MMA DFS Playbook: UFC 231

UFC 231 LIVE FROM THE SCOTIABANK ARENA IN TORONTO CANADA

We are back in Canada for a night that features not one but two title fights. In our co-main event for the women’s Flyweight championship we have Valentina Shevchenko vs Joanna Jedrzejczyk. This will be an exciting match between two Muay Thai experts. In our main event we have champ Max Holloway vs challenger Brian “T-City” Ortega for the Featherweight title. This card also features some amazing female fights that those ladies are trying to get back into the title hunt. We start the action off over on UFC Fight Pass at 6pm.

UFC FIGHT PASS EARLY PRELIMS 6:00 PM

Devin Clark 9-2 vs Aleksandar Rakic 10-1

Devin has three KO/TKO, one submission, and five decision wins. He is 3-2 in his last five fights. He has two 1^st round wins. He has a boxing and wrestling background.

Aleksandar has seven KO/TKO once submissions, and two decision wins. He is on a ten-fight win streak. He has six 1^st round wins.

Good fight to start the night off with. Devin will need to take the fight to the ground and stay away from the striking game of Aleksandar. He will need to control the fight and always close the distance. Aleksandar will look to keep the fight standing and throw lots of combinations., He will look to end the fight quickly. In the end I see Aleksandar with the win tonight.

Carlos Diego Ferriera 13-2 vs Kyle Nelson 12-1

Carlos has two KO/TKO, six submissions, and five decision wins. He is 3-2 in his last five fights. He holds a 3^rd degree black belt in Jiu Jitsu. He has four 1^st round wins. He has one Performance of the Night and one Fight of the Night bonus.

Kyle has four KO/TKO, four submissions, and four decision wins. He is 6-1 in his last seven fights and include six in a row. He has six 1^st round wins. Well rounded

Carlos will look for an early takedown and start some ground work. He will do some ground and pound and then look for a submission. Kyle will need to stay away from the ground game of Carlos. He needs to keep the fight standing and throw good combinations. In the end I see Carlos with another win.

Chad Laprise 13-3 vs Dhiego Lima 12-7

Chad has seven KO/TKO, one submission and five decision wins. He is 3-2 in his last five fights. He has seven 1^st round wins. He is the TUF Nations Welterweight winner. He has one Fight of the Night, and one Performance of the Night bonus.

Dhiego has three KO/TKO, four submissions, and five decision wins. He is 2-3 in his last five fights. He has three 1^st round wins. He has a brown belt in Jiu Jitsu. Runner up on TUF 19 and TUF Redemption.

Great matchup. Chad will look to keep the fight standing and look to press the action quickly. Look for him to back Dhiego up to the cage and work combinations. Dhiego will look for an early takedown and work his ground game. He needs to be cautious of standing and trading blow with Chad. In the end I see Chad with another win.

Brad Katona 7-0 vs Matthew Lopez 10-3

Brad has one KO/TKO, two submissions, and four decision wins. He has two 1^st round wins. Well rounded.

Matthew has four KO/TKO, four submissions, and two decision wins. He is 2-3 in his last five. He has eight 1^st round wins. Former four-time State High School Wrestling Champ. Has a solid boxing background.

Look for this fight to go back and forth on the ground and on their feet. Brad will need to settle into a good rhythm and control his opponent. Matthew will look for a big takedown and start some ground and pound. In the end I see Matthew out on top.

PRELIMS FS1 8:00 PM

Elias Theodorou 15-2 vs Eryk Anders 11-2

Elias has five KO/TKO, two submissions, and eight decision wins. He is 4-1 in his last five fights. He has two 1^st round wins. Was the TUF Nations Middleweight winner. He has a Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu back ground.

Eryk has seven KO/TKO, one submission, and three decision wins. He has six 1^st round wins.  He was a member of the 2009 Alabama Championship football team. He has one Performance of the Night and one Fight of the Night bonus. He holds a brown belt in Jiu Jitsu.

Even matchup. Elias needs to be aggressive and mix it up. Eryk has some great knockout power and will look to end it fast. Elias needs to control the tempo and work his strategy and not play into Eryk’s. Eryk will look for a big takedown followed up with some ground and pound. In the end I see Eryk with another win.

