UFC middleweight contender Omari Akhmedov will square off against former champion Chris Weidman in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Oleinik. The bout will offer ‘Wolverine’ a chance to break into the top ten of the middleweight rankings. Additionally, beating Weidman can help him build momentum and secure his fourth win on the bounce since returning to compete at 185 lbs. 

Omari Akhmedov

Omari Akhmedov has not lost a fight since 2016, where he fell to Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos. Since then, he has claimed five wins a draw across two weight classes. Since moving to middleweight, he has faced a ranked contender just twice and is yet to taste defeat. 

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‘Wolverine’s last finish came in his UFC debut all the way back in 2013. The statistic should offer a semblance of hope to the incredibly off-color Weidman, who has been finished in each of his last 5 defeats.

Chris Weidman

Times have been tough for the former middleweight champion ever since his last successful defense in 2015. He beat Vitor Belfort to claim his 13th win in a row. However, Weidman lost his next fight to Luke Rockhold, and had a 1-4 record in his next 5 outings. 

His solitary win came when he submitted Kelvin Gastelum. At 36, the former champion knows time is running out if he wants to rise through the rankings once more. 

UFC Fight Night Prediction

The eleventh-ranked Akhmedov hasn’t landed a single submission attempt ever since his last defeat. He has elected to be the busier fighter and claim wins by decision with all five opponents he faced since 2016. He will probably target the same against Weidman, who holds a height and reach advantage. 

The former champion will know of his advantage and may look to use it by getting in a few free shots at his opponent. Should he build a rhythm, he may attempt to rekindle the old days of when he stunned a showboating Anderson Silva to claim the gold. 

Both fighters have a striking defense above 50%, which shows that any punches that land will have to be out of the top drawer. 

However, Weidman is yet to lose via submission or decision. He would back his chances as the fight goes deeper. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to take his opponents deeper for almost half a decade. Given his opponent’s proclivity to go deep, he will have the best chance tonight. Hence he should try to surprise ‘Wolverine’ with a submission game. 

Read: UFC Fight Night: Lewis VS. Oleinik- Prediction: Derrick Lewis VS. Aleksei Oleinik

Weidman has a 50% takedown accuracy and has landed at least 1 takedown in every single fight in the UFC. Expect this fight to go deep with a Weidman claiming a decision victory for his ground control. 

Prediction: Chris Weidman to win via split decision

Sources: Chris Weidman-UFC Stats, Chris Weidman-Fight History, Omari Akhmedov-Fight History, Omari Akhmedov-UFC Stats