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Coming off an outstanding event in UFC 308, we are back at Rogers Place with another UFC Edmonton event. The event will mark the promotion's third visit to Edmonton and its first since UFC 240 in July 2019. This weekend at UFC Edmonton, two major rule changes go into effect. The fighters fighting this weekend will not have to worry about being disqualified for throwing downward elbows and the fighters will no longer be able to stall fights by placing a single hand on the canvas to defend themselves against kicks and knees.
The main event will feature flyweight contenders as former champion Brandon Moreno takes on Amir Albazi. The co-main event will feature Erin Blanchfield taking on former champion Rose Namajunas. On the main card, we have a heavyweight matchup between former title challenger Derrick Lewis and undefeated Jhonata Diniz of Brazil. Also on the main card, Caio Machado and Brendson Ribeiro are set to square off, Marc-Andre Barriault takes on Dustin Stoltzfus, and Canada's Mike Malott faces off against Trevin Giles.
In this article, I will be providing you with my fantasy MMA lineup picks for UFC Edmonton: Moreno vs. Albazi on 11/2/24. Give me a follow on X @sumpor5. Good luck!
DraftKings MMA Flyweight - UFC DFS Lineup Picks
Brandon Moreno, $8,500 - vs. Amir Albazi
In the main event of UFC Edmonton, former UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno is set to take on surging Amir Albazi in a fight that just may determine the next title challenger.
Moreno looks to get back in the win column after losing back-to-back fights by split decision against Alexandre Pantoja, and more recently, Brandon Royval. In contrast, Albazi looks for his seventh straight victory.
After being away for 5 years, we are so back! 😤
See you on Saturday for #UFCEdmonton!
[ LIVE on @ESPNPlus | 8pmET/5pmPT ] pic.twitter.com/Jxh5Agw0yX
— UFC (@ufc) October 31, 2024
Since signing with the UFC, Moreno has fought the best the flyweight division has to offer and bested most of them, but in his last two bouts, he wasn't able to get the W. He relinquished his flyweight belt to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290 before he also dropped another split decision to Brandon Royval in February.
The last time Moreno celebrated in the Octagon was against Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 283 where he regained the undisputed UFC title with a TKO victory.
Albazi has won six straight, five in the UFC, including a controversial split decision over Kai Kara-France last time out in June 2023 in the main event of UFC Vegas 74. The last time he lost a fight was in 2019 against Jose Torres by unanimous decision. Out of his 17 wins, five have ended via knockout, nine by submission, and three by decision.
The former champ Moreno enters this fight with an MMA record of 21-8-2, and he is 9-5-2 in the UFC. He's averaging 3.87 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 44%. He's absorbing 3.63 strikes per minute, and his striking defense is 59%. Moreno is averaging 1.74 takedowns every 15 minutes, and his takedown accuracy is 46%, with his takedown defense being 63%.
Albazi enters this fight with an MMA record of 17-1. He averages 2.80 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 39%. His striking defense is 63% and he absorbs 3.07 significant strikes per minute. When it comes to his wrestling, Albazi's averaging 1.71 takedowns every 15 minutes. Albazi has a takedown defense of 40% and a takedown accuracy of 33%.
Out of these two fighters, Moreno is more proven. On the other hand, this is a major step up in competition for Albazi. The biggest win of Albazi's career was a razor-close split decision that most of the fans and media thought should have gone the other way. Not only that, but Albazi has been out for nearly 18 months recovering from a neck injury.
For Moreno, keeping the fight on the feet and using his striking to wear down Albazi will be crucial. I don't see Albazi getting finished, but I can see Moreno winning a decision because of his experience in five-round fights. My prediction is that the former champ Moreno gets this done by a unanimous decision.
DraftKings MMA Heavyweight - UFC DFS Lineup Picks
Derrick Lewis, $7,600 - vs. Jhonata Diniz
On the main card of UFC Edmonton, former title challenger and knockout king Derrick Lewis is scheduled to face off against undefeated Jhonata Diniz. Lewis is hoping to score back-to-back wins for the first time since 2020 and Diniz is looking to remain undefeated and extend his win streak to nine.
