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UFC 302 Preview: Makhachev Can Hold On To His Belt

Our MMA Ambassador, Thomas Paull, takes a look at the big matchups at UFC 302 this weekend.
UFC 302 Betting Preview

It is nearly time for UFC 302, which is taking place in New Jersey, USA. It looks like a great fight card with a fantastic main event.

Brown To Edge Zaleski

The first fight of the main card is between Randy Brown, who is American, and Elizeu Zaleski, who comes from Brazil. I was shocked to see that Eilzeu had beaten Sean Strickland in the past.

Eilzeu has also beaten Benoit Saint-Denis, who fought Dustin Poirot recently and lost. It seems like Elizeu is a great fighter to have beaten them both; however, I’m not sure why, but this time I feel that Randy Brown will win.

The Almighty Almeida

Next up is Jailton Almeida, a new upcoming heavyweight star from Brazil, and he is up against Alexander Romanov, also known by his nickname ‘King Kong’, who is from Moldova. 

A great wrestler, of course, as all Eastern European fighters usually are. I always favour those kinds of wrestlers, but this time I’m going to say Jailton Almeida will be the winner by getting a submission from Alexander.

Oleksiejczuk To Overcome Holland

The next fight is with a guy that everyone loves, Kevin Holland. He will be fighting Michal Oleksiejczuk, who is from Poland. Kevin Holland is a good fighter, but he has lost a lot of fights to some big names. 

The Polish fighter Michal has noticeably won a lot of fights by KO and has the power, whereas Kevin has not only lost fights but his wins have mostly come by a decision. Michal has the power to put Kevin Holland to sleep, so this time I’m going to say Michal will win by KO.

The co-main event is between loudmouth Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa, who shockingly is the only person allowed to compete in the UFC while on the juice. Paulo Costa is a good fighter, but his mentality is not what it used to be, maybe because he is on the juice!

Strickland The Safe Option

I’m going to predict that Sean Strickland will get the win by decision. I don’t think it will be a fight where they finish each other off.

Makhachev Can Maintain His Belt

Now the main event, which I am very excited to see, is between Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier. Islam is the reigning champion, and many fighters have tried to beat him but have failed. I am starting to like him, and he is a great fighter. Honestly, Dustin Poirier is a really good fighter and always guarantees to put on a great show, but the problem is that although he has secured many wins in the past, when it comes to championship fights for the belts, he always loses, which is unlucky.

As this will be a fight for the belt, I’m not sure, and I think he will probably lose, so I’m going to say that I think Islam Makhachev will win by submission. I think Islam will try to knock Dustin out but will find that Dustin is a good mover and will have to change his strategy and wrestle him down to get the submission to put him away.

Good luck to you all and enjoy UFC 302!

Thomas Paull UFC 302 Selections

Randy Brown To Beat Elizeu Zaleski (4/7)

Jailton Almeida To Beat Alexander Romanov (4/11)

Michal Oleksiejczuk To Beat Kevin Holland (2/1)

Sean Strickland To Beat Paulo Costa (2/5)

Islam Makhachev To Beat Dustin Poirier (1/6)

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Our MMA Ambassador, Thomas Paull, takes a look at the big matchups at UFC 302 this weekend.
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