Top Predictions For UFC 299 !!!

UFC 299 Predictions 

Let's have a look at what is happening on 9th March at UFC 299

UFC 299 is happening next weekend at the Kaseya Centre , Miami, Florida  on March 9th 2024. The Card itself is absolutely stacked, some hardcore MMA fans even claim that the card's rise in popularity has led to a decline in hype for the April 13th UFC 300 card because it is simply so well built up. But nevertheless, how about we draw our undivided attention to the smackdown that is happening next weekend. 

For the UFC main event of the evening we have : Suga Sean O'Malley Vs Marlon Vera 2 , a Bantamweight undisputed championship bout,  where Sean O'Malley is challenged by Vera to defend his UFC belt in an epic 5 round contest. O'Malley coming of of an impressive Round 2 TKO victory against the former Bantamweight Champ Aljamain Sterling to become the undisputed champion of the division. "Suga" has an impressive winning record of 17-1-0, 1NC with his only loss to the Contender of this match up, Chito Vera. Chito has a record of 21-8-1 after gaining his title shot off of a Round 3 decision off of Pedro Munhoz and is ranked 5th in the division. 

Some criticise this match up as it could be questioned why Chito should get a title shot on a 1 fight win streak and other top contenders like Merab Dvalishvili (who has blazed through the division after a recent domination of Henry Cejudo)  or a rematch with Aljamain Sterling (who was a slightly dominant champion in the division).

It seems as if O'Malley has persuaded the UFC to give him this match, so the UFC can make a lot of money and Sean can get his win back off of Vera. Some hard core MMA fans even seem to think that another reason as to why UFC 299 is so stacked is because the more Fan Favorite Fighters are on the card, then the more PPV sales there will be so it will make it seem as if Sean O'Malley is the New "Conor McGregor PPV king" in the UFC, an interesting theory that I could possibly get behind. The set up of the fight may not be the best for the division,but what it will be is an incredible fight for the fans and the overarching storyline of the UFC Bantamweight division. 

The Prediction - Sean O'Malley will get a Round 3 KO/TKO victory over Vera in the Fight. If we look at Sean O'Malley as a fighter his takedown defence is very good and so is his distance management, Vera will try and look for a takedown and utilise his BJJ skills and look for a submission, but O'Malley will keep him off at a distance and will slowly piece up Chito to wear him down to the look for a finish. O'Malley may not be overly strong or muscular (Vera has that advantage) but Sean does have impeccable technique and and immense power in his hands. So to conclude, it will be "And Still" on Saturday night. 

The Co-main event : Dustin Poirier Vs Benoit Saint-Denis , this terrific match up consists of the former Interim Lightweight champion Dustin Poirier , now ranked 3rd in the division against  the Lightweight division's top prospect Benoit Saint Denis. Poirier from Louisiana and Saint Denis from France are having an almost french vs french match up in the Kaseya Center on March 9th. It is suspected to be an absolute fight between these two fighters. Dustin "Diamond" Poirier has entered the fight after a disappointing round 2 knockout loss from number 2 ranked Justin Gaethje and in a BMF (Baddest Motherfucker) title bout in June of last year, Dustin with an impressive resume and record of 29-8-0 1NC is determined to get back into the title picture. 

Facing him will be number 12 Ranked Benoit "God Of War" Saint Denis,  with a professional record of 13-1-0, 1NC, coming of a spectacular Round 1 Head kick Knockout win over USA fan favorite at UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden, NY. BSD has been on a 5 win streak beating people with the likes of Thiago Moises. BSD beat Moises in 2 rounds by method of TKO, it took Islam Makhachev (Current LW Champ) 4 rounds to beat Moises but BSD managed it in just 2. BSD wanted this fight to be Five Rounds instead of three, it is clear that this is a definite hint that if "god of war" was to win this bout then he would be looking at a title shot between him and the then LW champ.

This also marks a significant change in Poirier's matchmaking, usually he only fights the best of the best in the division and never really fights prospects outside of the top 5,  so his ranking no matter win or lose often has a safety net of never going under 5th or 6th in the division. This Fight Now shows that Poirier is desperate to fight whoever in order to get back in the title picture. BSD previously stated on The MMA Hour With Ariel Helwani , he wanted Dana White (UFC President) to give him a bloodbath with Justin Gaethje, this just shows the sure grit and determination of Saint Denis to get his well deserved title shot. 

However way you look at this fight,  you can see that it is going to be an exciting show, by far the best fight on the card and my personal favourite so far. 

The Prediction - Per Draftkings.com, Benoit Saint Denis is currently a -175 betting favourite whereas Dustin Poirier is a +145 underdog. You should never base your prediction on a fight with the betting agencies as anything can happen in the Fight Game, but on this occasion I have to strongly agree with the Decision. I believe that Benoit will knock out Poirier in the 2nd round. 

BSD has incredible grappling and is a great pressure fighter, he never likes to go on the back foot and will just keep going forward to the cage walls with striking and look for the knockout, Poirier has amazing Jiu-Jitsu so I doubt that BSD will want to go to the ground with Poirier in a change to his previous fights, Dustin is a veteran of the game and has never lost twice in a row, BUT he is 35, he is old in MMA terms , his chin is gone or is potentially going (Look at Volkanovski Vs Topuria at UFC 298). BSD is the younger fighter, all the stats favour him and I think he will get the win on Saturday night and will be quickly looking for a title shot or number 1 contender spot. 

If Poirier does win then I think he may need a win off of another serious contender to get even more settled in the title picture. Perhaps Tsarukyan ? 

No matter who wins, the card will be a banger.