UFC 218 Holloway vs Aldo Preview and Predictions :McKee

UFC 218 is this Saturday Night from Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.  Eli Mooneyhamn and myself will be there to cover it live.  It is a loaded card that is sure to deliver.  Who wins and why?  Take a look below to see how I have it shaping up, and make sure to keep locked into NEOSI all Saturday Night for further updates.

 

Winners are in bold for Prelims

 

Prelims on Fight Pass

Amanda Cooper vs Angela Magana

Justin Willis vs Allen Crowder

Jeremy Kimball vs Dominick Reyes

Abdul Razak Alhassan vs Sabah Homasi

 

Prelims on FOX Sports 1

Felice Herrig vs Cortney Casey

David Teymur vs Drakkar Klose

Alex Oliveira vs Yancy Medeiros

Charles Oliveira vs Paul Felder

 

Main Card

Tecia Torres vs Michelle Waterson

Torres only has one loss on her record, and it is against the current champ, Thug Rose.  Waterson has been flaky as of late, and appears to be losing steam.

Pick – Torres.

 

Eddie Alvarez vs Justin Gaethje

Justin Gaethje is unbeaten for a reason.  The guy can straight bring it.  Can you imagine if he would start using some of the wrestling background as well?  Eddie Alvarez has a long way back to a title shot, but it won’t get any shorter tonight.

Pick – Gaethje.

 

Henry Cejudo vs Sergio Pettis

This is a tough one for me to predict as I love both guys.  Pettis is on the cusp of a title shot but in the cage with perhaps the wrong guy.  There is a great chance Cejudo will take him down and keep him down all three rounds.

The hope Pettis has in this is the fact Cejudo had an abbreviated training camp with a hurt foot.  That will be the difference.

Pick – Pettis

 

Alistair Overeem vs Francis Ngannou

Overeem has come so close, so many times to capturing that coveted UFC Championship and always seems to come up short.  Ngannou is a knockout artist and one more tonight, can earn him a shot at Stipe in January in Boston.

Both men have a lot to lose and but also much to gain.  I have a weird feeling that something strange will happen, and it may end up in a draw.  However, I wont get that crazy with my pick.

Pick – Ngannou

 

The Main Event

Featherweight Champion Max Holloway vs Jose Aldo

Aldo held his own in the first fight and appeared to be winning before everything went south.  He has a chance at redemption tonight and will do everything he can to take advantage of it.  Holloway is on fire with 11 straight victories and appears to be one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world.

This is a true Main Event in every sense of the word as both men more then deserve the spotlight.  Aldo is pissed, and Holloway in many ways still feels underrated.  I truly believe when all is said and done, Aldo will have the much better legacy.

But, in the fight game, styles make fights and Holloway has the exact style that will once again give Aldo trouble.

Pick = Holloway.