UFC Austin brings the action on a rare Sunday night, and that won’t stop Cageside Press from giving their picks.
| Staff Writers | Northcutt vs. Gouti | Alves vs. Millender | Vick vs. Trinaldo | Lewis vs. Tybura | Cerrone vs. Medeiros |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heath Harshman (21-11) |  |  |  |  |  |
| Paarth Pande (21-11) | | | | | |
| Jesse Gillette (20-12) | | | | | |
| Dan Doherty (19-13) |  |  |  | |  |
| Eddie Law (19-13) | | | | | |
| Mike Straus (19-13) | | | |  | |
| Jay Anderson (16-16) | | | | | |
| Gabriel Gonzalez (15-17) | | | | | |
| Jason Payne (15-17) | | | | | |
| Mike McClory (14-18) | | | | | |
While UFC Austin features a six-fight main card, the bout between Brandon Davis and Steven Peterson was added on fight week due to an injury in another fight. Therefore, it will not be featured in this edition of Staff Picks.
The main event of UFC Austin pits lightweight-to-welterweight converts Yancy Medeiros and Donald Cerrone against each other. The 43-fight veteran Cerrone has dropped his past three fights, while Medeiros is 3-0 since moving to 170-pounds. Despite having the hot streak, only four writers out of 10 sided with Yancy Medeiros.
The co-main event is a top-10 heavyweight battle between Derrick Lewis and Marcin Tybura. They were scheduled to face each other in October of 2016, but the event itself was canceled. Since then, both fighters are 2-1, losing in their last appearances respectively. All but one writer believe the Black Beast will take care of business.
An intriguing lightweight bout between James Vick and Francisco Trinaldo occupies the main card. Vick, a Texas native, has turned things around after losing for the first time in his career to Beneil Dariush, finishing his last three opponents. Trinaldo has won eight of his last nine fights with the loss coming to title challenger Kevin Lee. All but one writer believe home field advantage will benefit James Vick.
Veteran striker Thiago Alves takes on newcomer Curtis Millender on the card. The 13-year UFC veteran Alves recovered from a two-fight losing streak by defeating Patrick Cote last year. Millender is on a six-fight win streak outside the Octagon and has knocked out his last two opponents with head kicks. Two writers believe the debutant will make his presence known quickly with a win at UFC Austin.
Opening up the main card is Sage Northcutt’s fight with Thibault Gouti. Northcutt is 4-2 in the Octagon and recovered from a loss to Mickey Gall with a decision win in his last appearance. Gouti is a French fighter who lost his first three UFC bouts before knocking out Andrew Holbrook in his last appearance. Nine writers think Northcutt will start a win streak.
