The second third of the calendar year comes to an end for our MMASucka staff picks. Later this evening, August 29 will see UFC Fight Night 175 go down from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. The main card will begin at 9:00pm ET (6:00pm PT) live on ESPN+.
The Fights
A pivotal matchup in the light heavyweight division will fall in the main event between Anthony Smith and Aleksandar Rakic. With former king Jon Jones vacating the belt two weeks ago and an upcoming title fight between Dominick Reyes and Jan Blachowicz, both men are looking for massive statements to claim a shot at the winner. Smith has made his mark since moving up to 205 pounds in 2018, since earning four finishes with only two defeats. He will look to rebound following a recent defeat to Glover Teixeira. His opponent, Rakic, also looks to recover after his second professional defeat to Volkan Oezdemir late last year. The controversial loss snapped a twelve-fight win streak, yet despite this, the Austrian will search for his tenth victory by stoppage.
Welterweight veterans Robbie Lawler and Neil Magny will meet in the co-main event. Fan-favorite and former UFC welterweight champion Lawler looks to snap a three-fight skid in search of his first victory since July of 2017. Magny aims for a third straight win of the year while looking to become second all-time with UFC wins at 170 pounds (16 current); behind only Georges St-Pierre (19).
Also on the main card includes the flyweight debut of Alexa Grasso, former featherweight title challenger Ricardo Lamas, and a highly anticipated rematch between 205-pounders Magomed Ankalaev and Ion Cutelaba.
See our MMASucka staff picks for UFC Fight Night 175 further below.
Staff Picks
Throughout the year, staff picks will be composed of five different MMA promotions. UFC, Bellator, ONE, and RIZIN all appeared for the 2019 season and will make returns. The newest addition for the 2020 year will see the PFL including their regular season, playoffs, and championship card. A special staff picks bonus will be introduced and discussed regarding PFL’s playoff format as time gets closer.
Main cards will makeup both UFC and Bellator picks, while the biggest fights to make up ONE, RIZIN, and PFL events will be used. The WINNER of staff picks will have a choice between receiving a championship belt from ProAmBelts or a championship chain from Championship Chains. The 2019 winner was awarded to Michael DeSantis, compiling a record of 321-178. Second-place Connor Deitrich collected a close score of 319-180 with third-place Ed Gallo not far behind totaling at 312-183.
Check out our UFC Fight Night 175 staff picks below.
Staff Records after UFC on ESPN 15:
1. Connor Deitrich: 127-53
2. Michael DeSantis: 125-54
3. Wesley Riddle: 116-56
4. Matt Bricker: 114-66
5. Frazer Krohn: 106-74
6T. Dan Rose: 105-75
6T. Jack Buchanan: 105-52
8. Jeremy Brand: 104-63
9. Nate Freeman: 102-66
10. McKenzie Guardiero: 101-79
11. Ash Camyab: 100-76
12. Ryan Hobbs: 99-64
13. Mike Lynch: 97-60
14. Andrew Benjamin: 90-84
15. Ashwin Viswanathan: 81-49
16. Mike Skytte: 67-45
17. Mitchell Banuelos: 64-39
18. Ed Gallo: 54-27
19. Joshua Yule: 48-26
20. Jeremy Cook: 14-6
*Note: not all staff has picked for every event*
Magomed Ankalaev (13-1) vs. Ion Cutelaba (15-5, 1 NC)
Jeremy Brand: Ankalaev via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Ankalaev via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Ankalaev via Round 2 TKO
Matt Bricker: Ankalaev via UD
Connor Deitrich: Ankalaev via Round 3 TKO
Ash Camyab: Cutelaba via Round 1 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Cutelaba via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Ankalaev via UD
McKenzie Guardiero: Cutelaba via UD
Dan Rose: Ankalaev via Round 2 TKO
Mike Lynch: Ankalaev via UD
Ashwin Viswanathan: Cutelaba via UD
Nate Freeman: Ankalaev via UD
Jack Buchanan: Ankalaev via Round 3 TKO
Joshua Yule: Ankalaev via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Ankalaev: 11
Staff picking Cutelaba: 4
Ricardo Lamas (19-8) vs. Bill Algeo (13-4)
Jeremy Brand: Lamas via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Lamas via Round 2 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Lamas via UD
Matt Bricker: Lamas via Round 1 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Lamas via Round 1 TKO
Ash Camyab: Lamas via Round 2 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Lamas via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Lamas via Round 2 TKO
McKenzie Guardiero: Lamas via Round 2 SUB
Dan Rose: Lamas via UD
Mike Lynch: Lamas via Round 1 SUB
Ashwin Viswanathan: Lamas via UD
Nate Freeman: Lamas via Round 2 SUB
Jack Buchanan: Lamas via UD
Joshua Yule: Lamas via UD
Staff picking Lamas: 15
Staff picking Algeo: 0
Ji Yeon Kim (9-2-2) vs. Alexa Grasso (11-3)
Jeremy Brand: Grasso via UD
Wesley Riddle: Grasso via UD
Michael DeSantis: Grasso via UD
Matt Bricker: Grasso via UD
Connor Deitrich: Grasso via UD
Ash Camyab: Grasso via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Grasso via UD
Frazer Krohn: Grasso via UD
McKenzie Guardiero: Grasso via UD
Dan Rose: Grasso via UD
Mike Lynch: Grasso via Round 2 TKO
Ashwin Viswanathan: Grasso via UD
Nate Freeman: Grasso via UD
Jack Buchanan: Grasso via UD
Joshua Yule: Grasso via UD
Staff picking Yeon Kim: 0
Staff picking Grasso: 15
Robbie Lawler (28-14, 1 NC) vs. Neil Magny (23-8)
Jeremy Brand: Lawler via Round 3 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Magny via UD
Michael DeSantis: Magny via UD
Matt Bricker: Lawler via Round 2 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Magny via UD
Ash Camyab: Magny via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Lawler via Round 3 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Lawler via SD
McKenzie Guardiero: Lawler via Round 2 TKO
Dan Rose: Lawler via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Magny via UD
Ashwin Viswanathan: Lawler via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Magny via SD
Jack Buchanan: Magny via UD
Joshua Yule: Magny via UD
Staff picking Lawler: 7
Staff picking Magny: 8
Anthony Smith (32-15) vs. Aleksandar Rakic (12-2)
Jeremy Brand: Rakic via UD
Wesley Riddle: Smith via UD
Michael DeSantis: Rakic via Round 3 TKO
Matt Bricker: Rakic via Round 1 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Rakic via Round 2 TKO
Ash Camyab: Smith via Round 3 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Smith via UD
Frazer Krohn: Smith via UD
McKenzie Guardiero: Smith via UD
Dan Rose: Smith via Round 3 SUB
Mike Lynch: Smith via Round 4 SUB
Ashwin Viswanathan: Smith via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Smith via UD
Jack Buchanan: Rakic via Round 5 TKO
Joshua Yule: Rakic via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Smith: 9
Staff picking Rakic: 6
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