MMASucka staff picks’ second card of the week are locked in. UFC on ESPN+ 41, also titled as UFC Fight Night 183 and UFC Vegas 14, will take place this evening, November 14 from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event’s main card will begin at 7:00pm ET (4:00pm PT) live on ESPN+.
Make sure to check out our picks from Thursday night’s Bellator 252 event in Uncasville.
The Fights
Lightweights Rafael dos Anjos and Islam Makhachev were the original pair to headline today’s event. However, a staph infection pulling Makhachev resulted in Paul Felder stepping in on short notice as the replacement. Former UFC lightweight champion dos Anjos will be making his return to 155 pounds after an eight-fight run at welterweight. The Brazilian will be making his 30th appearance with the UFC since signing with the promotion in 2008. dos Anjos aims to snap a two-fight skid, as he has yet to professionally suffer three straight defeat. His opponent, Felder, comes in with little to lose coming in with five days of fight preparation. A February fight and split decision defeat versus Dan Hooker came as his first headlining spot in the UFC, now ready for his second straight. Felder will look for his first win in over a year and his first finish since December of 2017.
In the co-main event, striking specialists Abdul Razak Alhassan and Khaos Williams will battle at a catchweight of 172.5 pounds after Razak Alhassan missed the welterweight limit. He will aim to rebound following a loss to newcomer Mounir Lazzez while Williams targets to extend his current string of victories to eight-straight.
A main card fight between Saparbek Safarov and Julian Marquez was intended until the fight was scrapped due to a failed weight cut from Safarov. As a result, only four fights will be included for the event. See further below for our full UFC on ESPN+ 41 staff picks.
Staff Picks
Throughout the remainder of the year, staff picks will be composed of two different MMA promotions: UFC and Bellator. As of September 25th, the events of ONE and RIZIN will no longer be counted for our picks (including a recent deduction of the last two RIZIN cards from our records). With the cancellation of PFL for 2020, this promotion will be excluded as well.
Main cards will makeup both UFC and Bellator picks. 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 staff picks for UFC on ESPN+ 41: Felder vs. dos Anjos below.
Staff Records after UFC on ESPN+ 40:
1. Michael DeSantis: 179-75
2. Connor Deitrich: 174-80
3. Wesley Riddle: 166-83
4. Dan Rose: 156-99
5T. Jeremy Brand: 155-91
5T. Jack Buchanan: 155-77
7T. Frazer Krohn: 154-101
7T. Nate Freeman: 154-97
9. Mike Lynch: 152-88
10. Ash Camyab: 148-107
11T. Matt Bricker: 136-90
11T. Andrew Benjamin: 136-113
13. McKenzie Guardiero: 126-101
14. Ryan Hobbs: 95-64
15. Ashwin Viswanathan: 83-51
16. Mike Skytte: 67-45
17. Mitchell Banuelos: 64-39
18. Joshua Yule: 55-28
19. Ed Gallo: 54-27
20. Jeremy Cook: 14-6
*Note: not all staff pick for every event*
**Note: Bellator 252 picks will be added to the above records NEXT weekend**
Eryk Anders (13-5) vs. Antonio Arroyo (9-3)
Jeremy Brand: Anders via Round 2 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Anders via Round 2 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Anders via Round 1 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Anders via SD
Ash Camyab: Anders via Round 3 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Anders via UD
Frazer Krohn: Anders via UD
McKenzie Guardiero: Anders via UD
Dan Rose: Anders via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Anders via UD
Nate Freeman: Anders via UD
Jack Buchanan: Anders via UD
Staff picking Anders: 12
Staff picking Arroyo: 0
Kay Hansen (7-3) vs. Cory McKenna (5-1)
Jeremy Brand: Hansen via Round 1 SUB
Wesley Riddle: Hansen via Round 1 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Hansen via Round 2 SUB
Connor Deitrich: Hansen via Round 1 SUB
Ash Camyab: Hansen via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Hansen via Round 1 SUB
Frazer Krohn: McKenna via Round 2 SUB
McKenzie Guardiero: Hansen via UD
Dan Rose: Hansen via UD
Mike Lynch: Hansen via Round 1 SUB
Nate Freeman: Hansen via SD
Jack Buchanan: Hansen via UD
Staff picking Hansen: 11
Staff picking McKenna: 1
Abdul Razak Alhassan (10-2) vs. Khaos Williams (10-1)
Jeremy Brand: Razak Alhassan via UD
Wesley Riddle: Razak Alhassan via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Razak Alhassan via Round 1 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Razak Alhassan via UD
Ash Camyab: Razak Alhassan via Round 1 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Razak Alhassan via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Razak Alhassan via Round 2 TKO
McKenzie Guardiero: Williams via UD
Dan Rose: Razak Alhassan via UD
Mike Lynch: Razak Alhassan via Round 1 TKO
Nate Freeman: Williams via UD
Jack Buchanan: Razak Alhassan via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Razak Alhassan: 10
Staff picking Williams: 2
Paul Felder (17-5) vs. Rafael dos Anjos (29-13)
Jeremy Brand: Felder via UD
Wesley Riddle: Felder via SD
Michael DeSantis: dos Anjos via UD
Connor Deitrich: dos Anjos via UD
Ash Camyab: dos Anjos via Round 5 SUB
Andrew Benjamin: dos Anjos via UD
Frazer Krohn: dos Anjos via UD
McKenzie Guardiero: Felder via Round 2 TKO
Dan Rose: Felder via UD
Mike Lynch: Felder via Round 3 TKO
Nate Freeman: Felder via SD
Jack Buchanan: dos Anjos via UD
Staff picking Felder: 6
Staff picking dos Anjos: 6
FEATURED IMAGE:
Embed from Getty Images
