UFC Fight Island 6 - Breakdown & Predictions
When is UFC Fight Island 6? Saturday 18th October, 2020 - 22:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC Fight Island 6? Flash Forum, Fight Island, Abu Dhabi (UAE)
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Island 6? No tickets are available as this event will take place without spectators
What channel is UFC Fight Island 6 on? BT Sport 2
Where can I stream UFC Fight Island 6? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
BRIAN ORTEGA VS CHAN SUNG JUNG
We have not seen Brian ‘T-City’ Ortega (14-1) for nearly two years since his five-round beating suffered in his title fight with Max Holloway. The then, champion dished out Ortega’s first loss and he has been out licking his wounds since as well as nursing a knee injury which scuppered this bout with Chan Sung Jung (The Korean Zombie) a year ago and the tension has only risen after Ortega slapped Jung’s friend, translator and rapper Jay Park.
Assaulting the untrained and smaller translator was a great way to get the fans on your back and it does not help that The Korean Zombie (16-5) has been a fan-favourite since he first entered the cage. He has also been inactive throughout his career due to injuries and military service, but it is a treat whenever he graces the octagon. He managed to fight twice last year (the first time since 2011) racking up two more knockouts and ‘performance of the night’ bonuses against Renato Moicano and Frankie Edgar.
PREDICTION
These guys have not seen the bell yet in their 16 UFC fights and this trend is likely to continue. They are also two of the most exciting fighters in the division and their styles will make this a spectacle wherever it goes.
T-City is one of the best Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners in the game with improving stand-up. The Korean Zombie is a striker specialising in war and his knockout power has meant he has rarely had to call upon his own blacke belt jiu-jitsu skills.
Ortega has relied on his striking to set up the submissions, but the confidence in his hands could be his undoing. It worked against Frankie Edgar uppercutting him into the next realm but took a five-round beating against Max Holloway and now averages 7.36 significant strikes absorbed per minute. If he eats that many from Jung, it will not be long before he gets slept.
That said, there will be a lot of opportunities for Ortega to catch Jung himself, but his best chance is to set traps on the feet and prepare for scrambles where he can wrap up a submission. If he decides to simply stand and trade, Jung’s technique and power will pierce the defence to end the fight in any round.
Prediction: Korean Zombie via KO/TKO
KATLYN CHOOKAGIAN VS JESSICA ANDRADE
Katlyn Chookagian (14-3) makes her third appearance of the year and is coming off a brilliant unanimous decision win over Antonina Shevchenko. This came after clashing with her sister for the flyweight title where she got completely outclassed and eventually put her out of her misery getting finished in the champions crucifix. In fairness, there are not any flyweights on Valentina Shevchenko’s level right now.
She takes on the former strawweight champion, Jessica Andrade (20-8) who steps up a division after losing two on the bounce. After slamming Rose Namajunas through the floor to capture the title, she suffered a quick, brutal end in China with Weili Zhang knocking her out in the first round. She then met Namajunas for their rematch taking her to a split decision but with the paths to the title closed, she seeks a new clearer path to the flyweight title.
PREDICTION
Andrade is a former champion and held her own up in the bantamweight division so will be more than confident. She has all the power, but the range discrepancy is impossible to ignore. Chookagian will tower above Andrade with an eight-inch height, six-inch arm and seven-inch leg reach advantage.
Chookagian’s style will be all about picking off Andrade on the feet at the end of her range. So, unless Andrade catches Chookagian with a wild hayemaker, her only chance is take the fight to the floor. She has a lot of confidence in her hands, but head movement is not natural for her and the longer the fight stays on the feet, the more strikes Chookagian will tally up. She does not have the power to knock Andrade out clean but can land enough damage to earn the decision and pull off the upset.
Prediction: Chookagian via Decision
JIMMY CRUTE VS MODESTAS BUKAUKAS
After starting his UFC career with a submission over Paul Craig and a TKO over Sam Alvey, Jimmy Crute (11-1) was sitting at 10-0 eyeing up the 10. However, he got derailed after getting caught in Misha Cirkunov’s Peruvian necktie. It was an amazing submission and Cirkunov is a stalwart, so this was a valuable lesson for the Aussie. As we saw in his last fight against Michal Oleksiejczuk racking up his fourth submission and ‘performance of the night’ bonus.
Modestas Bukauskas (11-2) has a similar aura to Crute when he started in the UFC. He is relatively unknown globally, but fans who have followed his career know he will be a serious problem in the light heavyweight division. He suffered his only two losses in 2016 and is now on a seven-fight winning streak (two submissions and five knockouts) including his UFC debut against Andreas Michailidis finishing him in the first round.
