I am a bit of an idiot and didn't really prepare this week for tape study, first week of uni, and writing this article. Honestly my channel getting another violation strike this morning didn't help either but I thought I would just cover fights I think are worth paying attention to this weekend outside of the UFC. Gable Steveson fights in MMA again, Cage Warriors 200 has two title fights, Battlefield Fight League has four title fights, and Fury FC 116 also has a pretty strong card of prospects.
CAGE WARRIORS 200
Cage Warriors 200 is a landmark event for the promotion and is headlined by two title fights. The card is broadcast on UFC Fight Pass at 12:30 PM ET on Saturday.
SOLOMON SIMON (7-0) vs. NIK BAGLEY (7-1) – Cage Warriors Featherweight Championship
This is a pretty solid fight between two of the better prospects in Cage Warriors. Solomon Simon is a well rounded fighter, who is mostly a striker with great combinations and power. Nik Bagley is a grappler who is constantly spamming for take downs. Once he gets his take downs he does well to find dominant positions for ground and pound and submission attempts. Simon's take down defense hasn't looked elite so far but his up game is very good. It is likely that Bagley does land take downs early but Simon works his way back up to his feet often. Both are going to get dragged into deep waters if this reaches the third round and onwards and from what I have seen I trust both guys cardio as well. This is a tough fight as Bagley looks very promising as a prospect given his Merab-like style, but I have been impressed by all the tools Simon shows. Simon can be a bit slow defensively but he won't have to worry about Bagley's striking as his technique is pretty bad. Simon should have the bigger moments in this fight landing the big shots on the feet but that grappling will certainly be tested. This is a very tough fight to call but I have to side with Simon to win by decision, or use his big striking advantage to find a KO.
Pick: Solomon Simon by KO/TKO. Low confidence.
DARIO BELLANDI (9-1) vs. PADDY MCCORRY (7-1) – Cage Warriors Middleweight Championship
This is more of a fade than anything. Cage Warriors probably wants McCorry to win as he was on DWCS last year and it seems like the promotions think he has some star power out of Ireland. I see it but I also don't. Against In Soo Hwang on DWCS he had a massive skill and size advantage but spent the entire 15 minutes scared to throw strikes and in general didn't put on a great show. He has a few highlights and he is a good striker given his tall frame but he is size matched by Bellandi here who is also 6'3″. Bellandi is super boring and also inactive. He is a wrestler who doesn't really do anything after he gets the take down. But the problem here is I think he will get the take downs on McCorry. I guess you could look at Bellandi's last two opponents finding success on the feet against him and make a strong argument that McCorry could do the same. The problem is I just can't trust McCorry to throw enough volume out there, especially against big pressure wrestler like Bellandi. This fight could be super boring if Bellandi were to win but I just struggle to find myself trusting McCorry in a match up I consider stylistically bad for him.
Pick: Dario Bellandi by decision. Low confidence.
MFL 3
Mexico Fight League 3 takes place on Thursday 19th Feburary at 08:00 PM ET. Tune in to watch Gable Steveson.
GABLE STEVESON (2-0) vs. HUGO LEZAMA (11-3) – Heavyweight
One of the most hyped regional prospects since Bo Nickal, Gable Steveson has built up a lot of hype before his nearly inevitable signing to the UFC. So afr he has logged less than two minute of cage time, so he might look for a bit more here against Lezama who has a lot more experience than his previous opponents. Lezama is also a wrestler but he's just a light heavyweight. He fought at 205 in December 2025 and has spent most of his career there. He is also 37 years old. Gable probably steam rolls him but maybe he looks to log a few minutes in the cage first to get a bit more experience.
Pick: Gable Steveson by KO/TKO. High confidence
IRVING CARDONA (4-4) vs. EDGAR ESCARREGA (12-4-1) – Welterweight
Escarrega is just a hilarious individual. I have no idea how he built up that record of 12-3 before fighting for Cage Warriors but he is terrible and is quite a funny watch.
BFL 86
Battlefield Fight League also survived the UFC Fight Pass purge and will be broadcast on the serve on Thursday at 08:30 PM ET. They are pretty fun cards as they stack them with heaps of title fights. Worth noting that the UFC is going to Canada soon so maybe they sign one of these champions if they have a big performance?
RADLEY DA SILVA (8-1) vs. RANDER JUNIO (14-4-1) – Featherweight
Radley was on DWCS last year and beat the very talented George Mangos. He is huge for the weight class and is a capoeira fighter as well as a grappler. He throws a lot of spinning attacks as well as shooting for take downs. Rander Junio is 40 years old but honestly has some good grappling himself. Problem with Junio is that he has been very inactive recently and I can't trust him to survive against da Silva here for 5 rounds. Radley might knock him out but I find it more likely he uses his size to bully the older Junio.
