UFC 315: B/R Main Card Staff Predictions
UFC 315 in Montreal will mark the promotion's first visit to Canada since a stop in Edmonton last fall, and the matchmakers have put together a pretty solid card to celebrate the occasion on Saturday.
The event will be topped by two title fights. In the main event, welterweight champion Belal Muhammad will make the first defense of his reign, taking on Australian knockout puncher Jack Della Maddalena.
Before the welterweight title clash, women's flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko will attempt to improve her already stunning legacy opposite tough French challenger Manon Fiorot.
There will also be a pair of former champions in action on the main card. At bantamweight, former featherweight king Jose Aldo will look to take out a rising contender in Aiemann Zahabi, while ex-women's flyweight champ Alexa Grasso takes on the tough Natalia Silva.
Before we get to those matchups, the main card will open with an appealing lightweight clash between Benoit Saint Denis and Kyle Prepolec.
Saint Denis was initially set to fight Joel Alvarez on the card, but he shifted his attention to Prepolec when his original opponent suffered an injury.
All in all, it has the potential to be a thrilling night of fights for the fans inside the Bell Centre and those tuning in on screens around the world.
Here's how the B/R combat sports team sees it all shaking out.
Belal Muhammad vs. Jack Della Maddalena
1 of 5
Lyle Fitzsimmons: I appreciate all the champ has done since arriving to the promotion and the fact that he's not lost a fight since a decision to Geoff Neal six years ago. He's as legit as legit gets. But Della Maddalena, to me, is a more dynamic talent.
Provided the Australian doesn't simply get overwhelmed and smothered on the mat, I think the stand-up is his by a wide margin and will provide enough of an advantage to get the win on points.
Prediction: Della Maddalena by unanimous decision
Tom Taylor: Della Maddalena is one of my favorite fighters to watch right now, but I’ve got to disagree with Lyle on this one.
While the Aussie is a much sharper striker than Muhammad, I don't think that will matter much.
Muhammad is a master at overwhelming his opponents on the mat, and we saw Gilbert Burns successfully control Della Maddalena in that area.
Considering Della Maddalena hasn't fought since his win over Burns, which was well over a year ago, ring rust could also be a factor for him. I just can't shake the feeling that he will get mauled, even if he's too tough to be finished.
Prediction: Muhammad by unanimous decision
Nick Akerman: Belal Muhammad has gotten to the top by grinding opponents down. He’s rarely rushed and he doesn’t really care about putting on a show. The sheer amount of unanimous decision wins on his record speaks for itself; this is a man whose game plans simply just…work.
Add another gruelling win to the list. I’m a fan of Jack Della Maddalena and I think he has the potential to take the strap in the future. I don’t think it’s going to happen now. Instead, I expect Belal to put on a clinic, Jack to go away and get better, then put himself in a stronger position to become champion somewhere down the line.
Prediction: Belal by unanimous decision
Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot
2 of 5
Lyle Fitzsimmons: Not all that long ago, the idea of Shevchenko entering a title fight as an underdog would have seemed ridiculous. But here we are with the champ, now 37, defending against a No. 2 contender who has won seven in a row since arriving four years ago.
All that said, I'm not ready to give up on the mastery of the "Bullet," who avenged her loss to Alexa Grasso and hasn’t lost a UFC bout to anyone else not named Amanda Nunes.
Prediction: Shevchenko by unanimous decision
Tom Taylor: If the UFC flyweight champion was anybody but Shevchenko, I’d be backing Manon Fiorot to win the belt this weekend. The French fighter has proved she is better than just about everyone else in her weight class.
But Shevchenko is special. She is one of the greatest female fighters in MMA history, with razor-sharp striking and a perpetually underrated submission game.
Unless she has completely fallen off since she reclaimed the belt from Grasso last year, she's going to be too much for Fiorot. She's too much for just about everyone.
Prediction: Shevchenko by unanimous decision
Nick Akerman: I’m going to follow Tom’s train of thought here. I’ve got a lot of time for Fiorot and it’s obvious to see she’s an incredible competitor who would likely be champion if a certain someone wasn’t standing in her way. That someone just so happens to be the brilliant all-around Bullet who has come through a tough trilogy against Alexa Grasso, knowing she’s no longer untouchable. While that will give Fiorot hope, Shevchenko is a survivor. She applies her learnings and gets better. We could see quite a gap between her and Fiorot when this one is all said and done.
Prediction: Shevchenko by unanimous decision.
