UFC 288 Predictions: Bleacher Report Main Card Staff Picks
The once and possible future champion is looking to retake the crown he never lost.
UFC 288 will emanate from Newark, New Jersey, featuring a bantamweight main-event bout between current UFC Bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling and former title holder Henry Cejudo, who was stripped of the belt after initially retiring in 2020.
In the co-main event, high stakes are on the line in the welterweight division as Belal Muhammed faces Gilbert Burns with the winner having an opportunity to face champion Leon Edwards at a later date. Burns, who disposed of Jorge Masvidal at UFC 287, takes the fight on short notice.
The B/R Combat Sports staff got together to provide their picks for those fights and more.
Disagree with their takes? Share your thoughts on their picks and provide your own in the comments section of the app.
Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo
1 of 5
Tom Taylor: To me, this one all comes down to how much the 36-year-old former champ Henry Cejudo has left in the tank—particularly after three years away. I don't think he will be the same fighter we remember.
My prediction is that Sterling looks bigger, stronger, younger, and altogether more accustomed to tough, championship fights. These things matter.
It might be close at times, but the champ will muscle his way to a decision win, and Cejudo will wish he stuck to coaching.
Prediction: Sterling by unanimous decision
Haris Kruskic: I can't wait for this one. Aljamain Sterling has been the bantamweight champion for two years now, but his two title defenses were a split decision over Petr Yan and a TKO against an injured T.J. Dillashaw. That's less than convincing, but there's no denying how talented the champ is.
He'll face his toughest challenge yet in a returning Henry Cejudo, who can make a good argument for being the most successful combat athlete of all time as one of four simultaneous two-division champions in UFC history and an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling.
However, a three-year layoff for Cejudo is no joke. The bantamweight division has grown rapidly since he left and jumping back into action against the champ is a tall order.
Oddly enough, Sterling has the advantage if this fight goes to the ground. Triple C hasn't utilized his wrestling in a long time and Aljo's backpack-like control could be a difference-maker. Cejudo must keep this fight standing, but I'm not convinced he'll be sharp enough to do so.
Prediction: Sterling by unanimous decision
Lyle Fitzsimmons: My initial lean was toward Sterling. I'm a fan, and he rewarded my confidence in previous picks columns when he beat Petr Yan and TJ Dillashaw.
He's been active and successful during all the time that Cejudo has been away, and it's common sense that a good active fighter should handle a good inactive one.
But the more I actually thought about Sterling's recent wins, the less impressed I got.
He was awarded a DQ over Yan in a fight he seemed headed toward losing, and the rematch was hardly a 25-minute victory lap. In fact, many reasonable people suggested he didn't deserve the nod that he got. As for Dillashaw, beating a guy who was clearly compromised physically isn't the same as imposing your will on a healthy, competitive opponent.
Long story short, the indecision allowed me a reason to believe a guy as good and driven and historically successful as Cejudo might have a chance, even with his inactivity.
Prediction: Cejudo by split decision
Belal Muhammad vs. Gilbert Burns
2 of 5
Tom Taylor: Belal Muhammad's transformation from fringe contender to title threat has been really impressive, and after eight straight victories, he is definitely already deserving of a shot at the welterweight championship. However, I feel like it's a matter of time before somebody figures out the answer to his usual strategy—suffocating takedowns and volume striking—which, while effective, is not exactly complicated.
Burns will be the guy. The Brazilian lands the harder shots on the feet and deters the takedowns with his world-class BJJ en route to a clear-cut win.
Prediction: Burns by Unanimous Decision
Haris Kruskic: Shoutout to Gilbert Burns, man. We literally wrote predictions for his fight against Jorge Masvidal last month and he's already back in action.
With all due respect to Colby Covington, this fight should determine the next challenger to Leon Edwards' championship. Belal Muhammad is riding an eight-fight win streak and Burns has won three of his last four in dominant fashion while also losing an unbelievable fight to Khamzat Chimaev.
In terms of the fight itself, I'm going with Burns. His clash against Chimaev showed how capable he is of forcing a grappling-oriented opponent into a striking battle. Muhammad doesn't have the stand-up tools to compete in that realm with Burns. If Durinho can replicate that in this fight, it could be an early night.
I'm also concerned about the quick weight cut for Muhammad on two weeks' notice. That will only drain him faster.
