I know tons of people are going to argue that Umar didn't beat Merab the first two rounds in that fight and those people are idiots. Umar literally did, its an objective fact that can be proven with the official scorecards. Umar is good, he's very good. He manages range well, has incredible wrestling and when his hand is in one piece, solid cardio as well. Umar is the pick here because I don't think Mario gets away with random forward pressure or cage control.

Umar Nurmagomedov

Umar Nurmagomedov is exactly the type of fighter you expect him to be with that last name. He has 7 fights in the UFC with 17 takedowns, 33 minutes of control time, 2 submissions and a standing knockout. He uses kicks really well to stay out of range and then he comes charging in with his wrestling and looks for takedowns. If he misses the first, he will transition to the second and has amazing chain wrestling. He is coming off decision loss to Merab where he won the first two rounds but broke his hand and gave up the next 3.

Mario Bautista

Mario Bautista is a high volume, get one to give one style striker. He sets a nice pace and is always plotting forward while being light on his feet. He lands an impressive 6 significant strikes per minute but is hit with almost 5. He has been steadily evolving in his last few fights and is now on a 8 fight win streak. The most recent win was over Patchy Mix where he landed an impressive 173 significant strikes.