UFC 299: O'Malley vs Vera Official Discussion Thread

[Schnitzl]

This is the one we've all been waiting for - Buffer

Predictions/Opinions

Main event - I think O'Malley takes it. Vera is always slow to start so either O'Malley gets ahead on the scorecards 2-0 and then steals another round later or gets the early stoppage.

DP vs BSD - Lots of hype around BSD but I can't write DP off, he's hands are too sleek. I think fully geared skinhead DP gets it done by TKO rd 3.
Holland gets it done by decision
Burns by decision
Song Yadong by decision
Blaydes by KO
Gamrot by decision

[CellyTech]

Agreed on Sean vs Vera. O'Malley looking real good as of late and I think he takes it 4 rounds to 1, if not a late stoppage around 3.5 rounds in.

I think DP vs BSD is going to remind people of what happened in the volk vs topuria fight with BSD finishing dustin in RD2.
Holland vs MVP I really dunno. Holland is just unpredictable AF and MVP is the faster and more technical of the 2. I think MVP takes the decision on this, but I wouldn't be surprised if Holland wins via sub.
Burns vs JDM. I'm going with JDM on this one and I think he makes it look easy. 30-27 if not a late finish.
Agreed on Song vs Yan. I think Song is going to hurt Yan badly in this fight.
Blaydes vs Jailton. Big Curtis is getting his neck rung in this fight. Jailton by RNC.
Gamrot 30-27s RDA.

[Schnitzl]

Agreed on Sean vs Vera. O'Malley looking real good as of late and I think he takes it 4 rounds to 1, if not a late stoppage around 3.5 rounds in.

I think DP vs BSD is going to remind people of what happened in the volk vs topuria fight with BSD finishing dustin in RD2.
Holland vs MVP I really dunno. Holland is just unpredictable AF and MVP is the faster and more technical of the 2. I think MVP takes the decision on this, but I wouldn't be surprised if Holland wins via sub.
Burns vs JDM. I'm going with JDM on this one and I think he makes it look easy. 30-27 if not a late finish.
Agreed on Song vs Yan. I think Song is going to hurt Yan badly in this fight.
Blaydes vs Jailton. Big Curtis is getting his neck rung in this fight. Jailton by RNC.
Gamrot 30-27s RDA.

Dili represent! Too bad there's no over-under on short adjustments by DP

[Gainzzz]

I can see a situation where O'Malley outclasses Chito for 2/3 rounds then starts to fade. The problem is, Chito doesn't use his biggest weapon (cardio) effectively. He's so passive. If Chito can survive the first couple and then really put his foot on the gas, he can win.

O'Malley - ^
BSD - I'm assuming Poirier is washed, could be wrong
Holland - Gonna be a wild fight
JDM - I'm assuming Burns is washed, could be wrong
Yan - WAR YAN
Blaydes - Seems like a nightmare stylistic matchup for Almeida tbh
Gamrot - Think this might be closer than a lot of people think

[sooby]

O Malley > Vera - I think like you said, Vera is a slow starter. The length might bother him. I think what he has going for him is likely O'Malley will bring the fight to him as Vera is a counter-fighter. But he might find it hard to counter with that length. But I think Vera still has a shot esp if he beats up O'Malley's legs.

Poirier > BSD - I still say Poirier but it depends how he recovers after brutally losing against Gaethje. He's still the best technical boxer in the 155 division IMO and is extremely well rounded

Page > Holland - On the feet, I think Page takes it, he's just the better striker. If Holland can take it to the ground, I think he has a shot in submitting him. Should be a good fight overall

Burns > JDM - I think Burns still has it in him, he's an extremely tough fighter. I don't think JDM is ready for what Burns brings to the table

Yadong > Yan - Man this fight will be hard to call. Yadong improves every fight and it seems like Yan has regressed, or maybe everyone has exploited his weakness of being a notoriously slow starter and he's only fighting 3 round fights. If it was 5 rounds I would say Yan but he really needs to address this issue of being so slow out the gate.

Blaydes > Almeida - Blaydes is the true gatekeeper of that division, I think his grappling and wrestling will be just too much. Ofc tho he could get ktfo or submitted if he isn't careful

Gamrot > RDA - Gamrot's grappling I think is too much for RDA at this point in his career.

[CanardMedic]

this card is a banger.
- I want Vera to win but I think O Malley will win by decision.
- Poirier might be over the hill now, he might start losing more and more now.
- Holland> VIP
- Burns by TKO
- Yan by decision
- Blaydes
- Gamrot

[Schnitzl]

Blaydes > Almeida - Blaydes is the true gatekeeper of that division, I think his grappling and wrestling will be just too much. Ofc tho he could get ktfo or submitted if he isn't careful

Another thing to look out for, is Blaydes walks into the cocktagon at 275-280ish (used to walk around at 295 before he started taking it more seriously). Almeida is a natty LHW and redlining at 235ish. That's 40lbs difference vs a wrestler who loves to lay on people. I don't think Jailton has the strength to dominate Blaydes like he did to balls was hot or Rozenstruik.

