UFC 205 Predictions: Bleacher Report Full Card Staff Picks
Eddie Alvarez and Conor McGregor are set to headline the biggest card in UFC history, UFC 205.
Just look at this lineup of fights:
- Eddie Alvarez vs. Conor McGregor
- Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson
- Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
- Chris Weidman vs. Yoel Romero
- Miesha Tate vs. Raquel Pennington
- Frankie Edgar vs. Jeremy Stephens
- Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Michael Johnson
- Rafael Natal vs. Tim Boetsch
- Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad
- Jim Miller vs. Thiago Alves
- Liz Carmouche vs. Katlyn Chookagian
In honor of the UFC's deepest card ever, the Bleacher Report MMA prediction squad is giving you a special treat. Instead of previewing and predicting the main bout, we're going to pick the winner of each and every fight on the UFC 205 card.
Let's jump right in! Who is the B/R MMA crew taking Saturday night? Read on and find out.
Donald Cerrone vs. Kelvin Gastelum is off the fight card at UFC 205 due to Gastelum's inability to make weight. Cerrone will be given a different opponent for a later date.
Fight Pass Prelims
1 of 7
Jim Miller vs. Thiago Alves
Scott Harris: Alves
Nathan McCarter: Alves
Craig Amos: Alves
Steven Rondina: Alves
Liz Carmouche vs. Katlyn Chookagian
Harris: Chookagian
McCarter: Chookagian
Amos: Chookagian
Rondina: Chookagian
Fox Sports 1 Prelims
2 of 7
Frankie Edgar vs. Jeremy Stephens
Harris: Edgar
McCarter: Edgar
Amos: Edgar
Rondina: Edgar
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Michael Johnson
Harris: Nurmagomedov
McCarter: Johnson
Amos: Nurmagomedov
Rondina: Nurmagomedov
Rafael Natal vs. Tim Boetsch
Harris: Natal
McCarter: Boetsch
Amos: Boetsch
Rondina: Boetsch
Vicente Luque vs. Belal Muhammad
Harris: Muhammad
McCarter: Muhammad
Amos: Muhammad
Rondina: Muhammad
Miesha Tate vs. Raquel Pennington
3 of 7
Harris
Two strong women may look to grind here. Pennington is powerful but hasn't shown a lot of explosiveness or, you know, polished skill inside the cage. Tate is in much the same boat, with wrestling as her stock in trade. Give me the fighter with the experience edge.
Tate, unanimous decision
McCarter
If Tate wants one more big fight, albeit with Ronda Rousey or Cris "Cyborg" Justino, she has to win at UFC 205. Rocky isn't an easy out for her. Pennington has consistently developed her skills during her UFC tenure. It just won't be enough.
Tate struggles with high-pressure athletic women. Pennington isn't quite in that mold. She's more methodical and plodding with her pressure. Tate can handle that. It won't be a show-stealing fight or performance, but Tate will earn a clear-cut decision across the board.
Tate, unanimous decision
Amos
Tate's striking has improved enough for her to survive on the feet if need be, but she's also the better grappler. She's used to fighting the best the bantamweight division has to offer, while Pennington is taking a massive leap forward in this bout.
The former champion looks like the wise choice.
Tate, unanimous decision
Rondina
This won't be an easy fight for Tate because she hasn't ever had an easy fight. Still, Pennington isn't good in the right areas to take advantage of Tate's flaws, and that should let the former champ get back in the win column.
Tate, unanimous decision
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Chris Weidman vs. Yoel Romero
4 of 7
Harris
There's not much to dislike about either man's game here. Romero is almost supernaturally powerful and has an Olympic wrestling pedigree. Weidman can break folks with pressure and that killer ground-and-pound game.
Romero's strength and wrestling, though, should neutralize Weidman's aggression; Weidman won't be able to get it off. Romero will add one or two things to his highlight reel before disappointing the hometown fans.
Romero, unanimous decision
McCarter
I question Weidman's health leading into this fight. He dropped out of UFC 199 with neck issues that had him seeing a spine specialist (h/t MMA Fighting). That doesn't make me comfortable for his fighting future.
Romero's wrestling and athleticism create a lot of issues for Weidman. Give me the Olympian by a decision.
Romero, unanimous decision
Amos
This fight comes down to the X-factors for me. How healthy is Weidman? Has defeat made him a better fighter? Will Romero be able to keep up if the former middleweight champ sets a hard pace?
