It was ex-double champ Henry Cejudo and fellow bantamweight contender Song Yadong headlining UFC Seattle on Saturday— the promotion’s first stop in the Washington city, home to Starbucks and epicenter of the 90s alternative rock scene, in over a decade.
Cejudo found himself on the second two-fight skid of his career, and having recently turned 38, his window in the sport was quickly closing. As for Yadong, now in his prime, the Chinese fighter was again facing a step up in competition, and hoping to get over the hump.
The UFC Seattle co-main event, meanwhile, was a rematch between Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez and Brendan Allen, with their first meeting coming outside of the promotion, early in their respective careers. Saturday’s co-headliner thus became a question of who had evolved more since that first encounter, which saw Hernandez come away with the victory.
Our picks are in for Saturday’s UFC Seattle main card — check below to see who we feel will come out on top.
| Writer / Fight | Walker vs. Menifield | Silva vs. Baghdasaryan | Font vs. Matsumoto | Allen vs. Hernandez | Cejudo vs. Yadong |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Behunin (17-7) |  |  |  |  |  |
| Eddie Law (15-9) | | | | |  |
| Brett Cagle (14-10) | | |  | | |
| Jay Anderson (13-11) | | | |  | |
| Mathis Desjardins (13-11) | | | | | |
| Chris Prawdzik (13-11) | | | | | |
| Patrick McCorry (12-12) | | | | | |
| Cade Morehouse (1-4) | | | | | |
In a rarity, all of our writers responding were unified in their picks to win the main card’s first two fights: Alonzo Menifield was deemed too much for the short-notice debut of Julius Walker, a solid talent but far less experienced. Jean Silva was a unanimous pick over Melsik Baghdasaryan, while Rob Font, originally scheduled to face the since retired Dominick Cruz, is apparently a lock to get past Jean Matsumoto, with just one writer picking Matsumoto.
In the UFC Seattle co-main event, just a single writer is siding with Brendan Allen to get past “Fluffy” Hernandez. The main event, meanwhile, sees Henry Cejudo with a slight edge over Song Yadong.
Update: due to a state correction, article has been updated.