Katlyn Chookagian 11-1 vs Jessica Eye 13-6

Katlyn has two KO/TKO, one submission, and eight decision wins. She is 4-1 in her last five fights. Her lone loss is to Liz Carmouche. She has 2 1^st round wins. She is a Renzo Gracie Brown Belt.

Jessica has three KO/TKO, one submission, and nine decision wins. She is 2-3 in her last five fights. She has two 1^st round wins. Excellent striker. Considered the fastest and most technical in all the women’s divisions.

Going to be an exciting fight. Katlyn will look to mix it up. She needs to avoid the technical striking game of Jessica. She must be a counter puncher and time Jessica’s shot. Jessica needs to push the pace and be aggressive. She will look to keep the fight standing and out strike Katlyn. In the end I see the fight going all three rounds with Katlyn on top.

Oliver Aubin-Mercier 11-3 vs Gilbert Burns 13-3

Oliver has one KO/TKO, eight submissions, and two decision wins. He is 4-1 in his last five fights. He holds a black belt in Judo, and a brown belt in Jiu Jitsu. He has five 1^st round wins. He also has two Performance of the Night bonuses.

Gilbert has five KO/TKO, seven submissions and one decision win. He is 3-2 in his last five fights. He has ten 1^st round wins. He is a three-time World Jiu Jitsu Champ. Holds a 2^nd degree black belt in Jiu Jitsu. Has two Performance of the Night bonuses.

Great match with two high level ground grapplers. Oliver will look to get into a clinch and work his judo for a throw and the control Gilbert once on the ground. Gilbert will need to take the fight to the ground first and control Oliver, so Oliver is not on top. I see this going all three rounds and Oliver with the win.

Claudia Gadelha 16-3 vs Nina Ansaroff 9-5

Claudia has two Ko/TKO, seven submissions and seven decision wins. She is 3-2 in her last five fights. She has wins over Carla Esparaza, and Karolina Kowalkiewicz. She is a three-time Jiu Jitsu champ. She has a 2^nd degree black belt in Ju Jitsu and well versed in Muay Thai.

Nina has four KO/TKO, two submissions, and three decision wins. She is 3-2 in her last five fights. Wins over Randa Markos and Angela Hill. Engaged to Bantamweight Champ Amanda Nunes. She has a great wrestling back ground. She holds a 3^rd degree black belt in Taekwondo and a purple in Jiu Jitsu.

Great fight for both ladies. Claudia will look to control the octagon as well as the pace. She will look to use her Muay Thai to setup up any clinch work for a takedown. Nina needs to use her kicks and keep Claudia away and not get into a clinch with her. She also needs to avoid and ground work as well. In the end I see Claudia out on top.

MAIN EVENT PPV 10:00 PM

Jimi Manuwa 17-4 vs Thiago Santos 19-6

Jimi has fifteen KO/TKO, one submission and one decision win. He is 2-3 in his last five fights. He has eleven 1^st round wins.  He has wins over Corey Anderson and Ovince St Preux. He has two Performance of the Night and two Fight of the Night bonuses. Has a boxing and Muay Thai back ground. Holds a purple belt in Jiu Jitsu.

Thiago has thirteen KO/TKO, one submission, and five decision wins. He is 4-1 in his last five fights. He has eight 1^st round wins. He has a win over Nate Marquardt and Anthony Smith. He has a black belt in Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu. He has two Performance of the Night, and two Fight of the Night bonuses.

Going to be a great fight to start the PPV off with. Both guys like to trade blows with their opponents. This is going to be a very even match. If Thiago gets it to the ground, he will have the advantage. Jimi needs to keep it standing. In the end I see Thiago with another win.

Hakeem Dawodu 8-1-1 vs Kyle Bochniak 8-3

Hakeem has six KO/TKO and two decision wins. He is 3-1-1 in his last five fights. He has a kickboxing background. He went 9-0 as a pro. He has 2 1^st round wins.

Kyle has two KO/TKO, two submissions, and four decision wins. He is 2-3 in his last five fights. He holds a brown belt in Jiu Jitsu.  He has a Fight of the Night Bonus.