It's tough to find clarity through all those questions, but the story I see unfolding is a tight contest that Weidman takes control of in the last frame, finishing Romero with precious little time to spare.
Weidman, TKO, Rd. 3
Rondina
Weidman has more ways to win and better cardio. In my book, Romero's only avenue to victory is an early knockout. If he can't? Weidman submits him late or scores a handy decision.
Weidman, unanimous decision
Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
5 of 7
Harris
This is the champ's fight to lose. She's the more athletic of the two and should be able to pop her jab in the challenger's face more or less at will. The challenger is tough and will get a few points in, but Jedrzejczyk will open up as the fight goes on and chew her up with combinations and sharp shots from the clinch.
Jedrzejczyk, unanimous decision
McCarter
I love both these women. They are so fun to watch. However, stylistically, this fight favors Jedrzejczyk through and through.
The speed differential on the feet not only leans to her but also almost tips completely in her direction. Kowalkiewicz will have to get into the clinch with her, which isn't the smartest route. Kowalkiewicz's ground game has improved a lot, but let's not forget that when these two first met several years ago, it was Jedrzejczyk who won via submission.
Kowalkiewicz has a chance, but it's slim.
Jedrzejczyk, TKO, Rd. 4
Amos
This fight has been lost in the shuffle a bit. Given how stacked the program is, it isn't hard to see why. But it should be a great scrap.
I agree with Scott and Nathan that Kowalkiewicz may have her moments, but it won't be enough to assail the strawweight queen. Jedrzejczyk is on another level, and that's a true statement regardless of her opponent.
Jedrzejczyk, unanimous decision
Rondina
Kowalkiewicz is a game opponent and will keep this one competitive...but competitive in a way that means she will still lose decisively.
Jedrzejczyk, unanimous decision
Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson
6 of 7
Harris
Woodley will have to get him early, before he gets tired and before Thompson finds his range. It won't happen. Wonderboy is too smart to get caught with that vicious but predictable right hand; he'll bide his time and score with big shots down the stretch.
Thompson, unanimous decision
McCarter
This may be the fight I've struggled most with, and it's almost all because of how Thompson has transformed himself since losing to Matt Brown.
But I'm going with the champion. Woodley fights cautiously, and being the champion will only increase that tendency within him. He'll be able to outmuscle Thompson against the fence in the early frames and find easier takedowns in the championship rounds. It's all about surviving the first 10 minutes for Woodley.
Woodley, unanimous decision
Amos
Ever since Thompson obliterated Johny Hendricks, I've felt that the welterweight champion—first Robbie Lawler, now Woodley—has been holding his belt for him. His ascent has been methodical and by now feels inevitable. Woodley won't be able to score the early knockout or grind for five rounds, and those are his only plausible routes to victory.
Thompson, KO, Rd. 3
Rondina
We don't know how good Woodley is right now. We do know how good Thompson is. It's possible Woodley quietly evolved during his 18-month layoff before coming back and knocking out former champion Robbie Lawler. Even if he has...boy, Thompson is just so good.
Thompson, unanimous decision
Eddie Alvarez vs. Conor McGregor
7 of 7
Harris
McGregor likes to pressure his opponents. Alvarez has shown he responds well to pressure (just ask Rafael dos Anjos). Alvarez also has wrestling. But I still can't shake the notion that McGregor finds a way to plant the Celtic Cross and follow that left hand to victory, if not a knockout.
McGregor, unanimous decision
McCarter
Mystic Mac is back, and I'm buying in! Alvarez is the perfect lightweight for McGregor to shine against. He's not a huge lightweight, he doesn't have a granite chin and he loves getting into wild brawls. That's a recipe for a first-round faceplant against McGregor. History will be made.
McGregor, KO, Rd. 1
Amos
The more I invest myself in analyzing this matchup, the more an Alvarez upset looks plausible. But I'm taking McGregor. His combination of speed and power trumps Alvarez's versatility and tenaciousness and will vault the Irishman into the history books while the fight is yet young.
McGregor, KO, Rd. 2
Rondina
I'll echo Craig's thoughts. Alvarez is capable of taking this fight, but McGregor does what McGregor wants to do. McGregor wants to win two UFC titles...and he probably will.
McGregor, unanimous decision
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