A pair of title fights headline a stacked UFC 273 card as the featherweight and bantamweight titles are on the line. Cageside Press has its picks set.
| Staff Writers | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Prawdzik (39-14) |  |  |  |  |  |
| Dylan Bowker (35-13) |  | | |  |  |
| Derek Kibler (16-6) | | | | | |
| Alex Behunin (38-15) | |  | | | |
| Justin Gibbons (36-17) | | |  | | |
| Gabriel Gonzalez (33-20) | | | | | |
| Jay Anderson (33-20) | | | | | |
| Dan Doherty (29-19) | | | | | |
| Eddie Law (31-22) | | | | | |
The main event of UFC 273 marks a second shot at the featherweight title for Chan Sung Jung, more affectionately known as The Korean Zombie. The champion, Alexander Volkanovski, was originally set to defend his title in a third fight against Max Holloway, who he has two wins over, last month, but that fight was scrapped and Jung stepped in. The Korean Zombie has won three of his last four fights. All but two writers picked Volkanovski to defend his title.
The bantamweight title will be unified in the co-main event in the rematch between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan. Their first bout infamously ended with a baffling illegal knee delivered by Yan, disqualifying the then-champion. Since then, Sterling underwent neck surgery and Yan defeated top contender Cory Sandhagen by decision in an interim title bout. Sterling was picked by five of nine writers.
The rise of Khamzat Chimaev continues at UFC 273 as he faces former title challenger Gilbert Burns. Chimaev has carved his way through the promotion since his debut, stopping all four of his opponents with the most notable being Li Jingliang. Burns recovered from his loss to champion Kamaru Usman with an impressive decision win over Stephen Thompson. All but two writers picked Chimaev.
Mackenzie Dern looks to get back on track when she faces longtime contender Tecia Torres. Dern’s four-fight win streak was snapped last fight in a Fight of the Night effort against Marina Rodriguez. Torres has bounced back from a four-fight skid by winning her last three fights, besting Angela Hill last time out. All but one writer picked Dern.
Opening the main card of UFC 273 will be former Olympic medalist Mark Madsen and Vinc Pichel. Madsen has been solid since making his Octagon debut in 2019, winning all three of his fights including longtime veteran Clay Guida. Since returning from a multi-year layoff in 2017, Pichel has turned his career around with a 5-1 record, winning his last three fights. Madsen was picked by six of nine writers.