[CellyTech]

Another thing to look out for, is Blaydes walks into the cocktagon at 275-280ish (used to walk around at 295 before he started taking it more seriously). Almeida is a natty LHW and redlining at 235ish. That's 40lbs difference vs a wrestler who loves to lay on people. I don't think Jailton has the strength to dominate Blaydes like he did to balls was hot or Rozenstruik.

You boys are crazy lol. Jailton is going to handle Curtis. I'd honestly be comfortable taking Jailton at -300 (srs)

[Gainzzz]

You boys are crazy lol. Jailton is going to handle Curtis. I'd honestly be comfortable taking Jailton at -300 (srs)

Based on what tho? Sport is all about levels. He ran through a load of bums then put on a bizarre performance against an almost 39 year old Derrick Lewis in what was meant to be a showcase fight. He was in mount for like 10 minutes and couldn't finish (no homo). He didn't even do any damage. Blaydes is just slightly below the elite guys in the division imo.

[sooby]

Another thing to look out for, is Blaydes walks into the cocktagon at 275-280ish (used to walk around at 295 before he started taking it more seriously). Almeida is a natty LHW and redlining at 235ish. That's 40lbs difference vs a wrestler who loves to lay on people. I don't think Jailton has the strength to dominate Blaydes like he did to balls was hot or Rozenstruik.

Yeah that is a good point, Jailton is small for a HW, Curtis is huge and that difference will add even more to the wrestling/grappling advantage. It's a huge step up in competition for Almeida. Lewis is old and lost 4 of his last 6 fights heading into that one.

[CellyTech]

Based on what tho? Sport is all about levels. He ran through a load of bums then put on a bizarre performance against an almost 39 year old Derrick Lewis in what was meant to be a showcase fight. He was in mount for like 10 minutes and couldn't finish (no homo). He didn't even do any damage. Blaydes is just slightly below the elite guys in the division imo.

I get that his resume isn't amazing, but its the same with most of these guys on their run up, i.e borz, islam etc. They run through lower quality opponents like they're nothing and people always say "yeah but who has he beat?", then they smoke someone at a higher level and its like "oh gotcha". The Lewis fight, whilst he failed to finish him he still dominated him over the entire fight and was never in any trouble at any single point of the fight. I just think Jailton is the better MMA grappler of the 2, and I reckon he'll get the neck at some stage over the fight.

Lastly, who has Curtis beat that you think Jailton wouldn't, and would you still be picking Blaydes if Jailton had of finished Lewis?

[Gainzzz]

I get that his resume isn't amazing, but its the same with most of these guys on their run up, i.e borz, islam etc. They run through lower quality opponents like they're nothing and people always say "yeah but who has he beat?", then they smoke someone at a higher level and its like "oh gotcha". The Lewis fight, whilst he failed to finish him he still dominated him over the entire fight and was never in any trouble at any single point of the fight. I just think Jailton is the better MMA grappler of the 2, and I reckon he'll get the neck at some stage over the fight.

Lastly, who has Curtis beat that you think Jailton wouldn't, and would you still be picking Blaydes if Jailton had of finished Lewis?

I'm mostly judging it on styles and what I've seen from both of them. I think Almeida's striking is very average and if he can't get the takedown, he's going to struggle. If it ends up on the ground, he will have the better jiu jitsu, but Blaydes is going to be much heavier and stronger. Don't forget that Blaydes used to be the HW blanket. His base is wrestling.

Honestly, that was the ghost of Derrick Lewis. It was a lay up from the UFC for Almeida to really shine. A main event in Brazil. He "dominated" in the most unimpressive way I've ever seen anyone dominate, srs.

I'm a solid 50/50 in terms of picks I'm confident on tho so lol. Maybe I'm just hating because I was so disappointed in that Lewis performance. You can get great odds on Almeida at least.

[sooby]

I get that his resume isn't amazing, but its the same with most of these guys on their run up, i.e borz, islam etc. They run through lower quality opponents like they're nothing and people always say "yeah but who has he beat?", then they smoke someone at a higher level and its like "oh gotcha". The Lewis fight, whilst he failed to finish him he still dominated him over the entire fight and was never in any trouble at any single point of the fight. I just think Jailton is the better MMA grappler of the 2, and I reckon he'll get the neck at some stage over the fight.

