Predictions! UFC Vegas 90 ‘Prelims’ Preview – Pt. 1

The Octagon makes one last pit cease inside its APEX venue in Las Vegas, Nevada, this weekend (Sat., April 6, 2023) earlier than UFC 300 when Middleweight contenders Brendan Allen vs. Chris Curtis duke it out in a five-round rematch. The present additionally sees Alexander Hernandez attempt to get again on observe towards harmful veteran, Damon Jackson, and French star, Morgan Charriere, search for his second Octagon victory at Chepe Mariscal’s expense.

Seven “Prelims” undercard bouts set UFC Vegas 90’s stage, all of which be part of the primary card on ESPN+. Let’s try the primary batch under …

115 lbs.: Piera Rodriguez vs. Cynthia Calvillo

Piera Rodriguez (9-1) adopted her Legacy Combating Alliance (LFA) title-winning stoppage of Svetlana Gotsyk by beating Valesco Machado on Contender Sequence to say a UFC contract. She dispatched Kay Hansen and Sam Hughes in her first two Octagon bouts, however succumbed to Gillian Robertson’s armbar in April 2023 (watch it).

All 5 of her skilled finishes have come by knockout.

Cynthia Calvillo (9-6-1) entered UFC in 2017 with wins over Gillian Robertson and Montana De La Rosa below her belt, then proved her bona fides with a 6-1-1 Octagon begin. The run wasn’t to final, although, making the stroll this Saturday on the heels of 5 consecutive defeats.

She fights for the primary time in nearly precisely one yr.

Although it’s not unattainable that Calvillo makes one final run — she was moderately aggressive with Lupita Godinez final day out — there’s not loads of supporting proof. Her final standout win was a 2017 choice over Joanne Wooden, and whereas most of her current defeats got here towards stable opposition, it’s onerous to bounce again from saying “no mas” towards a fighter in Andrea Lee who went on to lose her subsequent 4.

I’ve by no means been massively impressed with Rodriguez, however she’s athletic and well-rounded, which is greater than sufficient to earn her a nod towards what’s left of Calvillo. Certainly, she edges out Calvillo on the toes and on the mat to return to the win column.

Prediction: Rodriguez by way of unanimous choice

135 lbs.: Dan Argueta vs. Jean Matsumoto

Dan Argueta (9-1) adopted his one-and-done The Final Fighter (TUF) 29 stint with a profitable LFA title run that noticed him edge out Diego Silva for the belt in Might 2022. He break up his first two UFC bouts with Damon Jackson and Nick Aguirre, however needed to accept two consecutive “No Contest” outcomes due to an early stoppage towards Ronnie Lawrence and Miles Johns’ failed drug check.

He’s submitted 4 skilled opponents and knocked out two others.

Jean Matsumoto (14-0) spent 4 years racking up accolades on the Brazilian circuit earlier than going undefeated (2-0) in LFA and incomes a spot on Contender Sequence. There, he out-classed undefeated Kasey Tanner in Sept. 2023 to earn a UFC contract.

He stands one inch shorter than Argueta, however boasts a half-inch attain benefit.

That is extra a check of Matsumoto’s endurance and battle IQ than anything. He’ll make mincemeat of Argueta on the toes as a result of, as I’ve mentioned earlier than, “Decided” has a number of the worst defensive instincts I’ve ever seen, giving him few solutions for Matsumoto’s machine gun boxing combos.

Simply because Argueta’s wrestling is one-note doesn’t imply it’s not harmful, although, and Matsumoto has a behavior of leaving his hips uncovered when he lets his fingers go. It’s not onerous to see Argueta blocking a number of dozen punches along with his face earlier than tying up and turning it right into a slog. Between Matsumoto’s bettering lateral motion and high quality setups, although, I like him to circle and sharpshoot his solution to a cushty choice.

Prediction: Matsumoto by way of unanimous choice

185 lbs.: Dylan Budka vs. Cesar Almeida

Dylan Budka (7-2) powered by a debut loss to win 5 straight, solely to fall for Azamat Bekoev in a bid for LFA gold. “Senseless Hulk” returned to motion two months after with a fast get-well victory, then stepped up on two weeks’ discover to beat Chad Hanekom on Contender Sequence and declare a UFC contract.

He steps in for Josh Fremd on lower than one month’s discover.

Cesar Almeida (4-0) juggled combined martial arts (MMA) and kickboxing earlier than taking a shot at Contender Sequence in 2023. There, he confirmed off stout defensive grappling to beat Lucas Fernando by way of choice in his first journey previous the primary spherical as a combined martial artist.

He stands one inch taller than Budka, however offers up one inch of attain.

Budka didn’t actually excel on Contender Sequence, however he’s acquired a ton of promise at simply 24 years previous and I’m keen in charge a number of the points on the fast turnaround. This nonetheless looks as if a tough matchup for him. Regardless of Budka’s velocity, Almeida’s a good bit sharper on the toes and will have the takedown protection to maintain it in his wheelhouse, as Budka’s wrestling background has but to translate to a dominant grappling recreation.

Budka remains to be creating and have improved within the interim, however the identical may be mentioned for Almeida, who stays a relative neophyte within the cage. In brief, Budka’s previous struggles with crisper punchers counsel Almeida can sprawl-and-brawl his solution to a debut victory.

Prediction: Almeida by way of unanimous choice

135 lbs.: Nora Cornolle vs. Melissa Mullins

Undeterred by a debut loss to Jacqueline Cavalcanti, Nora Cornolle (7-1) battled her solution to the Octagon with six consecutive finishes. Her debut pitted her towards Joselyne Edwards, who Cornolle out-struck en path to her first choice victory.

These six finishes embrace 5 by knockout.

Melissa Mullins’ (6-0) two-fight stint in Ares FC noticed her defeat Rizlen Zouak in her debut earlier than pounding out unbeaten Darya Zheleznyakova 5 months later. These victories carried her to a 2023 UFC debut, which noticed her survive an early knockdown to grind out Irina Alkseeva for a unanimous choice win.

She’ll get pleasure from a one-inch attain benefit.

Sadly for Cornolle, she’ll should hold it on the toes to take action. And if the Edwards battle is something to go by, that’s past her talents. Barring some severe enchancment on her half, she doesn’t seem to have a solution for Mullins’ clinch, takedowns and prime recreation, which have saved “No Mess” from catastrophe a number of instances earlier than. Ultimately, Mullins survives a bushy begin to take down Cornolle and out-class her from the highest.

Prediction: Mullins by way of unanimous choice

Three extra UFC Vegas 90 “Prelims” undercard bouts stay to preview and predict, together with the return of former ladies’s Featherweight champion, Germaine de Randamie. Identical time tomorrow, Maniacs.

Do not forget that MMAmania.com will ship LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow protection of all the UFC Vegas 90 battle card proper right here, beginning with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, that are scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET, then the remaining predominant card steadiness (additionally on ESPN+) at 10 p.m. ET.

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