Money Making Armando’s Predictions for UFC Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader

The UFC travels back to the birthplace of MMA today for their latest installment of UFC Fight Night bringing an assortment of former champions and title contenders for the main card. Here are a few quick picks on the main card to spice up the show in case fans wanted to take action on the fight festivities from Brazil.  Let’s keep in mind fight fans that this event is in Minas Gerais, Brazil so allot of the fighters on the card will have that home town advantage. Here are some picks and break downs as to why for the UFC Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader card from Brazil.

Glover Teixeira  (21-2) vs. Ryan Bader (15-3), 5-round Light Heavyweight Bout Main Event

In the main event of the evening Sobralia, Minas Gerais’ own Glover Teixeira (-450) fights in front of an adoring home town crowd opposite The Ultimate Fighter season 8 winner, Ryan Bader (+375). Teixeira‘s fantastic win percentage is really only eclipsed by the fact that this 205-pound monster has secured 18 out of those 21 triumphs by way of KO or submission.  The solid favorite tomorrow night has only gone the distance 1 time in his UFC run and that was against Quinton “Rampage” Jackson back in January at UFC on FOX 6: Johnson vs. Dodson.  A first round submission over James Te Huna at UFC 160 in May helped Glover land the main event spot for his first time ever headlining a UFC event.  It’s clear that the UFC values Teixeira‘s violent victories and probably consider him a viable candidate to one day challenge  light heavyweight division champion Jon Jones, who just so happens to be defending his belt later this month in Canada.  Teixeira will soon fight for that 205 lb strap as long as he delivers for the UFC Fight Night 28 show, make no bones about it.

While it must be noted that it wasn’t that long ago when Ryan Bader was undefeated and marching up the 205-pound mountain with reckless abandonment, it’s his inconsistency that justifies his underdog labeling. Bader has lost 3 out of his last 6 fights and it all seems to have spiraled out of control for the Arizonian ever since losing his unbeaten status to John Jones at UFC 126 in 2011. Incidentally, the other 2 losses on his record were to former light heavyweight champions, Tito Ortiz and Lyoto Machida. On the plus side, Bader himself owns 10 finishes out of his 15 victories and has collectively dispatched of top opposition in Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Quinton Jackson and Keith Jardine.  While an upset is never completely out of the question, especially if Ryan Bader catches his man in an exchange with one of his patented fight-ending left hooks, he will probably hold his own for 25 minutes until unfortunately the judges read the score cards favoring Glover Teixeira by a unanimous decision verdict.

Yushin Okami (29-7) vs. Ronaldo Souza (18-3), 3-round Middleweight Bout Co-Main Event

Chael Sonnen confidant and training partner Yushin Okami (+220) takes care of the co-main event duties opposite  former Strikeforce middleweight champion,  Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza  (-260). The reason why Chael’s qualifications need to be listed as a kind of asterisk in Okami’s match tonight is because if there are two active fighters currently lurking in the top 10 of their respective weight class that can be guaranteed to grind down a foe, it’s undoubtedly both of Sonnen and Okami.  This will be a key factor for this 185-pound battle seeing as how Souza’s Achilles Heel has been take down defense as well as maintaining top control whenever he does get an opponent to the mat.  If the brilliant Brazilian fails to do so with precision tonight, Okami might effortlessly take the lead & ground and pound his way to a decision in his opponent’s home country. Look for the ex-middle weight title holder, “Jacare” to implement a game plane of staying bouncy on his feet and pepper his south paw stance oriented foe from the outside with stiff right hands and the occasional snapping leg kicks. But, it will be very interesting to see how many leg kicks Souza attempts on Okami due to the fact that a poorly timed one will likely get caught, then instantly be used to take him down. Once there, can the ex-belt holder fish for submissions off of his back or does Okami run away with an upset in this clash of top 185ers ? I believe that he does maybe even by a controversial split decision.  

Joseph Benavidez (18-3) vs. Jussier da Silva (15-2,  3-round Flyweight Bout          

If the main card provides one Brazilian fighter who will step into the cage with a clear disadvantage in all aspects of their 125-pound tilt, its Jussier da Silva (+450) when he takes on one-time title contender, Joseph Benavidez  (-600).  Benavidez’ loss to Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson last September  might have been the best thing for Joseph as he has since brushed the dust off and refined his carefully calibrated assault on the flyweight division.  Benavidez’ blinding speed has found another gear, his varied submissions are even more deadly and he now carries a powerful arsenal of strikes into the Octagon rarely seen in the lower weight classes. Even though Silva possesses a tremendous ground game, has tons of heart and a solid chin that must be respected, his adversary will excel in every facet of their encounter from offense to defense, take downs, top control, striking to everything in between. Expect “Joey B” Benavides to put on a clinic in a clear cut unanimous decision if not a finish in the 3^rd.

Rafael Natal (16-4-1) vs. Tor Troeng (16-4-1) 3-round Middleweight Bout              

Rafael Natal (-300) welcomes Tor Troeng (-240) to his home country as Troeng makes his offical UFC octagon debut.  A former cast member on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen season, Troeng emerges unto the Brazilian scene with the intentions to leave fans with a positive impression on how well he can cultivate a successful UFC run following his time in the TUF house. Unfortunately, he is paired up against an extremely seasoned UFC veteran for his first assignment. While Troeng can hold his own in any contest matching up against someone better rounded on the mat might be his downfall. Any powerful strikes whether it be leg kicks or punches will be canceled out by Natal’s timing as he effortlessly mixes up punches to set up takedowns then to go work behind multiple submission attempts. That’s probably how this contest ends as Rafael Natal picks up the finish in the 2^nd round.

Well, that about wraps up the clearest cut picks on the main card for UFC event tonight from Brazil. Enjoy the action tonight fight fans and don’t forget to tune in to Fox Sports 1 for the free UFC Fight Night 28 card live from Minas Gerais, Brazil.