UFC Adelaide closes out a weekend full of mixed martial arts and Cageside Press has their picks set.
| Staff Writers | Crute vs. Craig | Matthews vs. Martin | Rua vs. Pedro | Hunt vs. Willis | Dos Santos vs. Tuivasa |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heath Harshman (123-69) |  |  |  |  |  |
| Paarth Pande (118-71) | | | |  |  |
| Dan Doherty (123-75) | |  | | | |
| Eddie Law (112-69) |  | | | | |
| Mike Straus (121-77) | | |  | | |
| Josh Evanoff (63-48) | | | | | |
| Jay Anderson (108-90) | | | | | |
The main event of UFC Adelaide pits rising contender Tai Tuivasa against former champion Junior dos Santos. Tuivasa is an explosive fighter with a 10-0 record and three wins in the Octagon, most recently against Andrei Arlovski. JDS has alternated wins and losses in his last nine bouts and will look to buck the trend this time around after defeating Blagoy Ivanov in his last appearance. Four of seven writers picked the young Tuivasa.
The co-main event features fan-favorite Mark Hunt against hard-hitting heavyweight Justin Willis. Mark Hunt is a legendary figure in the sport due to his well-known knockouts and back-and-forth battles, but has lost in four of his last five bouts (one overturned). Willis is 7-1 with a 3-0 UFC record, and will be looking to catapult into the top-10 with a win over Hunt. Hunt was picked by four of seven writers.
The legendary Shogun Rua takes on top prospect Tyson Pedro on the main card. After losses in four of five, Shogun had a career revival that began in 2015, winning three straight fights for the first time since 2006. His streak came to an end when he took on powerful contender Anthony Smith. Pedro is a promising fighter but has yet to get the next level win, owning a 3-2 Octagon record. All but one writer picked Pedro.
Jake Matthews battles striking specialist Tony Martin, looking to extend his current three-fight win streak. The streak answered a losing skid of two fights for Matthews. Martin has won five of his last six, knocking Ryan LaFlare into retirement in his last bout. All but one writer picked Matthews.
Jim Crute will make his promotional debut against Paul Craig. Crute is an undefeated Australian with an 8-0 record. He earned a UFC contract with a first-round knockout on the Tuesday Night Contender Series. Craig is 2-2 in the Octagon, winning by a miraculous last-second submission in his last appearance. All but one writer picked the debutant.
