The Bloody Elbow team has submitted its forecasts for UFC 231, and while everyone who wrote something up chosen Max Holloway over Brian Ortega, overall opinion is fairly divided. As for the co-main event, things are divided as to who’ll prevail involving Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Valentina Shevchenko. It’s excellent to have toss-up title conflicts such as these two, isn’t it?
Notice: Predictions are entered during the week and collected the day before the event. Explanations behind each choice aren’t required and a few writers opt not to do this for their own motives. For example, if Phil Mackenzie entered all his predictions on Wednesday without incorporating in any explanationshe has no idea if he is going to be the only one siding with a single fighter for any given fight.
Max Holloway vs. Brian Ortega
Anton Tabuena: This really is fairly straightforward to me. With any bizarre health difficulties, Max Holloway should fully run via Ortega here. Holloway is just much better and far more dangerous than the rest of the people Ortega has beaten. This is obviously still MMA and Ortega has shown that he has decent power, but he certainly will not pick apart someone as technically adept as Holloway. I think this will look a lot like Ortega’s past spells, but he will have a much worse beating and won’t be able to secure that magic comeback. Max Holloway by TKO.
Mookie Alexander: There is a level of unsustainability to Ortega’s love of finishing battles over winning rounds, and Holloway is a masterful rounded winner. I’m obviously assuming we are receiving the best version of Max Holloway, so that is the secret here. Ortega has grown tremendously as a striker, but until this stage, Holloway has proven a ridiculous chin and he’s probably not the person you need to take part in a high-paced brawl with. Ortega loves the jumping guillotine, I guess Holloway is going to be prepared for that, and he is a damn great grappler in his very own right. Takedowns are improbable on both sides, and Ortega in particular has shown himself to be not particularly great at taking down his opponents in the first place. While Ortega is extremely dangerous predicated on what we’ve seen from him lately conflicts, I trust Holloway to do more damage and avoid the classic Ortega comeback. Max Holloway by unanimous decision.
Zane Simon: Ortega’s struggle against Frankie Edgar was something of a sin. He’s always been tricky, always been reckless, but that has been the very first time his striking style – assembled around a lot slicker moves and frequently a lack of fundamental ones – has looked like a whole game. He worked behind the jab, feinted, drew out predictable responses and shifted up his entrances to club Frankie to unconsciousness. It was damn pretty. It also means that it is hard to say just how much more advanced Ortega might be now. Without seeing more consistency and variety into his game, and without seeing an ability to keep output multiple hard striking rounds, I have to select Holloway. His ability to push a pace then to up that pace because his competitors tire, his ability to modify targets in conjunction and start up new mixtures off sooner, easier ones, just aren’t skills that Ortega has revealed yet. And Ortega still has a history of dropping rounds that he has not finished the struggle in. Even with Max’s health scare, the majority of the queries are on Ortega’s side and most of the answers are around Holloway’s. Max Holloway by choice.
Victor Rodriguez: Neither guy will be looking to take the other down, and Holloway’s clinch match is lethal. Having said that, Ortega’s been a guy I’ve counted out in a lot of struggles, I feel stupid picking against him. He should have a range disadvantage and Max’s frenetic pace must make this difficult for him due to volume, but Ortega doesn’t get hit that much and seems to keep finding ways to pull a rabbit from his hat. I still want to pick Ortega by diving to get a flying armbar in the clinch situation, but that is a little reckless even for me. And while I’m still worried about the fact that we don’t know what health issues Holloway had time, it would appear that the guy that wears harm well and contains a more comprehensive and composed approach to his strikes need to be able to take over as the fight goes on and apply pressure so. Max Holloway by decision.
Read more here: http://www.ngonngon.co.uk/brock-lesnar-lays-out-kofi-kingston-after-issuing-wwe-talent-challenge/