Part three of three for our triple-header weekend for MMASucka staff picks are officially in.
Taking place later today, February 25th, will see UFC Vegas 70, also titled as UFC Fight Night 220, go down from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Preliminary bouts kick off at 4:30pm ET (1:30pm PT) with the main card at 7:00pm ET (4:00pm PT) on ESPN+.
Stay tuned to MMASucka for UFC Vegas 70: Krylov vs. Spann results.
Recap our staff picks from the additional fight cards this weekend including Friday night’s ONE Fight Night 7 in Bangkok, Thailand and this afternoon’s Bellator 291 in Dublin, Ireland.
The Fights
Two light heavyweights on-the-rise will clash in the featured main event of the night between Nikita Krylov and Ryan Spann.
Dangerous finisher Krylov is set for his first promotional headlining fight in his second UFC tenure and 18th promotional fight. The former FNG light heavyweight champion current rides a two-fight win streak with his vicious first-round knockout over Alexander Gustafsson in July of last year and his unanimous decision last October over Volkan Oezdemir. Krylov’s opponent, Spann, rides an identical streak of two in-a-row with his first-round stoppages over Ion Cutelaba by guillotine choke and Dominick Reyes with strikes. The well-rounded Fortis MMA talent and has won eleven of his last 13 fights since September of 2017 including the LFA light heavyweight championship and his UFC contract-winning performance on Dana White’s Contender Series.
In the co-main event, Andre Muniz will faceoff against Brendan Allen in the middleweight division. Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist and 2019 Contender Series contract winner Muniz has won nine straight since December of 2017 including five alone with the UFC. Former LFA middleweight champion Allen brings a similar style with his grappling-oriented game coming off a successful 2022 with three wins including two rear-naked chokes over Sam Alvey and Krzysztof Jotko.
Season 23 winner of The Ultimate Fighter and undefeated Tatiana Suarez makes her long-awaited octagon return after a near three and-a-half year hiatus. She will battle TUF 26 alum Montana De La Rosa.
Two additional fights compose the main card ahead. Check out those fights and our picks further below from UFC Vegas 70.
A top-10 tilt at 205 takes center stage TOMORROW NIGHT! 😤@KrylovUFC vs @Superman_Spann
[ #UFCVegas70 | Tomorrow | Main Card 7pmET | Live on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/GnW4SWUuFP
— UFC (@ufc) February 24, 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.
Find our picks for UFC Vegas 70: Krylov vs. Spann below.
2023 Staff Records after UFC 284:
1T. Nate Freeman: 21-9
1T. Ben Jamieson: 21-9
3T. Jeremy Brand: 19-11
3T. Tim Wheaton: 19-11
5T. Wesley Riddle: 18-12
5T. Michael DeSantis: 18-12
5T. Roemello Reyes: 18-12
8T. Frazer Krohn: 17-13
8T. Jack Goodwillie: 17-13
10T. Andrew Benjamin: 14-15
10T. Brian Knight: 14-12
10T. Julio Monteros Jr.: 14-8
13. Brandon Joint: 12-9
14T. Joshua Yule: 7-6
14T. Andrew Harbaugh: 7-5
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
*Note – ONE Fight Night 7 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend*
Mike Malott (8-1-1), -210
vs.
Yohan Lainesse (9-1), +180
Welterweight Division
– 170 LBS. ~ 77.1 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Malott via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Malott via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Malott via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Malott via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Malott via Round 1 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Malott via Round 1 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Malott via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Malott via Round 1 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Malott via Round 1 SUB
Roemello Reyes: Malott via Round 1 SUB
Ben Jamieson: Malott via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Malott: 11
Staff picking Lainesse: 0
Tatiana Suarez (9-0), -750
vs.
Montana De La Rosa (12-7-1), +550
Women’s Flyweight Division
– 125 LBS. ~ 56.7 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Suarez via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Suarez via Round 2 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Suarez via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Suarez via Unanimous Decision
Nate Freeman: Suarez via Round 1 SUB
Tim Wheaton: Suarez via Unanimous Decision
Julio Monteros Jr.: Suarez via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Suarez via Split Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Suarez via Unanimous Decision
Roemello Reyes: Suarez via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Suarez via Round 3 TKO
Staff picking Suarez: 11
Staff picking De La Rosa: 0
Augusto Sakai (15-5-1), -120
vs.
Don’Tale Mayes (9-4, 1 NC), +100
Heavyweight Division
– 265 LBS. ~ 120.2 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Sakai via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Mayes via Round 2 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Sakai via Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Sakai via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Sakai via Round 2 TKO
Tim Wheaton: Sakai via Round 1 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Sakai via Round 2 TKO
Brian Knight: Sakai via Split Decision
Jack Goodwillie: Sakai via Round 3 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Mayes via Split Decision
Ben Jamieson: Sakai via Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Sakai: 9
Staff picking Mayes: 2
Andre Muniz (23-4), -210
vs.
Brendan Allen (20-5), +180
Middleweight Division
Co-Main Event
– 185 LBS. ~ 83.9 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Muniz via Unanimous Decision
Wesley Riddle: Muniz via Round 2 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Muniz via Round 2 SUB
Frazer Krohn: Muniz via Round 2 SUB
Nate Freeman: Muniz via Round 1 SUB
Tim Wheaton: Muniz via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Muniz via Round 2 SUB
Brian Knight: Muniz via Round 2 TKO
Jack Goodwillie: Allen via Round 2 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Muniz via Unanimous Decision
Ben Jamieson: Muniz via Round 1 SUB
Staff picking Muniz: 10
Staff picking Allen: 1
Nikita Krylov (29-9), -175
vs.
Ryan Spann (21-7), +150
Light Heavyweight Division
Main Event
– 205 LBS. ~ 93 KG. –
Jeremy Brand: Krylov via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Krylov via Round 3 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Krylov via Round 2 SUB
Frazer Krohn: Krylov via Round 3 SUB
Nate Freeman: Krylov via Split Decision
Tim Wheaton: Krylov via Round 2 TKO
Julio Monteros Jr.: Krylov via Unanimous Decision
Brian Knight: Krylov via Round 2 SUB
Jack Goodwillie: Spann via Round 1 TKO
Roemello Reyes: Krylov via Round 3 SUB
Ben Jamieson: Krylov via Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Krylov: 10
Staff picking Spann: 1
