PREVIEW: UFC 272 Prelims and Main Card

UFC 272 takes place in the early hours of Sunday morning from the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, and the card is filled with exciting bouts from top to bottom.

In the main event, two former friends-turned-enemies will look to settle a score when Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal meet in a five-round war in the welterweight division.

The rest of the main card promises to be exciting with a mix of experienced veterans like Rafael dos Anjos and rising stars like Bryce Mitchell.

Betting supplied by Hollywoodbets

Main Event – Colby Covington 27/100 vs Jorge Masvidal 24/10 (Welterweight)

Top welterweight contender Colby ‘Chaos’ Covington (16-3) steps into the octagon to face former best friend, roommate and training partner No. 6 ranked Jorge ‘Gamebred’ Masvidal (35-15), and the fighters have made it clear it will be a war Sunday. Covington is a former interim UFC champion and Masvidal is one of the most popular names on the promotion’s roster.

Both fighters are coming off losses to welterweight champion Kamaru Usman – Covington surviving a full five rounds and losing by unanimous decision, while Masvidal suffered a devastating second-round knockout.

Being the top ranked contender in the welterweight division and going the distance with 170-pound king, Usman, it’s no surprise Covington is the short-priced favourite to emerge victorious. Masvidal will have to defy the odds as he seeks to enter the win column against ‘Chaos’ who is seen by Usman, UFC president Dana White, and many others, the second-best fighter in the welterweight division.

Both men will be desperate to get back in the win column and claim bragging rights as they look to settle their differences inside the octagon, but it could be tricky for either fighter. They know each other’s strengths and weakness as they trained together for a long time at American Top Team.

Covington is one of the most well-rounded, conditioned and resilient fighters in UFC welterweight history, and he has compiled an impressive 11-3 record in the promotion. His wrestling, volume striking and cardio are generally unmatched in the cage. Covington’s only weakness is that he just doesn’t have that knockout ability – evident in his two fights with Usman – which Masvidal has in abundance.

Gamebred is a great striker with innovative moves, including his switch-stance superman punch that he knocked out Darren Till with. His wrestling defence will be key though as he was taken down seven times in two bouts with Usman, whose wrestling is similar to Covington’s.

Verdict: Colby Covington (27/100)

We are backing Covington to emerge victorious from the UFC 272 main event. Throughout his career in the UFC, ‘Chaos’ showed that he is capable of going wherever the fight takes him, and that mental attitude, as well as his vast skill set, is what will help him this Sunday. Make no mistake about it, Masvidal is as tough as they come, but Covington should dominate with takedowns and top position, resulting in him getting his arm raised in victory.

Edson Barboza 5/4 vs Bryce Mitchell 56/100 (Featherweight)

Many fighters make their way to the biggest and best gyms across the world as they continue in search for greatness, but for some, staying true to their roots is what matters most, none more so than undefeated featherweight Bryce Mitchell. The man standing in his way is a fighter who has been competing in the UFC for more than a decade, and Edson Barboza is a Brazilian fighter who has planted new roots in a foreign country much to the success of his MMA career.

Edson ‘Junior’ Barboza (22-10) put his lightweight career behind him in May 2020 to make his featherweight debut in May of 2020 facing Dan Ige. Many pundits and professionals speculated after struggling to make lightweight on occasion that the step down in weight would be an even bigger deterrent, but Barboza looked outstanding as he usually does even in defeat, and unfortunately defeat came knocking again in a split decision. Just five months later, he took on Makwan Amirkhani in Abu Dhabi winning via unanimous decision, and in 2021 he impressively dispatched of Shane Burgos via KO to win Fight of the Night on the UFC 262 card. After two straight wins, Edson’s last fight pinned him up against another exceptional kickboxer, who was hungrier and younger, in Giga Chikadze, losing via unanimous TKO. Barboza must now take a step down and prove he still belongs up among the best by fending off those on the rise.

Bryce ‘Thug Nasty’ Mitchell (14-0) enters the cage as a man “of the people”, representing Arkansas so well in true outback country training. While he might not be a flashy guy on the exterior, in the cage the simplicity sets up opportunity for him to finish fighters in ways many only dream of. Thug Nasty is one of two UFC fighters to finish a fight via twister submission, and in spite of that, does not seek out to show nothing but hard work and determination with some true grit on the side. Undefeated and 5-0 in the UFC, he is a man on a mission and on the rise with a win over Tyler Diamond in the Ultimate Fighter, followed by a Fight of the Night performance against Bobby Moffett, a performance of the night against Matt Sayles, and finally back-to-back unanimous decisions last year against Charles Rosa and Andre Fili. Bryce Mitchell continues to stamp his authority in the UFC featherweight division, and in his biggest challenge to date must overcome a seasoned veteran.

