Tag: Andre Muniz

UFC Fight Night 220 predictions: Nikita Krylov or Ryan Spann in Las Vegas showdown?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC Fight Night 220 main card in Las Vegas featuring Nikita Krylov vs Ryan Spann.

Krylov
vs.
Spann		 Allen
vs.
Muniz		 Mayes
vs.
Sakai		 De La Rosa
vs.
Suarez		 Lainesse
vs.
Malott
MMA Junkie readers’
consensus picks
15-11		 spann2023
Spann
(57%)		 muniz2023
Muniz
(68%)		 sakai2023
Sakai
(83%)		 suarez2023
Suarez
(88%)		 malott2023
Malott
(78%)
Matt Erickson
18-8		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 mayes2023
Mayes		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Matthew Wells
@MrMWells
17-9		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
17-9		 krylov2023
Krylov		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
16-10
trophy copy 2018, 2022 Champion		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 mayes2023
Mayes		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Simon Samano
@SJSamano
16-10		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 lainesse2023
Lainesse
Nolan King
@mma_kings
15-11/em>		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Brian Garcia
@thegoze
15-11
trophy copy 2017 Champion		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 mayes2023
Mayes		 suarez2023
Suarez		 lainesse2023
Lainesse
Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
14-12		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
14-12		 krylov2023
Krylov		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
12-14		 spann2023
Spann		 allen2023
Allen		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott
Mike Bohn
@MikeBohn
12-14
trophy copy 2014 Champion		 spann2023
Spann		 muniz2023
Muniz		 sakai2023
Sakai		 suarez2023
Suarez		 malott2023
Malott

The UFC is back in its home base in Las Vegas this week with a pair of light heavyweights at the top of the card.

UFC Fight Night 220 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, [autotag]Nikita Krylov[/autotag] (29-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) takes on [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC) at 205 pounds. Krylov is slight favorite at -170 at Tipico Sportsbook; the comeback on Spann is +145. But our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have flipped the script and are are siding with underdog Spann at a hefty 9-2 clip.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] (20-5 MMA, 8-2 UFC) meets [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] (23-4 MMA, 5-0 UFC) at middleweight. Muniz is a -240 favorite, and he’s got a near-unanimous picks lead at 10-1.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Don’Tale Mayes[/autotag] (9-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) fights [autotag]Augusto Sakai[/autotag] (15-5-1 MMA, 4-4 UFC) in a heavyweight bout that is the most contentious among our staff members, and it’s still a relative blowout. Sakai is just a slight favorite at -130, but he has a big 8-3 lead from our pickers.

Our lone unanimous pick on the main card is [autotag]Tatiana Suarez[/autotag] (8-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC), who is a massive 8-1 favorite over [autotag]Montana De La Rosa[/autotag] (12-7-1 MMA, 5-3-1 UFC) in their women’s flyweight fight.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Yohan Lainesse[/autotag] (9-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) takes on [autotag]Mike Malott[/autotag] (8-1-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) in a welterweight fight between a pair of Canadians. Malott is more than a 2-1 favorite, and he has a big 9-2 edge in the picks.

In the MMA Junkie consensus picks, Spann (57 percent), Muniz (68 percent), Sakai (56 percent), Suarez (88 percent) and Malott (78 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 220.

Andre Muniz welcomes Brendan Allen’s jiu-jitsu challenge at UFC Fight Night 219

Andre Muniz hopes Brendan Allen stands by his word and takes the fight to the ground at UFC Fight Night 220.

LAS VEGAS – Challenge issued, challenge accepted.

[autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] has no problem taking up Brendan Allen’s offer to go to the ground when they meet in their co-main event bout at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 220.

Just a few months ago, Allen (20-5 MMA, 8-2 UFC) claimed to have the best jiu-jitsu in the division and challenged grappling standout Muniz (23-4 MMA, 5-0 UFC), so he could prove it. Well, now just days away from the fight, Muniz is hoping that Allen honors his challenge and fights him in the grappling department.

“Not too long ago, he posed a challenge to me, a ground challenge, to see who would win on the ground,” Muniz told reporters at Wednesday’s media day. “I hope that he stands by his word and let’s take this to the ground to see who’s got the best jiu-jitsu in the division.”

[lawrence-related id=2558880]

Muniz is hoping to get a win on Saturday and take a big step in the rankings. He has five consecutive wins in the promotion, which include notable names such as Uriah Hall and Ronaldo Souza. He believes Allen would be a solid addition to his resume.