Pick: Radley da Silva by submission. High confidence.
ADAM POSENER (6-0) vs. DANY MALLETTE (7-3) – Welterweight
Posener has a pretty unique skill set for Welterweight as he is a BJJ guy with developing striking. We typically see this archetype of fighter succeed in the lower weight classes so it will be interesting to see how Posener looks over time. It also looks like he has been gaining weight so he should have a size and strength advantage too. Posener is only 21 years old as well so it will probably suit him to stay in Battlefield for a bit unless he can get some good match ups in the UFC or DWCS. Mallette is a highlight reel KO artist who is coming off two submission losses and a round 1 KO loss in boxing. His boxing is good and is certainly better than Posener's but he is going to have to keep the fight on the feet for long periods of time to have success. Not super confident in Posener as Mallette is still dangerous and he holds some solid wins in his career such as Dejan Kajic (who was a prospect killer for 3-4 years) and Jonathan Ramsay. If Posener can get the fight down his BJJ is super legit though so he will always be live for a submission.
Pick: Adam Posener by submission. Medium confidence.
CHRISTIAN STRONG (8-1) vs. ALI WASUK (11-4) – Welterweight
Strong already has a win over Wasuk recently, but Wasuk has fought and won twice since. Wasuk is a grappler through and through and will shoot take downs against everyone, even if they are better at wrestling than him. Strong is pretty good and his one loss come to Elijah Smith early in his career so that has aged well. Strong is a wrestler himself with better striking than Wasuk. Would be surprised if Strong lost this but Wasuk showed great cardio in his last outing.
Pick: Christian Strong by KO/TKO. Low confidence.
JAMIE SIRAJ (13-3) vs. ARISTON FRANCA (13-11) – Featherweight
After getting knocked out by Diego Brandao I don't think the UFC is interested in Siraj anymore. Siraj is a good grappler but he is a notorious slow starter. Franca is a grappler who is 1-4 in his last 5 fights. Plus he just lost to Alex Morgan by submission of all people. If Siraj fumbles this there is no hope for me anymore.
Pick: Jamie Siraj by submission. High confidence.
FURY FC 116
This is a really good card top to bottom. It takes place on UFC Fight Pass at 06:00 PM ET on Friday.
HECTOR SAENZ (11-2) vs. YEHIA RILES (11-6) – Lightweight
Lay up for Saenz. Riles hasn't beaten anyone good and loses every time he fights someone good.
Pick: Hector Saenz by KO/TKO. Medium-high confidence.
JUSTICE TORRES (13-4) vs. CARLOS CALDERON (8-4) – Featherweight
Two former DWCS fighters. Torres looked absolutely awful on the show. He isn't very good but I thought he was a bit better than he showed. He is mostly a pressure boxer/wrestler. Calderon is huge for 145 and is a BJJ guy mostly. Both guys are a bit disappointing but are fun to watch. Just gonna pick Torres as I think he can be the one to get the take downs going based off of his pressure.
Pick: Justice Torres by decision. Low confidence.
EDUARDO PENHA (7-0) vs. ERIC SHELTON (20-9) – Bantamweight
Penha is an elite BJJ guy in MMA taking on the former UFC fighter Eric Shelton. Shelton has embraced that “journeyman” role now but he doesn't go out easily. Shelton has turned away many prospects over the last few years and has proven to be hard to finish. He did lose to Shuya Kamikubo by submission but Kamikubo is a very experienced former ONE Championship fighter who is a constant wrestler and grappler. Penha's BJJ is elite but if Shelton can stop the take downs this fight will get very interesting.
Pick: Eduardo Penha by submission. Medium confidence.
JOEL FAGLIER (5-0) vs. CODY EAST (16-7) – Heavyweight
The biggest test of Faglier's career for sure. He is also getting the UFC veteran test but this time it is against 37 year old Cody East who hasn't fought in nealry two years. East will certainly be shooting take downs on Faglier but he should be able to keep it on the feet. The UFC needs heavyweights so Joel would be a lock if he won here.
Pick: Joel Faglier by KO/TKO. Medium confidence.
DANTE SCHIRO (13-5) vs. DILANO TAYLOR (13-5) – Welterweight
Dilano Taylor is a really good striker who had a pretty good career in the PFL. Since his release he has beaten three solid fighters. Schiro is a former Bellator fighter himself but I don't think his striking is up there with Taylors. Maybe I overrate him but I think Taylor is really good and would love to see him in the UFC.
Pick: Dilano Taylor by KO/TKO. Medium confidence.
