UFC 270: Ngannou vs Gane main card preview & best bets

A welterweight bout between Michel Pereira and Andre Fialho will serve as the final non-title fight on this Saturday’s UFC 270 card in Anaheim, California. Here’s a closer look at this fight and the other two bouts on the main card leading up to the night’s two championship bouts of Brandon Moreno vs Deiveson Figueiredo and Francis Ngannou vs Ciryl Gane.

Welterweight: Michel Pereira (-270) vs André Fialho (+230)

Since opening his UFC career with a 1-2-0 record, Michel Pereira (26-11-0) has settled in with a 3-0-0 run over his last three fights. Andre Fialho (14-3-0) is getting the chance to make a statement with his UFC debut coming on the main card of a major pay-per-view. Fialho went 4-0 with four knockout wins in 2021 including three straight first-round knockouts in UAE Warriors fights.

There’s clear knockout power in Fialho’s corner, so coming into the UFC with a bang isn’t out of the question. But this is a big step up in competition for Fialho, and Pereira has a reliable chin with only one knockout loss in his career. Look for Pereira’s upward trend to continue with a one-sided decision win in this bout.

Bantamweight: Cody Stamann (+162) vs Said Nurmagomedov (-187)

Cody Stamann (19-4-1) has hit a wall with back-to-back losses against Merab Dvalishvili and Jimmie Rivera since opening his UFC career with a 5-1-1 record through his first six fights with the promotion. Said Nurmagomedov (14-2-0) bounced back from his first UFC loss to Raoni Barcelos with a knockout win in 51 seconds over Mark Striegl in October of 2020. He is making his return to the octagon this Saturday after a 15-month layoff.

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Said Nurmagomedov shares no relation with lightweight legend Khabib Nurmagomedov, and it’s actually Cody Stamann who would love to get this fight on the ground. Stamann is the superior grappler of the two and has a path to an upset if he can secure some takedowns. But assuming Nurmagomedov doesn’t have any rust due to the layoff, his superior speed, power and striking should lead to a win.

Middleweight: Rodolfo Vieira (-205) vs Wellington Turman (+175)

Rodolfo Vieira (8-1-0) has opened his UFC career with a 3-1-0 record, most recently defeating Dustin Stolzfus by submission in July. All eight of Vieira’s career wins have come by stoppage with seven submission wins and one knockout. Wellington Turman (17-5-0) entered the UFC with a 15-2-0 record but has gone just 2-3-0 with the promotion. His chin is a question-mark after suffering back-to-back knockouts, though that shouldn’t be a factor here as Vieira isn’t much of a striker.

Turman may be the best upset pick on this favorite-heavy card as his 100% takedown defense to date at least gives him a chance to survive Vieira’s deadly grappling. If he can keep this fight off of the ground, he has a shot to win. Still, it seems far more likely that one false move results in another Vieira submission win.