr.: Weili via Round 3 TKO
Brian Knight: Weili via Unanimous Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Weili via Round 3 TKO
Ben Jamieson: Weili via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Weili: 10
Staff picking Lemos: 0
Aljamain Sterling (23-3), -245
vs.
Sean O’Malley (16-1), +200
Bantamweight Divisional Championship
– Main Event –
– 135 LBS. ~ 61.2 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Sterling via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Sterling via Unanimous Decision
Michael DeSantis: Sterling via Round 2 SUB
Andrew Benjamin: Sterling via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Sterling via Round 5 SUB
Nate Freeman: Sterling via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Sterling via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Sterling via Unanimous Decision
Jack Goodwillie: O’Malley via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Sterling via Round 1 SUB
Staff picking Sterling: 9
Staff picking O’Malley: 1