Lastly, who has Curtis beat that you think Jailton wouldn't, and would you still be picking Blaydes if Jailton had of finished Lewis?

It's true in a sense but also at the same time you can see the potential and talent in a person and how they win. How their boxing looks, their grappling, just their overall package. Basically do they pass the eye test.

You could see in guys like Aspinall, Topuria, Islam, Khamzat, Adesanya that these guys could eventually become champions. The talent and skill level is there to plainly see.

Maybe Khamzat it's a bit iffy because the dude struggled against an over the hill 170er in Kamaru. For every guy you mention who has made it to the top, there are guys like say Giga Chikadze, who was hyped as that next guy but got dominated by Kattar. Yair Rodriguez, who proceeded to get rekt by Edgar, provided he did have a second coming that ended up in a loss to Volk.

I mean you might be right though, Jailton definitely does have a chance. IMO he hasn't exactly passed the eyeball test for me to become a true contender in this division. Does he realistically beat guys like Aspinall, Volkov, Pavlovich, Gane, etc? My answer to that is 90% no. Stranger things have happened though. Like who would have thought Strickland would dominate Adesanya for 5 rounds after getting brutally KOed by Pereira and losing to Cannonier?

[Schnitzl]

Stranger things have happened though. Like who would have thought Strickland would dominate Adesanya for 5 rounds after getting brutally KOed by Pereira and losing to Cannonier?

This is why we love MMA. So many WOW moments and surprises. Almeida does have a case to be made because he is a BJJ god but not yet. I'm actually feeling like I'm in a weird camp as I still think Blaydes is a title contender, he just had a bad run and made some silly mistakes against D-Lew and Pavlovich. It feels like I'm going against the grain with every pick lol.

- Didn't think Pavlovich had proven himself before Tom fight and was 99.9% sure Aspinall would wrek him. Called Asp to be the champ in 2023 years ago.
- Still don't think Topuria deserves the hype. Nobody even uttered his name before Volk. I literally never heard his name being thrown around other than when mentioning beef with Paddy and the bottle throw.
- Thought DDP would get rekt by Strickland because of the pressure.
- Thought the Reaper is washed and would get mauled by Costa.
- Think DP will show there's levels and BSD can't hang with the big boys yet.

I'm fine being wrong often though lol. Such is UFC, you never know.

[Gainzzz]

This is why we love MMA. So many WOW moments and surprises. Almeida does have a case to be made because he is a BJJ god but not yet. I'm actually feeling like I'm in a weird camp as I still think Blaydes is a title contender, he just had a bad run and made some silly mistakes against D-Lew and Pavlovich. It feels like I'm going against the grain with every pick lol.

- Didn't think Pavlovich had proven himself before Tom fight and was 99.9% sure Aspinall would wrek him. Called Asp to be the champ in 2023 years ago.
- Still don't think Topuria deserves the hype. Nobody even uttered his name before Volk. I literally never heard his name being thrown around other than when mentioning beef with Paddy and the bottle throw.
- Thought DDP would get rekt by Strickland because of the pressure.
- Thought the Reaper is washed and would get mauled by Costa.
- Think DP will show there's levels and BSD can't hang with the big boys yet.

I'm fine being wrong often though lol. Such is UFC, you never know.

https://x.com/lthomasnews/status/176...012030687?s=46

It’s time to hop on the train brotha.

[CellyTech]

I'm mostly judging it on styles and what I've seen from both of them. I think Almeida's striking is very average and if he can't get the takedown, he's going to struggle. If it ends up on the ground, he will have the better jiu jitsu, but Blaydes is going to be much heavier and stronger. Don't forget that Blaydes used to be the HW blanket. His base is wrestling.

Honestly, that was the ghost of Derrick Lewis. It was a lay up from the UFC for Almeida to really shine. A main event in Brazil. He "dominated" in the most unimpressive way I've ever seen anyone dominate, srs.

I'm a solid 50/50 in terms of picks I'm confident on tho so lol. Maybe I'm just hating because I was so disappointed in that Lewis performance. You can get great odds on Almeida at least.

Really though who has Blaydes ever competed against that was competent in wrestling? Running that game in the HW div was easy money for him. I did fully expect a finish in that Lewis fight myself and was disapointed when I didn't see it, solely because it bust 1 of my tickets lol. You're also 100% right on Jailton's striking and if Curtis can keep it standing, which he should be able to do due to size, then it could be either a really tough or a really short night for Jailton.

[Schnitzl]

https://x.com/lthomasnews/status/176...012030687?s=46

It’s time to hop on the train brotha.

