Former light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz gets back in the cage to face Aleksandar Rakic in the main event of UFC Vegas 54. Cageside Press has its picks set.
| Staff Writers | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Prawdzik (61-24) |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Justin Gibbons (57-28) | | |  | |  |  |
| Alex Behunin (49-29) | | | | | | |
| Gabriel Gonzalez (48-30) |  | | | | | |
| Dan Doherty (44-30) | | | | | | |
| Jay Anderson (50-35) | |  | | | | |
| Eddie Law (48-37) | | | |  | | |
The main event of UFC Vegas 54 pits Jan Blachowicz against Aleksandar Rakic in a light heavyweight battle. Blachowicz recently had his five-fight win streak come to an end as he lost his title to Glover Teixeira by submission. Rakic is 6-1 in the Octagon, riding a two-fight win streak with wins over former title challengers Anthony Smith and Thiago Santos. Rakic was picked by four of seven writers.
The co-main event is between light heavyweight strikers Ion Cutelaba and Ryan Spann. Spann has lost two of his last three fights, both via stoppage. Cutelaba is 1-1-1 in his last three with a win over Devin Clark last time out. Cutelaba was picked by four of seven writers.
Bantamweight scrappers Davey Grant and Louis Smolka face off. Grant has earned performance bonuses in his last four bouts, going 2-2 in that span. He’ll be looking to snap a two-fight losing streak against Smolka, who is 3-3 since returning to the UFC in 2018. All but one writer picked Grant.
Former flyweight title challenger Katlyn Chookagian takes on Amanda Ribas. Chookagian has gone 4-1 since losing in that title fight to Valentina Shevchenko and has won three straight fights. Ribas got back in the win column with a decision victory over Virna Jandiroba in her last fight, pushing her UFC record to 5-1. All but two writers picked Ribas.
The always entertaining Frank Camacho faces Contender Series veteran Manuel Torres. Camacho has lost four of his last five fights, four of which have ended in a stoppage. The debuting Torres is 12-2 in his career with 11 stoppages. All but two writers picked Torres.
Top flyweight prospect Jake Hadley makes his promotional debut at UFC Vegas 54 against Allan Nascimento. Hadley is 8-0 with six stoppages in his career. Nascimento is looking to bounce back from a loss in his promotional debut. All but two writers picked Hadley.
