Dana White’s prediction of the UFC being the first “real” sport to return to action appears to be coming to fruition on Saturday.
What this means is people have a reason now – despite the nearly defunct lockdown – to get together and blow their money on BBQs, brews, and bets – among other things society has been sorely missing at a large and sociable scale when it comes to anything sports related.
UFC 249 has the potential to be the highest viewed PPV the company has seen in a long time – if not ever, considering nothing is really open yet – and it’s only right that we bring the Talk back to some real current sports…
So let’s do some picks!
The way we play here at Tailgate Talk is you pick the winner, round of finish and type of finish (ie. KO/TKO, sub, decision) for a full 3 points. Obviously you have to pick the correct winner for the round and finish points to count as well. So if you have winner and only round correct, that’s 2 points. Winner and finish is 2 points, Winner only is 1 point, and obviously 0 points for wrong picks. Person with the most points win!
Alright, if y’all wanna compare picks after the fights are done we can do that, and without further adieu…
UFC 249 PREDICTIONS BEGIN NOW
Dramatic, ain’t it?
1. Ryan Spann vs Sam Alvey – Light Heavyweight Bout
Spann is a young up-and-comer, Alvey the declining veteran. This usually plays out one way – Spann via Rd 1 KO
2. Charles Rosa vs Bryce Mitchell – Featherweight Bout
Don’t know much about either but I’m rolling with Rosa based off the fact that I dislike how he looks less than Mitchell – Rosa via dec
3. Vincente Luque vs Niko Price – Welterweight Bout
This seems like a toss up but I’m rolling the dice because fuck it, am I right or am I right? – Price via Rd 1 KO
4. Ronaldo Souza vs Uriah Hall – Middleweight Bout
Hall never seems to step up in a “big fight” situation and I see no difference happening here, although it’s not a big fight, Jacare is still probably Hall’s stiffest challenge – Souza via Rd 2 sub
5. Carla Esparza vs Michelle Waterson – Straweight Bout
Karate Hottie fan here, not tryna bet against wifey – Waterson via dec
6. Fabricio Werdum vs Alexey Oleynik – Heavyweight Bout
Werdum hasn’t fought since 2018 but should still handle Oleynik easily, unless the Russian gets lucky with a punch. But since his biggest strength is submissions, and Werdum is better, this should be a clinic – Werdum via Rd 2 sub
7. Anthony Pettis vs Donald Cerrone – Welterweight Bout
2 fan favorites collide here and it’s one of those fights where you’d hate to see someone lose, but it’s inevitable. Unfortunately for Cowboy, his last string of losses has shown an inability to get off punches against his opponents while taking punishment. Unless his game plan has improved dramatically since his last outing against Conor McGregor, I don’t really see him turning things around any time soon, especially at his age of 37 – Pettis via Rd 3 KO
8. Greg Hardy vs Yorgan De Castro – Heavyweight Bout
Let me first start off by saying that I think UFC ought to be ashamed of themselves for not only employing, but promoting an absolute head case and loose cannon like Hardy, who has a long history of domestic violence. For the UFC to exploit this man’s propensity for assaulting women into profit and a main card slot based solely on the fact that he’s an ex-NFL player is disgraceful, deplorable, and just fucking dumb.
Anyway… I think he meets his match here. Probably being biased again – De Castro via Rd 1 KO
9. Jeremy Stephens vs Calvin Kattar – Featherweight Bout
Stephens is a guy that you know will bring it every fight, but he’s past his prime. And even in his prime, he wasn’t really ever gonna be championship material – Kattar via dec
10. Francis Ngannou vs Jairzinho Rozenstruik – Heavyweight Bout
This one is another toss-up that I really have no idea which way to lean, all I expect to see is a knock out – Ngannou via Rd 3 KO
11. Henry Cejudo (c) vs Dominik Cruz – World Bantamweight Championship
This is going to a decision, make no mistake. Only question is will it be fast paced and entertaining, or slow and boring? – Cejudo via dec
12. Tony Ferguson vs Justin Gaethje – Interim Lightweight Championship
Both these guys are dogs that will bang until someone goes to sleep, and that’s what I expect to see. I think Cucuy stifles Gaethje with punches and eventually goads him into giving up a submission to become the new interim champ – Ferguson via Rd 3 sub
Alright, I know there are plenty of UFC fans out there, so where are y’all at? Who’s gonna step up to the challenge?
Until next time… the Tailgate is now closed.