Prediction: Burns by TKO, Rd. 2
Lyle Fitzsimmons: Kudos indeed to Burns. Saturday will mark exactly four weeks between fights against world-class welterweights Masvidal and Muhammad.
And while the extent to which he was taxed against the Miami-based hero can be debated at length, it's still no joke to come back with that little turnaround against anyone, let alone someone as good as a guy who's not lost in four years.
While I concede Burns is a more impressive standup fighter, I can't help but thinking that coming back in just 28 days is going to matter somehow. If and when Muhammad gets him to the mat, that's when it'll show. Says here that it will.
Prediction: Muhammad by Unanimous Decision
Jessica Andrade vs. Yan Xiaonan
3 of 5
Tom Taylor: I'm going to keep this one brief. There are only a couple of strawweights I would pick to beat Jessica Andrade, and Yan Xiaonan—as talented as she is—isn't one of them.
The Brazilian does what she usually does in her winning efforts: lands heavy shots on the feet and pummels her foe on the mat. At some point, she'll find an opportunity for a finish.
Prediction: Andrade by submission, Rd. 2
Haris Kruskic: This will be a really fun fight. Both Andrade and Yan want to fight standing and are very clean strikers. I just think Andrade possesses too much power in these kinds of battles for her to be overly concerned about what Yan will fire back with.
Prediction: Andrade by unanimous decision
Lyle Fitzsimmons: No need to pontificate at length here. They're both striking fighters. Andrade probably does it better than Yan does. So unless there's a home run shot landed or a cut or some other unpredictable occurrence, it seems Andrade's fight to lose.
Prediction: Andrade by unanimous decision
Movsar Evloev vs. Diego Lopes
4 of 5
Tom Taylor: Like most people, I strongly favored Movsar Evloev to beat Bryce Mitchell, his original opponent for UFC 288. I like the Russian's chances even better against Diego Lopes, who stepped in to replace Mitchell on short notice. Time will tell what the future holds for Lopes, but this is a tough, tough matchup for his UFC debut, and I just can't see him winning it.
Prediction: Evloev by unanimous decision.
Haris Kruskic: Diego Lopes makes his UFC debut on five days' notice and has lost two of his last four. He now steps into the octagon against a 16-0 behemoth in Movsar Evloev.
Yeah, give me Evloev here.
Prediction: Evloev by unanimous decision
Lyle Fitzsimmons: Kudos all around to Lopes and his team for answering the call and taking the fight on less than a week's notice. But negative momentum plus compromised preparation plus a streaking opponent probably doesn't add up to much for him.
Prediction: Evloev by submission, Round 2
Kron Gracie vs. Charles Jourdain
5 of 5
Tom Taylor: Kron Gracie—as his last name suggests—is an excellent grappler. I'm sure he's probably a nice guy too. But I just can't back a fighter who in 2019 said he believed the Earth is flat. How can I trust you to make smart, real-time decisions in a cage fight when you're questioning centuries of established science? Sorry, I can't do it.
Besides, Gracie is coming off four years of inactivity, and that doesn't always bode well for a returning fighter.
I also think Jourdain is clever and technical enough to avoid a ground fight with Gracie, and if that's the case, he should handle his foe on the feet. Although not the same type of ground fighter as Gracie is, the Canadian has recorded submission victories in the past and can hold his own.
Prediction: Jourdain by unanimous decision
Haris Kruskic: Totally fair, Tom.
Also, why would I in good conscience pick someone whose last fight was almost four years ago? I get that jiu-jitsu never ages, but if he couldn't submit an aging Cub Swanson, I don't have much reason to pick him against a young, active fighter like Charles Jourdain.
Prediction: Jourdain by TKO, Rd. 2
Lyle Fitzsimmons: I appreciate that Jourdain, 27, is far younger and more active than Gracie, 34. And I'm aware that he's fought nine times since Gracie's last competitive UFC appearance.
But upon further review, it's no less true that he's only won four times and been submitted once within those nine fights while being taken down 17 times. And any Gracie, even an inactive one, is not a guy with whom spending a lot of time on the mat is advantageous.
If it gets to the floor, it'll be one-sided in the Brazilian's favor. And it says here that it will.
Prediction: Gracie by unanimous decision
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