I'ma hop on Herbert train brada ayy (sick fully torqued KO by Topuria doe)



In other news, can't fkin wait for 299. Back to you in the studio.

[sooby]

I'ma hop on Herbert train brada ayy (sick fully torqued KO by Topuria doe)



In other news, can't fkin wait for 299. Back to you in the studio.

That head kick would have instantly KOed 99% of featherweights including Volk

not to mention this was at lightweight where Topuria isn't even big for a featherweight either, maybe even below average size at 5'7, probably weights around 165 outside of camp

ilia is the new guard brah

[Schnitzl]

You boys are crazy lol. Jailton is going to handle Curtis. I'd honestly be comfortable taking Jailton at -300 (srs)

Outta here blud! Lmao @ us picking on fellow MMA brahs btw.

If you're comfortable taking Jailton at -300, you should be comfortable taking his meat out of your mouth also. Almeida will absolutely, categorically be suking caulk and a big black kind at that when Blaydes gets a hold of him. Blaydenator only has issues with wild power punchers (mainly because he fell in love with stand-up even though he's arguably the best wrestler in HW), he's managed to decipher every other stylistic opponent so far. Almeida is not a power puncher. Easy $$$$$$ on Blaydes by KO or decision. You heard it here 1rd.

[Gainzzz]

Outta here blud! Lmao @ us picking on fellow MMA brahs btw.

If you're comfortable taking Jailton at -300, you should be comfortable taking his meat out of your mouth also. Almeida will absolutely, categorically be suking caulk and a big black kind at that when Blaydes gets a hold of him. Blaydenator only has issues with wild power punchers (mainly because he fell in love with stand-up even though he's arguably the best wrestler in HW), he's managed to decipher every other stylistic opponent so far. Almeida is not a power puncher. Easy $$$$$$ on Blaydes by KO or decision. You heard it here 1rd.

It's not 2016. It was like the wild west in this section back then. It's all friendly debate these days. There's only like 5 regulars left lol.

[Schnitzl]

It's not 2016. It was like the wild west in this section back then. It's all friendly debate these days. There's only like 5 regulars left lol.

True dat brah, 99% of my posts are trolling anyways so hopefully noone takes it too srs. 2 more sleeps!

[CellyTech]

Outta here blud! Lmao @ us picking on fellow MMA brahs btw.

If you're comfortable taking Jailton at -300, you should be comfortable taking his meat out of your mouth also. Almeida will absolutely, categorically be suking caulk and a big black kind at that when Blaydes gets a hold of him. Blaydenator only has issues with wild power punchers (mainly because he fell in love with stand-up even though he's arguably the best wrestler in HW), he's managed to decipher every other stylistic opponent so far. Almeida is not a power puncher. Easy $$$$$$ on Blaydes by KO or decision. You heard it here 1rd.

Lmao I'm telling you mayne Big Curtis is getting his neck rung like a coked up fappening.

[IronILLinois]

the God of War is gonna have to see the DIAMOND.

[FAPhaggot]

I'm just here to hate-watch O'Malley tbh.

[nn586]

this card is fuking stacked

cant wait

[Schnitzl]

the God of War is gonna have to see the DIAMOND.

It's over before it began. Some of you must have forgot so let me remind you.

[CellyTech]

Anyone got any tickets down? I put a parlay down like 2 weeks ago and forgot about it, 8 fights all ML picks. Got it at like 80/1. Same ticket now is only paying 44/1 lol.

O'Malley
BSD
Page
JDM
Song
Almeida
Gamrot
Phillips

[Gainzzz]

Spoiler!

That thing on BSD's head looks like some sort of infection (or was) which means he might be fooked unless he finds an early finish. If Poirier is not washed, he should win. His age, the number of fights, the wars, the nasty KO.. the odds are against him.

I might put a lil something on a Blaydes/Joseph Parker double.

[patrenna]

This is the one we've all been waiting for - Buffer

Predictions/Opinions

Main event - I think O'Malley takes it. Vera is always slow to start so either O'Malley gets ahead on the scorecards 2-0 and then steals another round later or gets the early stoppage.

DP vs BSD - Lots of hype around BSD but I can't write DP off, he's hands are too sleek. I think fully geared skinhead DP gets it done by TKO rd 3.
Holland gets it done by decision
Burns by decision
Song Yadong by decision
Blaydes by KO
Gamrot by decision[/QUOTE]

O’Malley
Poirier - Think people are overlooking him because he got caught by a head kick
Holland
JDM
Yan
Blaydes - his wrestling is too good
Gamrot - by decision

[CellyTech]

I think if we took away that last fight of Dustins he wouldn't be coming in anywhere close to those odds. He'd likely be atleast 2 or 3/1 fav over BSD.