The UFC is back in one of the most historic cities in the country this week with a paid of title fights at the top of the bill.
UFC 292 takes place Saturday at TD Garden in Boston. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.
(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)
Get pick results from our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers, as well as additional analysis, below.
Pedro Munhoz vs. Marlon Vera
Records: Pedro Munhoz (20-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC), Marlon Vera (20-8-1 MMA, 14-7 UFC)
Division: Bantamweight
Betting odds: Vera -200, Munhoz +165
Junkie pick results: Vera 9, Munhoz 2
Mario Bautista vs. Da'Mon Blackshear
Records: Mario Bautista (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC), Da’Mon Blackshear (14-5-1 MMA, 2-1-1 UFC)
Division: Bantamweight
Betting odds: Bautista -220, Blackshear +180
Junkie pick results: Bautista 9, Blackshear 1 (1 no-pick)
Ian Machado Garry vs. Neil Magny
Records: Ian Machado Garry (12-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC), Neil Magny (28-10 MMA, 21-9 UFC)
Division: Welterweight
Betting odds: Garry -485, Magny +370
Junkie pick results: Garry 11, Magny 0
Zhang Weili vs. Amanda Lemos
Records: Zhang Weili (23-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC), Amanda Lemos (13-2-1 MMA, 7-2 UFC)
Division: Women’s strawweight
Betting odds: Weili -310, Lemos +250
Junkie pick results: Weili 10, Lemos 1
Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O'Malley
Records: Aljamain Sterling (23-3 MMA, 15-3 UFC), Sean O’Malley (16-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC)
Division: Bantamweight
Betting odds: Sterling -260, O’Malley +210
Junkie pick results: Sterling 9, O’Malley 2
Preliminary card picks
Although fights on the prelims don’t count toward the standings in the MMA Junkie staff picks, we still pick each fight. Here are some key results:
UFC 292 is the most blowout-heavy full card of staff picks in MMA Junkie history. The 12 fights on the card had an average vote tally of 10-1, including four shutouts.
Gregory Rodrigues (13-5 MMA, 4-2 UFC) is the second biggest favorite on the entire card in his middleweight bout against Denis Tiuliulin (11-7 MMA, 1-2 UFC), and he’s one of the four unanimous picks.
Along with Ian Garry on the main card, the other two unanimous picks are Kurt Holobaugh (19-7 MMA, 0-4 UFC) in his “TUF 31” lightweight final against Austin Hubbard (15-6 MMA, 3-4 UFC) and Andre Petroski (9-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in his middleweight bout against Gerald Meerschaert (35-16 MMA, 10-8 UFC).
The closest fight from a picking standpoint still is a blowout at 8-3 for Brad Tavares (19-9 MMA, 14-8 UFC) against former middleweight champ Chris Weidman (15-6 MMA, 11-6 UFC), who is returning from a layoff of more than two years due to a broken leg.
Check out all the playoff picks below.
UFC 292 main card picks
| Sterling vs. O’Malley |
Weili vs. Lemos |
Garry vs. Magny |
Bautista vs. Blackshear |
Munhoz vs. Vera |
|
|
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 132-85 |
 Sterling (63%) |
 Weili (83%) |
 Garry (77%) |
 Bautista (65%) |
 Vera (82%) |
|
Nolan King @mma_kings 134-83 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Simon Samano @SJSamano 132-85 |
 O’Malley |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 131-86  |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Matt Erickson @MattE 130-87 |
O’Malley |
 Lemos |
Garry |
 Blackshear |
Vera |
|
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 130-87 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
 Munhoz |
|
Mike Bohn @MikeBohn 128-89 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Matthew Wells @MrMWells 127-90 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Brian Garcia @thegoze 125-92 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 125-92 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Munhoz |
|
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 122-95 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
Bautista |
Vera |
|
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 120-97 |
Sterling |
Weili |
Garry |
 N/A |
Vera |
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.
