UFC 280 Tips and Predictions

Dateline Abu Dhabi!!!!!

Fight fans, we've been waiting a while for this card and it's finally here.

UFC 280 is set to go down as one of the promotion's most memorable nights given the fights on the card and the stakes involved for each fighter.

There will be two belts on the line and two potential no.1 contender fights among other competitive ranked matchups and we cannot wait for these fights to play out.

We hit big on our picks last week cashing in all three tickets for you guys and we are confident that we have more where that came from this week.

Without further ado, let's dive right in!!!

Charles Oliveira vs Islam Makhachev

The most anticipated UFC fight of the year is finally here and now fight fans will finally know who the true champion of this Lightweight division is.

Charles "Do Bronx" Oliveira has become a fan favourite at the back of his phenomenal win streak and title run.

Oliveira switched off the quit button in 2017 and emerged as this new-born killer who cannot be defeated.

The uncrowned champion of the lightweights is now on a lethal 11-fight streak which has seen him capture UFC gold and defend it.

He has taken out former world champions like Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje, Michael Chandler, and Tony Ferguson.

Oliveira holds prestigious records like the most finishes, most submissions, and most bonuses in the promotion's history.

He has been a tough hill to climb for many but this week he will face a willing challenger in Khabib Nurmagomedov's prodigy Islam Makhachev.

Islam is riding a serious 10-fight win streak of his own which has seen him defeat tough contenders like Dan Hooker, Arman Tsarukyan, and Drew Dober.

The strength of schedule between the two athletes can be argued but the dominance with which Islam has been finishing his opponents has earned him this shot.

Both men are in their primes and very well-rounded which makes this fight one of the most intriguing in a while.

We think Oliveira's pathway to victory involves using his boxing combinations, setting up his kicks through his punches, and locking submissions when Islam engages in takedown attempts.

Islam's plan is clear, he is here to wrestle and grind out a late finish or decision by controlling Charles.

Best Bets

An intriguing Flyweight bout between Muhammad Mokaev and Malcolm Gordon on the early prelims has caught our eye for the first pick this week.

Mokaev is the rightful heavy favorite in this bout and given that he is explosive and pushes for the finish, we think there's great value for him to get it done inside the distance.

Gordon's 5 career losses have all come inside the distance and he has poor takedown defense which will make it easy for a hungry Mokaev to finish him early.

Our second pick this week comes on a Lightweight main-card bout between Beneil Dariush and Mateusz Gamrot.

We think Gamrot is better in every department given his superior striking, wrestling, and cardio.

Dariush has been knocked out a few times so we think Gamrot can get this done by either KO or on the scorecards.

Our final pick comes on the main event between Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev.

This is a close fight to call, but we think Oliveira has fought the much better competition and has more pathways to win regardless of where this fight plays out.

We are getting a great price for a former champion who has always proven the doubters wrong, we believe he will do so again and establish that "The champion has a name".

Selection: Muhammad Mokaev KO or submission (Win method, double chance) @1.60

Selection: Mateusz Gamrot KO or points (Win method, double chance) @1.85

Selection: Charles Oliveira (Win market) @2.55

Selection: Parlay all Selections @7.50