UFC on ESPN+ 40 predictions: Can Glover Teixeira stay hot vs. Thiago Santos?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC on ESPN+ 40 main card.

Santos
vs.
Teixeira
Arlovski
vs.
Boser
Barcelos
vs.
Taha
Allen
vs.
Heinisch
Gadelha
vs.
Xiaonan
MMA Junkie readers’
consensus picks
2020: 137-81
santos2020
Santos
(72%)
boser2020
Boser
(71%)
barcelos2020
Barcelos
(83%)
allen2020
Allen
(51%)
gadelha2020
Gadelha
(53%)
Dan Tom
@DanTomMMA
2020: 148-70
teixeira2020
Teixeira
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
xiaonan2020
Xiaonan
Nolan King
@mma_kings
2020: 147-71
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
gadelha2020
Gadelha
Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
2020: 146-72
santos2020
Santos
arlovski2020
Arlovski
barcelos2020
Barcelos
heinisch2020
Heinisch
gadelha2020
Gadelha
Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
2020: 146-72
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
taha2020
Taha
allen2020
Allen
gadelha2020
Gadelha
Mike Bohn
@MikeBohnMMA
2020: 143-75
trophy copy 2014 Champion
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
gadelha2020
Gadelha
Simon Head
@simonhead
2020: 142-76
trophy copy 2019 Champion*
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
xiaonan2020
Xiaonan
Dave Doyle
@davedoylemma
2020: 141-77
santos2020
Santos
arlovski2020
Arlovski
barcelos2020
Barcelos
heinisch2020
Heinisch
gadelha2020
Gadelha
Brian Garcia
@thegoze
2020: 140-78
trophy copy 2017 Champion
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
heinisch2020
Heinisch
gadelha2020
Gadelha
George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
2020: 138-80
santos2020
Santos
arlovski2020
Arlovski
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
xiaonan2020
Xiaonan
Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
2020: 136-82
trophy copy 2018 Champion
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
heinisch2020
Heinisch
xiaonan2020
Xiaonan
Simon Samano
@SJSamano
2020: 136-82
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
xiaonan2020
Xiaonan
Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
2020: 134-84
santos2020
Santos
boser2020
Boser
taha2020
Taha
allen2020
Allen
gadelha2020
Gadelha
John Morgan
@MMAjunkieJohn
2020: 134-84
santos2020
Santos
arlovski2020
Arlovski
barcelos2020
Barcelos
allen2020
Allen
xiaonan2020
Xiaonan
Matt Erickson
@MMAjunkieMatt
2020: 83-135
teixeira2020
Teixeira
arlovski2020
Arlovski
taha2020
Taha
heinisch2020
Heinisch
gadelha2020
Gadelha

The UFC is back in its home base this week with a pair of former title challengers in the main event.

UFC on ESPN+ 40 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]Thiago Santos[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC) takes on [autotag]Glover Teixeira[/autotag] (31-7 MMA, 14-5 UFC) at light heavyweight. The winner will stay in the title picture. Santos is more a -250 favorite at BetMGM; the comeback on Teixeira is +200. Among our 14 editors, writers, videographers and radio hosts, only two are taking Teixeira in an upset.

In the co-feature, former UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag] (29-19 MMA, 18-13 UFC) takes on [autotag]Tanner Boser[/autotag] (19-6-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC). Boser is a -313 favorite, but he has just a 9-5 lead over Arlovski in the picks.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Raoni Barcelos[/autotag] (15-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) meets [autotag]Khalid Taha[/autotag] (14-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in a bantamweight bout. Barcelos is a heavy -371 favorite and has a big 11-3 picks lead.

[autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] (15-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) fights [autotag]Ian Heinisch[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) in a middleweight bout that is a pick’em with the oddsmakers. It’s close among our pickers, too, with an 8-6 lead for Allen.

And to open the main card, former women’s strawweight title challenger [autotag]Claudia Gadelha[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) takes on [autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC). Xiaonan is a -162 favorite, but it’s Gadelha with an 8-6 picks lead.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Santos (72 percent), Boser (71 percent), Barcelos (83 percent), Allen (51 percent) and Gadelha (53 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.