UFC Fight Night 200 main card preview & top value bets

A middleweight bout between Punahele Soriano and Nick Maximov will serve as the co-main event on this Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night 200 card in Las Vegas. Here’s a closer look at that fight and the other bouts on the main card leading up to Jack Hermansson vs Sean Strickland.

Middleweight: Punahele Soriano (-185) vs Nick Maximov (+160)

Punahele Soriano (8-1-0) entered the UFC with an undefeated professional record of 6-0-0 and won his first two fights over Oskar Piechota and Dusko Todorovic by knockout. Soriano’s undefeated run came to an end at the hands of Brendan Allen in a decision loss last July. Nick Maximov (7-0-0) picked up a decision win over Cody Brundage in his UFC debut at UFC 266.

This is an important bout for these two middleweights as the winner will pick up a nice victory over another good young prospect and some momentum. Soriano is the far more aggressive striker in this bout as Maximov is primarily a counter-striker that looks for the perfect opportunity to take his opponent down to the mat. There is a path to an upset for Maximov if he can consistently keep Soriano on his back, but Soriano’s higher output and versatile skillset should help him come away with the win here.

Welterweight: Shavkat Rakhmanov (-230) vs Carlston Harris (+195)

Shavkat Rakhmanov’s professional career is off to a blistering 14-0-0 start with all 14 of those wins coming via stoppage with seven knockouts and seven submission victories. Rakhmanov entered the UFC on the heels of four straight knockouts but has won each of his first two fights with the promotion by submission. Carlston Harris (17-4-0) is riding a five-fight winning streak that includes a 2-0-0 record in the UFC. Each of his two UFC wins have come in the first round with a submission against Christian Aguilera and a knockout over Impa Kasanganay.

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This should be a fun fight between two welterweights that have looked dominant early on in their UFC careers. It’s tempting to take a shot on Harris at these odds, but Rakhmanov is just too good. The undefeated streak probably doesn’t end here.

Middleweight: Tresean Gore (-155) vs Bryan Battle (+135)

Tresean Gore (3-0-0) is set to make his UFC debut with only three professional fights under his belt. His opponent Bryan Battle (6-1-0) doesn’t have a whole lot more experience than that, but he has won each of his last five fights. That stretch includes four submission victories with his last one coming in his UFC debut against Gilbert Urbina in August. Gore does appear to be the slightly more talented prospect, but at these odds we’ll roll with the underdog in what should be a very competitive fight.

Featherweight: Julian Erosa (-305) vs Steven Peterson (+255)

Julian Erosa (26-9-0) was cut from the UFC following an 0-3 start to his career with the promotion in 2018 and 2019, but he’s returned with a vengeance compiling a 3-1 record over his last four UFC fights with two submission wins and one knockout win. Steven Peterson (19-9-0) returned from a 17-month layoff in June with a decision win over Chase Hooper. Prior to that win, Peterson was 3-4 over his last seven fights. Erosa is the more dangerous fighter in this bout and should be the one to come out on top.