Apologies this is going to be a super quick article as I have been on night shifts again so my schedule is a bit all over the place. Most of my interest in this card is actually in Arisa Matsuda's fight as she is in my fantasy MMA prospect team. This card will be on UFC Fight Pass and is on at 07:00 PM ET.
BUSURMAN ZHUMAGUL (4-0) vs. DANIEL MORRISON (7-2) – Welterweight Championship
Zhumagul is one to watch for the future as he is a 21 year old 6'4″ welterweight. All of his wins come by finish in the first round but as a pro this is the first time he has fought someone with more than three fights experience. As you would expect he is very aggressive and hits hard on the feet. His wrestling isn't fantastic but once the fight is down he does have a strong submission ability. He is fighting a 5'9″ boxer-wrestler. I watched a couple fights and although Morrison is pretty good, I am not sure if he has the style to pull off a big upset here. He is much more experienced but I don't like his striking defense as he has his chin up, and he doesn't pursure take downs very often. Zhumagul's cardio is a huge unknown as this is a fight booked for 5 rounds and we just saw Jonathan Piersma pull of a similar upset recently. But I think this is a good showcase spot for Zhumagul.
Pick: Busurman Zhumagul by submission. Medium-high confidence.
NIKITA LESHUKOV (8-0) vs. WILLIAM STARKS (11-3) – Lightweight Championship
This is Leshukov's first fight in the US and it's going to be a tough outing. Leshukov is an all action fighter who is always looking for a quick finish, but if he can't get one he can fade and he loses that power. He is an all action striker who can grapple as well but he has never found a finish outside of the first round. William Starks was pretty active in the regional scene but has been very inactive since 2023 after he upset Johnny Hopper. Starks is a very boring, grinding wrestler who has pulled off upsets in the past and I think we may see that here. Leshukov hasn't fought anyone with the wrestling ability of Starks, and I think Starks can survive the first round. Once again this is booked for 5 rounds so we will will see if Leshukov's cardio can hold up if he doesn't find that quick finish. Leshukov winning would be much more exciting as it would likley be a highlight finish, and he would be perfect for DWCS. But I think Starks grinds out a boring decision win here.
Pick: William Starks by decision. Low confidence.
ARISA MATSUDA (7-0) vs. AYAN TURSYN (8-1) – Women's Strawweight Championship
Matsuda is a professional baseball player turned MMA fighter. She is a very good boxer but we saw some wrestling when she fought and beat Feng Xiaocan on the Road to UFC. She will need to use that wrestling here as Tursyn is an aggressive striker who lacks the wrestling defense. On the feet I have been impressed by Matsuda's boxing in the past but her striking didn't look as good as expected when she did take a step up in competition against Xiaocan, so this should be a fun test. Overall, I see Matsuda mixing in her boxing and wrestling to win a decision here. Matsuda is also very small for the weight class, but so is Tursyn so she isn't going to be a huge disadvantage here.
Pick: Arisa Matsuda by decision. Medium confidence.