Decent fight with two young and upcoming fighters. Hakeem will look to use his kickboxing and keep his opponent at bay. He needs to avoid the ground game of Kyle. For Kyle to be successful he will need to take the fight to the ground. Kyle needs to work a submission to win tonight. In the end I see the fight going all three rounds and Hakeem with the win.

Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira 19-5-1 vs Gunnar Nelson 16-3-1

Cowboy has thirteen KO/TKO, four submissions, and 2 decision wins. He is 4-1 in his last five. He has ten 1^st round wins. Is a former Pro Bull Rider. Has wins over Tim Means and Carlos Condit. He has a Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu background. He has three Performance of the Night, and one Fight of the Night bonus.

Gunnar has three KO/TKO, twelve submissions, and one decision win. He is 3-2 in his last five fights. He has eleven 1^st round wins.  He is a Black Belt under Renzo Gracie. He is a World Jiu Jitsu Champion. He loves the rear naked choke. He has four Performance of the Night bonuses.

Going to be a great fight. Cowboy will need to use his Muay Thai and try and stay away from Gunnar’s dangerous ground game. Look for Cowboy to control the pace of the fight. Gunnar needs to take the fight to the ground and work his Jiu jitsu. Gunnar does have a good standup game, but he won’t be able to last with Cowboy on his feet. In the end I see Gunnar with the upset.

CO-MAIN EVENT 5 ROUNDS WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT TITLE

Valentina Shevchenko 15-3 vs Joanna Jedrzejczyk 15-2

Valentina has four KO/TKO, seven submissions, and four decision wins. She is 3-2 in her last five and both losses are to Amanda Nunes. She has wins over Julianna Pena, Holly Holm, and Sarah Kaufman. She is a Muay Thai and Kickboxing Champ. She has three Muay Thai wins over Joanna. She holds a black belt in Judo, Taekwondo, and Muay Thai. She is very dangerous on her feet.

Joanna has four KO/TKO, one submission, and ten decision wins. She is 3-2 in her last five. Both losses came to Rose Namajunas. She has wins over Tecia Torres, Jessica Andrade, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, and Claudia Gadelha. She as well is a Muay Thai and Kickboxing Champ.

This is going to be a war. Very well could be fight of the night and or year. These two will go at it. This fight will be mostly standing and very little ground work. Both have the same backgrounds and it really will come down to who makes the first mistake. Both want this new title and are looking to be the Alpha in this new division. I see the fight going all five rounds and very well could end in a draw. But I would have to go with Valentina as my pick. She almost beat Bantamweight Champ Nunes, so this is where she has the edge.

MAIN EVENT MENS FEATHERWEIGHT TITEL

Max “Blessed” Holloway 19-3 vs Brian “T-City” Ortega 13-0

Max has nine KO/TKO, two submissions, and eight decision wins. He has a twelve-fight win streak going. His las loss was in 2013 to McGregor. He has three 1^st round wins. He has wins over Jose Aldo (two times), Anthony Pettis, Cub Swanson, Charles Oliveira, and Jeremy Stephens. He has a purple belt in Jiu Jitsu under Pedro Sauer. He has one Fight of the Night, On Knockout of the Night, and three Performance of the Night bonuses. He also is a Muay Thai practioner.

Brian has three KO/TKO, seven submissions, and three decision wins. He has wins over Frankie Edgar, Cub Swanson, and Clay Guida. He was the first person to ever knockout Edgar. He is a Black Belt under Rener Gracie. His favorite submission is the triangle choke. That is where “T-City” comes from. Three Fight of the Night bonuses, and two Performance of the Night bonuses.

Going to be a great main event. Max will need to keep this fight on his feet. His ground game is not as good as his opponents. He will need to be a counter puncher and pick and choose when and where he strikes. Brian will need to control the pace and work to get the fight to the ground. Once it hits the ground look for him to setup up a submission by way of some ground and pound. He will be very comfortable on his back and will take some shots. His patience will afford him the chance to get a submission. In the end I see a NEW Champ being crowned tonight in Brian Ortega.