Lewis was originally scheduled to fight Alexandr Romanov, but the UFC made a change of plans and inserted Diniz while still keeping Romanov on the card. Lewis is 3-5 in his past eight fights and 1-2 in his three most recent outings. "The Black Beast" was last seen in action in May in the main event of UFC on ESPN 56 where he defeated Rodrigo Nascimento via third-round TKO.
Before switching to MMA, Diniz was a seasoned kickboxer with an impressive record and quite a skill set. He made his UFC debut in April at UFC Vegas 91 where he scored a second-round knockout over Austen Lane. Most recently, the 33-year-old dominated Karl Williams to snap Williams' seven-fight win streak, winning the fight by unanimous decision.
Lewis enters this fight with an MMA record of 28-12 and he is 19-10 in the UFC. He's averaging 2.48 significant strikes per minute, and he has a striking accuracy of 50%. Lewis' striking defense is 40%, and he is absorbing 2.48 significant strikes per minute. When it comes to his grappling, he's averaging 0.57 takedowns every 15 minutes. His takedown defense is 52%, and his takedown accuracy is 26%.
Diniz enters this fight with an MMA record of 8-0 and he is 2-0 in the UFC. He averages 4.09 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 53%. His striking defense is 55% and he absorbs 2.80 significant strikes per minute. His grappling is almost nonexistent, but his takedown defense is 70%.
I'm picking Lewis to win this one. Diniz, although a good kickboxer, is just too inexperienced in MMA. Expect this to be a pure striking battle, as Lewis and Diniz prefer to keep the fight standing, and I'm going with a fighter who holds a record for most knockout wins. My prediction is that Lewis, who is an underdog, is going to knock Diniz down early in the fight and finish him on the ground via TKO.
DraftKings MMA Welterweight - UFC DFS Lineup Picks
Mike Malott, $9,200 - vs. Trevin Giles
On Saturday, Mike Malott and Trevin Giles are set to open up the UFC Edmonton main card. Malott is aiming to bounce back from a tough loss against Neil Magny at UFC 297, while Giles will look to get back in the win column after suffering back-to-back losses.
Malott had a six-fight win streak snapped in his last fight when he lost to UFC veteran Magny at UFC 297 in Toronto in January, in which he dominated Magny for 13 minutes of the fight until Magny turned things around and scored a TKO finish over Malott, handling Malott his first UFC loss. That was Malott’s first UFC loss and second career loss, the first being against Hakeem Dawodu.
In contrast, Giles hasn't been in the best form, losing four of his last six fights. Giles has lost two fights in a row, first to Gabriel Bonfim by a first-round guillotine choke, and more recently to Carlos Prates by a second-round knockout. Before that, Giles defeated Preston Parsons by a split decision.
Malott enters this fight with an MMA record of 10-2-1, and he is 3-1 in the UFC. He's averaging 3.83 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 46%. His striking defense is at 52% and he is absorbing 3.33 strikes per minute. In terms of his grappling, Malott averages 3.04 takedowns per 15 minutes with an accuracy of 60%. His takedown defense is 16%.
Giles enters this fight with an MMA record of 16-6, and he is 7-6 in the UFC. He has a striking accuracy of 55% and he's averaging 3.27 significant strikes per minute. He's absorbing 2.22 strikes per minute and his striking defense is at 58%. When it comes to his wrestling, Giles averages 1.19 takedowns per 15 minutes with an accuracy of 50%. His takedown defense is 71%.
Malott is just better than Giles in every aspect of MMA. Although his cardio seems to be a problem, Malott should be able to take Giles down and TKO him or submit him. Malott is far more likely to hurt Giles, as Giles hasn’t won by stoppage since 2017. My prediction is that Malott will submit Giles in two rounds.