“Brendan is a great athlete,” Muniz said. “He’s coming off a good winning stretch in the promotion., but I mean, I’m going to go out Saturday and do my job. I feel very prepared, very ready to go and invade the top of the rankings.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 220.

 

Video: UFC Fight Night 220 media day live stream, interviews

Before UFC Fight Night 220 on Saturday, 10 main card fighters are scheduled to speak to reporters at media day.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 220 media day takes place Wednesday at the UFC Apex, and you can follow along with a live stream right here.

In the main event, [autotag]Nikita Krylov[/autotag] (29-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) meets [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in a showdown between ranked light heavyweights. A middleweight bout between [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] (20-5 MMA, 8-2 UFC) and [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] (23-4 MMA, 5-0 UFC) serves as the co-headliner.

Before fight night arrives, 10 athletes from the main card will speak to reporters, including MMA Junkie, at the UFC Apex.

If you happen to miss any of the individual sessions on the live stream above, check below for the archived interviews of each fighter.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 220.

UFC Fight Night 220 pre-event facts: Tatiana Suarez returns after 1,358 days

Check out the numbers behind UFC Fight Night 220, where undefeated Tatiana Suarez fights for the first time since June 2019.

The UFC wraps its February schedule on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 220, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas with the full lineup slated to stream on ESPN+.

A clash of high-action light heavyweight contenders is featured in the main event of the card. Nikita Krylov (28-9 MMA, 10-7 UFC) and Ryan Spann (21-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC) will bring a combined 37 career first-round finishes to the octagon in a fight that’s slated for five rounds, but unlikely to need it.

For more on the numbers behind the headliners, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about UFC Fight Night 220.

Andre Muniz vs. Brendan Allen on tap for UFC Fight Night on Feb. 25

Rising middleweights Andre Muniz and Brendan Allen will tangle in February.

Rising middleweights [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag] and [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] will tangle in February.

Muniz faces Allen at a UFC Fight Night event on Feb. 25, which doesn’t yet have a publicly announced location or venue.

A person with knowledge of the matchup recently confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Ag Fight first reported the matchup.

Unbeaten in the octagon, Muniz (23-4 MMA, 5-0 UFC) is coming off a unanimous decision win over Uriah Hall at UFC 276 in July. Three of the Brazilian’s past four wins have come by first-round submission, including an armbar finish of Ronaldo Souza at UFC 262 where Muniz became the first man to submit the jiu-jitsu legend.

After scoring a submission win over Sam Alvey in his light heavyweight debut in February, Allen (20-5 MMA, 8-2 UFC) returned to middleweight and scored back-to-back wins over Jacob Malkoun and Krzysztof Jotko. The 26-year-old has won four of his past five.

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for Feb. 25 includes:

  • Nikita Krylov vs. Ryan Spann
  • Jordan Leavitt vs. Victor Martinez
  • Hailey Cowan vs. Ailin Perez
  • Denys Bondar vs. Ode Osbourne
  • Cortney Casey vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius
  • Lucas Almeida vs. Andre Fili
  • Darrius Flowers vs. Erick Gonzalez
  • Brendan Allen vs. Andre Muniz

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Dec. 12-18)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from Dec. 12-18.

UFC 276 post-event facts: Alexander Volkanovski joins exclusive club with 12-0 UFC start

Check out the facts and figures to come out of UFC 276, where Alexander Volkanovski continued his epic run with a 22nd consecutive win.

The biggest UFC event of the year thus far took place Saturday with UFC 276, which went down at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and featured a plethora of notable names – none more so than a pair of champions from Oceania.

In the main event, [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] (23-1 MMA, 12-1 UFC) outpointed [autotag]Jared Cannonier[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 8-6 UFC) for a unanimous decision to defend the middleweight title. That win came soon after [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] (25-1 MMA, 12-0 UFC) defended the featherweight title against [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag] (23-7 MMA, 19-7 UFC) with another unanimous decision in their trilogy bout.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 276.

Andre Muniz def. Uriah Hall at UFC 276: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Andre Muniz’s unanimous decision win over Uriah Hall at UFC 276.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Andre Muniz[/autotag]’s unanimous decision win over [autotag]Uriah Hall[/autotag] at UFC 276 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. (Photos by Stephen R. Sylvanie, USA TODAY Sports)

Photos: UFC 276 ceremonial weigh-ins and faceoffs

Check out these photos from the UFC 276 ceremonial weigh-ins and the final fighter faceoffs.

Check out these photos from the UFC 276 ceremonial weigh-ins at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. (Photos by Mike Bohn, MMA Junkie)

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past two weeks (April 18-May 1)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past two weeks.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from April 18-May 1.