Seeking to close out the ESPN era and the luminary pay-per-view model on a monumentally high note, UFC 323 sees the cream of the crop from both the flyweight and bantamweight classes clash. In the main event, 135-lb king Merab Dvalishvili endeavors to notch the fourth defense of his strap when he faces familiar foe in Russia’s Petr Yan. Before that, however, reigning 125-lb incumbent Alexandre Pantoja meets swiftly surging young contender Joshua Van.
UFC 323 Main Event
Gaining the belt last year at UFC 306, Dvalishvili has embarked on a warpath of domination up the promotion’s pound-for-pound rankings. Making his debut as champion at UFC 311 back in January, “The Machine” has collected stellar wins over top bantamweight names like Umar Nurmagomedov, Sean O’Malley and Cory Sandhagen.
At UFC on ESPN+ 79 in 2023, Yan suffered one of the most disappointing defeats of his career when he lost a convincing match against Dvalishvili. After a one-sided five round dismantling, he fell to the Georgian on the scorecards after absorbing over 200 strikes and getting taken down 11 times. In the time since their first encounter, though, “No Mercy” has seemingly reinvented himself, securing three victories in a row over Song Yadong, Deiveson Figueiredo and Marcus McGhee.
UFC 323 Co-Main Event
Holding claim to four consecutive belt retentions, Pantoja has risen to become the most dominant flyweight title-holder in recent memory. Appearing to level up more and more each time he steps into the Octagon, “The Cannibal” has bested immaculate challengers in the forms of Brandon Royval, Steve Erceg, Kai Asakura and, most recently, Kai Kara-France.
With his endless gas tank and overwhelming volume striking, Van stands as a truly entertaining fan-favorite competitor who has taken his weight class by storm over the past year. Coming off a career-defining triumph over the aforementioned Royval, “The Fearless” takes aim at the grandest prize in all of mixed martial arts: a UFC championship.
More Bouts On the UFC 323 Main Card
Rounding out the main card, previous flyweight apex Brandon Moreno stakes his claim to a title shot when he faces Japanese star Tatsuro Taira. Also, former two-division champion Henry Cejudo makes his final walk to the cage opposite hot bantamweight prospect Payton Talbott. Finally, one-time light heavyweight ruler Jan Błachowicz locks horns with Bogdan Guskov.
UFC 323 Predictions and Staff Picks
MMASucka staff picks are composed of four of the world’s leading mixed martial arts organizations: the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the Professional Fighters League (PFL), ONE Championship (ONE FC), and Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS).
- UFC picks will include main card fights ranging from four to six matchups per event.
- PFL picks from main cards for pay-per-views and from tournament fights in the Regular Season, Playoffs, and Finals.
- ONE FC and DWCS picks will feature all MMA fights from the event with a minimum of three matchups.
The individual who picks the most victorious fighters by the end of 2025 will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from ProAmBelts or a detailed chain from Championship Chains. Staff picks in 2023 were won by Ben Jamieson with a record of 300-148.
Find our UFC 323 picks and fight odds below.
Staff records after UFC Qatar:
- Hank Strandberg: 203-112
- Frazer Krohn: 162-115
- Drew Zuhosky: 158-155
- Jeremy Brand: 139-93
- Andrew Benjamin: 32-90
*Note – not all staff pick for every event*
Jan Blachowicz -130
Vs.
Bogdan Guskov +110
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Jeremy Brand:
Hank Strandberg: Blachowicz by Unanimous Decision
Drew Zuhosky: Guskov by Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Guskov by Round 2 TKO
Staff picking Blachowicz: 1
Staff picking Guskov: 2
Payton Talbott -255
Vs.
Henry Cejudo +215
BANTAMWEIGHT
Jeremy Brand:
Hank Strandberg: Cejudo by Unanimous Decision
Drew Zuhosky: Talbott by First Round Knockout
Frazer Kron: Cejudo by Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Talbott: 1
Staff picking Cejudo: 2
Tatsuro Taira -125
Vs.
Brandon Moreno +105
FLYWEIGHT
Jeremy Brand:
Hank Strandberg: Moreno by Unanimous Decision Drew Zuhosky: Moreno by Unanimous Decision
Frazer Kron: Taira by Split Decision
Staff picking Taira: 1
Staff picking Moreno: 2
Alexandre Pantoja -223
Vs.
Joshua Van +188
FLYWEIGHT
Jeremy Brand:
Hank Strandberg: Pantoja by Unanimous Decision
Drew Zuhosky: Pantoja by Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Pantoja by Second Round Submission
Staff picking Pantoja: 3
Staff picking Van: 0
Merab Dvalishvili -415
Vs.
Petr Yan +315
BANTAMWEIGHT
Jeremy Brand:
Hank Strandberg: Dvalishvili by Unanimous Decision
Drew Zuhosky: Dvalishvili by Unanimous Decision
Frazer Krohn: Dvalishvili by Unanimous Decision
Staff picking Dvalishvili: 3
Staff picking Yan: 0
