UFC returns this Saturday night/Sunday morning with another fight night card from the Apex in Las Vegas. The main event sees former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion, Miesha “Cupcake” Tate take on rising contender, Ketlen “Fenomeno” Vieira in her quest back to the title. In other action further down the card Michael “Maverick” Chiesa takes on undefeated rising startup, Sean Brady. Read on for our free predictions and betting tips.
A battle of BW elite awaits ?
? @MieshaTate vs ?? @KetlenVieiraUFC goes down TOMORROW ?
[ #UFCVegas43 | Tomorrow | Prelims 3???? | Main Card 6???? | Live on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/suOgIRHLkw
— UFC (@ufc)
Ketlen Vieira vs Miesha Tate Predictions
Miesha Tate (19-7) retired from MMA just over five years ago vowing that she was done and wouldn’t be coming back. Fast forward to July 2021 and after four and a half years out, “Cupcake” made her return to the cage, looking better than ever, dispatching Marion Reneau in the third round.
Make no mistake about it, Tate wants her title back and is confident that if/when she gets another title shot against the woman who took the championship from her, Amanda Nunes, that she can avenge that loss and win the Bantamweight Championship for a second time.
First though she needs to get past a stern test in the seventh ranked contender Ketlen Vieira (11-2).
Vieira will represent a sterner test than Reneau who had one eye on retirement going into the fight. Vieira, showing no signs of retiring will be hungrier and will see that a win over a legend like Tate could catapult herself to the brink of a title fight.
Vieira though is coming off a decision loss to Yana Kunitskaya in February. She also missed weight in that contest but has weighed in at the Bantamweight limit for this contest. Vieira started her career 10-0, however, has lost two of her last three.
It was smart of Tate to go in for her return fight against Reneau rather than a hungry contender near the top of the division in order to rid herself of any ring rust or general jitters. Now that her comeback fight is out of the way it is down to business and a road back to the belt.
Tate has never looked in better shape and four and a half years out has renewed her hunger; Tate’s experience should see her through. Tate to win is recommended at 10/11.
With most of Tate’s wins coming by decision, there possibly being some ring rust still and the fight scheduled for five rounds, if looking for a method of victory bet, we recommend Tate to win by decision at 9/5.
All smiles before tomorrow’s high stakes showdown ??@MikeMav22 vs @SeanBradyMMA
[ #UFCVegas43 | Tomorrow | Prelims 3???? | Main Card 6???? | Live on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/hM66zU1hHv
— UFC (@ufc)
Michael Chiesa vs Sean Brady Predictions
Since moving to Welterweight, Michael Chiesa (18-5) has went 4-1, beating renowned names such as Neil Magny, Rafael Dos Anjos and Diego Sanchez – all by decision, however, his last fight resulted in a loss to Vicente Luque.
On the opposite side of the Octagon, Sean Brady (14-0) comes into this fight looking to make a name off a staple of the division.
Unbeaten in his professional MMA career and going 4-0 so far in the UFC, Brady will be looking to knock off a big name such as Chiesa to catapult him into title contention.
His last two fights have resulted in submission victories and last time out he submitted fellow prospect Jake Matthews via triangle choke.
Brady has defeated two former Ultimate Fighter winners in his pro career, firstly Colton Smith in the regional MMA scene by decision, and then Court McGee in his UFC debut. If he defeats Michael Chiesa, this will be the third Ultimate Fighter winner he has dispatched and also the highest profile victim to date.
Michael Chiesa moved up a weight division after losing two straight Lightweight fights, this looked like a good move, evidenced by his first four victories. However, his first two fights at the weight came against fighters coming towards the end of their careers.
Sean Brady is coming into this fight looking for a win against a third Ultimate Fighter winner. A win against Chiesa would undoubtedly be the biggest of his career and would catapult Brady near the top of the division.
We predict that Brady continues his unbeaten streak with a victory over Chiesa at 4/7.
Chiesa has lost five UFC fights, four of these have come by way of submission. Brady’s last two wins have come by submission. Due to this form we also suggest backing Brady to win by submission at 11/4.
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