Verdict: Bryce Mitchell (56/100)

Edson Barboza’s striking and ability to take damage is up there among the best of the best, but as we know, the age takes away your ability to take the hits you once could. Bryce Mitchell has the ability to win in every department, from the feet, to grappling and wrestling, including an outstanding submission game.

Becoming a great, takes more than just skill, and even more so when you prioritise one with Barboza being a shining light for that sentiment, but I always favour a well-rounded game and Mitchell will get the win in this encounter.

Kevin Holland 27/100 vs Alex Oliveira 49/20 (Welterweight)

If you’re looking for a scrap, it is Kevin Holland versus Alex Oliveira! A guy who is hungry, who is willing to sacrifice, and can deal with adversity in Holland, plus he has a mouth on him to talk himself into any situation as well as out of any corner. But make no mistake, Oliveira is the guy to believe in himself at any given time against any given fighter and that is what veterans are made of. To cut a long story short, both fighters are in dire need of a win.

Kevin ‘Big Mouth’ Holland (21-7-1NC) has amassed a fanbase with his fighting nickname being exactly who he is in every aspect, and more importantly, he backs up those words. Since joining the UFC in 2018, Holland has amassed 11 fights, just short of three fights a year. But most impressive was his five-fight win streak which in every fight, nobody really gave him an honest chance. Wins over Anthony Hernandez, Joaquin Buckley, Darren Stuart, Charlie Ontiveros and Ronaldo Souza earning him a UFC record for most wins in a calendar year (5). Just as quick as he rose, all the hype came to a sudden halt with losses to Derek Brunson and Marvin Vettori who exposed his weaknesses in the field of wrestling, and to cap it off earned a no contest against Kyle Daukaus in an accidental clash of heads. For the first time since 2017, 17 fights ago, Kevin cuts down to welterweight yet again, in a must-win bout.

The opponent, the fighter, the scrapper, the veteran with flash to match his dance partner, Alex ‘Cowboy’ Oliveira (22-11-1) makes his first appearance of the year. Also, in desperate need of getting a win, Oliveira is on his second three-fight losing streak of his career. He got choked out by Shavkat Rakhmonov and Randy Brown, and his last defeat to Niko Price was a unanimous decision loss in which there was no doubt. The Brazilian Cowboy has never lost four consecutive fights but as age slowly catches up with the 34-year-old it’s now do or die, and another loss might see the fighter who stepped into the UFC octagon in 205 finally make an exit.

Verdict: Kevin Holland (27/100)

With so many fights on the card worthy of earning Fight of the Night, Kevin Holland versus Alex Oliveira is respectfully among them. Both fighters know how to entertain the crowd and put their foot on the gas as often as possible. Kevin’s recent sharpening of the tools in world renowned wrestling gym AKA, and this for me will be the key to Kevin finishing the fight on the ground via submission if you are looking for value.

Fight of the Night

Our Fight of the Night pick for UFC 272 just has to go to the blockbuster grudge match between former friends turned bitter enemies Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal. There is a lot of bad blood in this matchup and a lot of fans are going to be very excited to see them go to war. And that’s exactly what this fight will be – a war. An impressive victory keeps the winner in the title picture, while a loss would be devastating.

Full card predictions:

Main Card: 05:00 CAT, Sunday 6 March

• Colby Covington (27/100) vs Jorge Masvidal (24/10): Colby Covington
• Rafael dos Anjos (5/10) vs Renato Moicano (14/10): Renato Moicano
• Edson Barboza (5/4) vs Bryce Mitchell (56/100): Bryce Mitchell
• Kevin Holland (27/100) vs Alex Oliveira (49/20): Kevin Holland
• Sergey Spivak (46/100) vs Greg Hardy (31/20): Sergey Spivak

Prelims: 03:00 CAT

• Jalin Turner (59/100) vs Jamie Mullarkey (12/10): Jamie Mullarkey
• Marina Rodriguez (34/100) vs Yan Xiaonan (2/1): Marina Rodriguez
• Nicolae Negumereanu (21/20) vs Kennedy Nzechukwu (69/100): Nicolae Negumereanu
• Maryna Moroz (29/20) vs Mariya Agapova (48/100): Mariya Agapova

Early Prelims: 01:00 CAT

• Brian Kelleher (46/10) vs Umar Nurmagomedov (1/9): Umar Nurmagomedov
• Tim Elliott (18/10) vs Tagir Ulanbekov (38/100): Tagir Ulanbekov
• Devonte Smith (6/10) vs Ľudovit Klein (23/20): Devonte Smith
• Dustin Jacoby (47/100) vs Michal Oleksiejczuk (15/10): Dustin Jacoby

Previewed by Chad Nagel and Joshua Gaillard