Five sportsnet.ca MMA contributors give their predictions for Saturday’s historic all-heavyweight UFC 146 main card.
Vote or chime in with your picks and thoughts.
JUNIOR DOS SANTOS VS. FRANK MIR
Carlin Bardsley: Dos Santos by second-round TKO. JDS will keep it standing and Mir will have no answer.
Matt Carson: Dos Santos by second-round KO. Despite the fact I want Mir to submit JDS, Junior’s power is just too much for him.
Mike Johnston: Dos Santos by second-round TKO. He will find his range and eventually land a shot that will rock Mir.
Mark Prior: Dos Santos by first-round KO. JDS has better standup and takedown defence, Mir won’t be able to get him down and will lose a standup battle.
Dwight Wakabayashi: Mir by second-round submission. This one does spend time on the ground, and that’s where Mir catches JDS and ends it.
POLL:
Who do you think will win?
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CAIN VELASQUEZ VS. ANTONIO SILVA
Bardsley: Velasquez by first-round TKO. If Cormier lit up Bigfoot, I genuinely fear what Cain will do to him.
Carson: Velasquez by first-round KO. Bigfoot is too slow to deal with Cain’s superior boxing.
Johnston: Velasquez by first-round TKO. Speed, leg kicks and hand speed will be the difference.
Prior: Velasquez by third round TKO. Cain will punish Silva on the feet, get him on the cage and finish him.
Wakabayashi: Velasquez by split decision. Cain will uses kicks to edge out Big Foot in a war.
POLL:
Who do you think will win?
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ROY NELSON VS. DAVE HERMAN
Bardsley: Nelson by second round submission. Herman doesn’t believe in BJJ. Roy will make a believer of him.
Carson: Nelson by decision. I see this being a war with neither man being able to stop the other, but Roy will end up with the W.
Johnston: Herman by third-round TKO. Kicks and straight punches will keep Nelson off balance.
Prior: Nelson by third-round submission. Roy will prove he has a good ground game when Herman gets restless and tries to take the fight to the ground.
Wakabayashi: Nelson by second-round TKO. Big Country will end up in dominant ground position and punch Herman out.
POLL:
Who do you think will win?
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SHANE DEL ROSARIO VS. STIPE MIOCIC
Bardsley: Del Rosario by decision. Miocic’s a gamer, but del Rosario has more tools.
Carson: Miocic by decision. Both men can grapple, I think this will end up being a positional battle and Stipe will take it.
Johnston: Miocic by decision. Miocic’s wrestling could be the big difference.
Prior: Del Rosario by unanimous decision. If the right del Rosario shows up, he will be faster than Miocic and land more effective strikes.
Wakabayashi: Miocic by unanimous decision. He will use a better all-around game to outpoint del Rosario.
POLL:
Who do you think will win?
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STEFAN STRUVE VS. LAVAR JOHNSON
Bardsley: Struve by third-round TKO. Struve’s gas tank will be the difference.
Carson: Johnson by first-round KO. Johnson is a force right now and Struve has proven he has no chin.
Johnston: Struve by first-round submission. Johnson has the momentum but Struve has a ground game.
Prior: Struve by third-round TKO. Struve is still a rising star with great hands and will disprove the Johnson hype.
Wakabayashi: Struve by second-round submission. He won’t trade with Johnson, he’ll use his advantage on the ground.
POLL:
Who do you think will win?
$(“#poll_9763”).v2Poll({poll_id: 9763});
Carlin Bardsley is a writer for MMASucka.com and the host of a daily MMA radio show on NextSportStar.com.
Matt Carson is an MMA writer for TheCheapSeats.ca and the host of Split Decision.
Mike Johnston is a Digital Content Editor for sportsnet.ca and an MMA blogger.
Mark Prior is a mobile multimedia journalist for The Daily Press. He filmed a mini-documentary on Sportsnet’s Showdown Joe Ferraro.
Dwight Wakabayashi is a featured columnist for BleacherReport.com and a writer/analyst for MMACanada.net.
