UFC Abu Dhabi picks and predictions

Who will win in the desert this weekend?

The Sandman waits. Art by Chris Rini.

The UFC is back in the Middle East this weekend with their latest offering from the so-called ‘Fight Island’. This edition of UFC Abu Dhabi has bantamweight contenders in the main event slot with Cory Sandhagen meeting the undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov.

This is a surprisingly stacked non PPV card for the UFC. That might have to do with the promotion needing to keep the UAE sweet after showing so much love for rival Saudi Arabia. Follow Karim Zidan and his Sports Politika for more info on that.

The co-main event on Saturday sees Shara ‘Bullet’ Magomedov facing his toughest test yet, in the form of Michal Oleksiejczuk. There’s also Marlon Vera vs. Deiveson Figueiredo and Mackenzie Dern vs. Lupita Godinez. There’s also a bout between TUF boys Tony Ferguson and Michael Chiesa, who won that show back when it was worth a damn.

The prelims card falls off a little on name recognition, but it has some interesting prospects like Azamat Murzakanov and Victoria Dudakova.

As always we’ve looked over the fights and added our two cents here on Substack. Check below to see who we think wins all the match-ups. If you’re using this info for betting purposes — good luck! But also please only bet what you can afford to lose.

Now, to the picks!

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Cory Sandhagen vs. Umar Nurmagomedov

Dayne: Nurmagomedov isn’t the sure thing everyone is making him out to be. That’s less me saying Nurmagomedov isn’t as good as everyone believes and more me believing Sandhagen is that damn good. Sandhagen has always been a dangerous test, but he’s growing in his fight IQ and fighting like a proven veteran. Plus, he’s a MASSIVE step up in competition from what Nurmagomedov has been facing. Is Nurmagomedov ready for it?