The UFC and Jacksonville have gone together like peanut butter and jelly for the past eight days. It began with the return of professional sports in the United States on May 9, and the three-event storm at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena ends with UFC Fight Night 172 on Saturday.
In the main event, perennial heavyweight contender Alistair Overeem will welcome Walt Harris back to the Octagon. Harris hasn’t fought this year or since his stepdaughter, Aniah Blanchard was murdered late in 2019.
Harris’ story gripped the nation for more than a week, and it sent him into a bit of a spiral. Thankfully, he has dedicated the rest of his career to Blanchard’s memory.
He is the favorite in the main event, and my pick to win by TKO. Let’s take a look at the odds and my prediction for every fight on the card.
Weigh-In Results, Odds, and Predictions
The Upset Picks
Marlon Vera
On Friday, there were reported VISA issues that might create an obstacle for Song Yadong to compete on Saturday, so there are still some issues hanging over this matchup. Urijah Faber even showed up to weigh-in to potentially step in for his protege.
As of now, Yadong is still on the card, but the complications have to be something of a distraction. Even without the diversions, Marlon Vera presented a major challenge for the 22-year-old who has the look of a future title contender.
Vera has a complete mixed martial arts game. He has the kind of snap on his strikes, and the fight IQ to time the smaller Yadong. Vera’s counter punching and underrated wrestling will put him in a position to get the stoppage, or win by a unanimous decision.
Dan Ige
If Dan Ige doesn’t take Edson Barboza down, this prediction will be proven wrong pretty quickly. As good of a boxer as Ige is, he cannot stand with Barboza–almost no one can. However, if he puts his wrestling to work, which is what I expect, he can dominate the dangerous Brazilian with takedowns and top position.
Barboza looked good at the weigh-ins making the weight with half-a-pound to spare. Still, stylistically Ige has the tools and fight IQ to send Barboza to his third consecutive defeat.
Look out for the post-event coverage of Saturday’s show for standout individual performances and a recap of the entire card.