Jose Aldo vs. Aiemann Zahabi
3 of 5
Lyle Fitzsimmons: Maybe it's just me, but seeing Jose Aldo these days feels sad. Long regarded as the best (or one of the best) featherweights of all time, he's been reduced to rank of gatekeeper among the bantamweights—allowing for the ascension (or not) of streaking prospects.
This time it's Zahabi, who's based in Canada and has won five straight bouts since a decision loss on a Fight Night show in 2019. But like Shevchenko, I’m not ready to give up on Aldo yet.
Prediction: Aldo by unanimous decision
Tom Taylor: I could rant for hours about the way the UFC matchmakers are handling the twilight of Aldo's legendary career.
He should be fighting fellow legends such as Henry Cejudo and Dominick Cruz (who is now retired). Instead, they've been pitting him against young contenders like Jonathan Martinez, Mario Bautista and now Zahabi.
It just feels like a waste when there are much cooler fights to be made. But I digress.
Aldo, 38, has had mixed results fighting contenders of Zahabi's ilk. He was extremely impressive against Martinez, for example, but lost a grinding decision to Bautista.
I think the MMA legend has more than enough left in the tank to defeat the Canadian, who I am not sold on as a serious bantamweight contender yet.
Striking and takedown defense carry Aldo to a wide decision win.
Prediction: Aldo by unanimous decision
Nick Akerman: Fast-forward to 2086. Jose Aldo, now 100 years old, is being rolled out to fight an AI-cyborg who is yet to be born. The UFC seems intent on using the Brazilian legend as a litmus test for up-and-coming contenders, with Zahabi the next in line. The Canadian is only a year younger than Aldo, though, so we don’t need to worry about the age difference here.
I fancy a comfortable night for Aldo. His boxing has looked sharp recently and I can see him picking Zahabi apart. This is a real step up for the smaller name and I don’t see it going well beyond an early blitz with the local fans behind him.
Prediction: Aldo by unanimous decision.
Alexa Grasso vs. Natalia Silva
4 of 5
Lyle Fitzsimmons: Call it a main-card title eliminator with the winner to take on whoever is left standing after the title fight between Shevchenko and Fiorot.
Grasso has split three previous title fights with a win, a loss and a draw against Shevchenko, while Silva has been impressive climbing the ladder with six straight octagonal wins. They can both strike. They can both go to the floor.
So, to break the tie, we’ll go with the 28-year-old.
Prediction: Silva by unanimous decision
Tom Taylor: Silva could well get her hands on the flyweight belt someday, but I am pretty high on Grasso, even after her title loss to Shevchenko.
The Mexican has always been one of the better strikers in the weight class, and she has added an underrated ground game to her arsenal in recent years. After all, she submitted to Shevchenko the first time they met. That's no easy task.
Throw in her wealth of big-fight experience, and she's got this one in the bag.
Prediction: Grasso by unanimous decision
Nick Akerman: This is a fun fight and a genuine pick ‘em for me. Range is going to dictate how this goes and there’s an argument that Silva could have a big result if she manages to keep Grasso away from a tight, brawling scrap. That’s easier said than done against a woman who loves to throw herself into the fire to get the win, so there’s a good chance this becomes an absolute barnstormer and potentially the fight of the night. I think Silva steps up and earns a title shot, although she will have to travel through deep waters to get there.
Prediction: Silva by split-decision.
Benoit Saint Denis vs. Kyle Prepolec
5 of 5
Lyle Fitzsimmons: Remember when Saint Denis was full of momentum? Until he ran into Dustin Poirier, that is.
It's two straight second-round finishes in the other direction for the Frenchman at this point, but he's a solid bet to get back on the winning side with a short-notice substitute who lost twice in the company six years ago.
A Prepolec win would be a spectacular story in Canada, but it's difficult to imagine.
Prediction: Saint Denis by submission, Rd. 1
Tom Taylor: I don't have much to add beyond what Lyle said, so I'll keep this one brief.
Saint Denis may be riding two devastating losses. He may not be anywhere near as good as we once believed. Whatever the case, he is plenty good enough to steamroll Prepolec, who couldn't cut it in the UFC first time around and is unlikely to have much more like under these short-notice circumstances.
It would be a nice moment for the Canadian fans if he somehow pulled it off, but it isn't going to happen.
Saint Denis blasts him and chokes him inside a round. Hopefully, he is matched up with a top-15 foe next time out.
Prediction: Saint Denis by submission, Rd. 1
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