PREDICTION
Jimmy Crute for your second UFC fight is one tall order but Bukauskas has the tools to win. If he can keep the fight on the feet, he has the power to find the knockout but he has to keep moving and strike from range leveraging his four-inch reach advantage.
Bukaukas is also dangerous on the ground with submissions and ground-and-pound but Crute is on a different level when it comes to submission skills. If Crute can hold his own on the feet and not leave his head exposed when shooting in for takedowns he will find a way to win and it will most likely come on the ground.
Prediction: Crute via Submission
CLAUDIO SILVA VS JAMES KRAUSE
Claudio Silva (14-1) was expected to make his first outing of the year against Muslim Salikhov but unfortunately that mouth-watering match-up has fallen through with Salikhov puling out. The Brazilian made his name in England which he calls his second home and after his first two UFC wins which included a win over Leon Edwards, we thought it was only a matter of time before he fought for the welterweight title. However, a string of injuries kept him out for three and a half years but when he returned in May 2018 against Nordine Taleb, it was like he had never been away. He submitted him in the first round and went on to notch two more submissions against Danny Roberts and Cole Williams which was his last fight just over a year ago.
James Krause (27-8) is starting to make a habit of taking fights on short notice. His took his last fight back in February on just 24 hours’ notice after Antonio Arroyo fell ill. He stepped up to middleweight to take on Trevin Giles and put on the ‘fight of the night’, taking him all the way to a split decision. Although he lost, it was a remarkable feat having no time to prepare and arguably should have won. This broke his six-fight win streak including knockouts over Warlley Alves and Sergio Moraes.
PREDICTION
Krause is one of the most underrated fighters in the division and this would be a decent match-up for him if he had longer to prepare. Silva has some of the best Brazilian jiu-jitsu in the division, but Krause is a high-level black belt himself which could force more striking out of Silva.
With a full camp you would back Krause’s wrestling and striking to keep the fight where he wants it but then again, Silva has not fought in a year so it will really depend on how their preparations have gone. That said, we are backing Krause’s jiu-jitsu skills to avoid Silva’s main threat and his cardio to finish stronger and land more damage on the feet.
Prediction: Krause via Decision
THOMAS ALMEIDA VS JONATHAN MARTINEZ
Thomas Almeida (21-3) emerges for the first time since January 2018. He has been left on the side lines stewing over three losses in his last four fights. His hype train was at full speed after winning his first four UFC fights all via knockout to take his unbeaten record to a staggering 20-0. However, he then met Cody Garbrandt suffering a taste of his own medicine, but he bounced back with another TKO over Albert Morales. He then went on to get outpointed by Jimmie Rivera and then ate a head kick from Rob Font to suffer his third loss and now he is desperate to get that winning feeling back.
Almeida was scheduled to return against Alejandro Perez but as he tested positive for COVID-19, Jonathan Martinez (12-3) has stepped up and the fight has been pushed forward a week. Martinez is coming off the seventh knockout of his career against Frankie Saenz back in August which came in response to losing a split decision to Andre Ewell.
PREDICTION
This should be fireworks. Seven out of Martinez’ 12 wins and 17 out of Almeida’s 21 have come via knockout so we know what to expect. Almeida has also won a ‘performance of the night’ in all of his UFC wins so if he arrives to Fight Island with confidence you have to back him for another bonus.
However, we do not know how he will turn up especially as he is in the unfamiliar territory of losing two in a row and Martinez will pounce on any opportunity to pull the trigger and capitalize if Almeida is hesitant to throw.
That said, we are backing Almeida to show up and even just a few glimpses of the old Almeida will be enough to add to the highlight reel.
Prediction: Almeida via KO/TKO
MATEUSZ GAMROT VS GURAM KUTATELADZE
Mateusz Gamrot (17-0 (1)) is a huge addition to the UFC. The Pole is undefeated and heads to Fight Island looking to make a statement in the stacked lightweight division. He is the first ever double simultaneous champion for KSW in Poland holding the featherweight and lightweight titles and he is coming off his fourth lightweight title defence in outpointing Marian Ziolkowski.
Gamrot originally filled in for Renato Moicano to take on Magomed Mustafaev but Mustafaev then pulled out giving another opportunity for a debut with Guram Kutateladze (11-2) stepping up and boarding the plane to Fight Island. The Georgian has amassed an impressive record fighting for a variety of promotions and is riding an eight-fight win streak, coming off a great comeback win and first round knockout over former UFC fighter Felipe Silva.
PREDICTION
There is so much hype around Gamrot and rightly so. He is will be the favourite but Kutateladze is certainly UFC calibre. There is less pressure on the Georgian, but he is tough and has a lot of power in both hands with a dangerous high kick so this is no gimmie fight for Gamrot.
That said, we are likely to see why Gamrot is undefeated. He is a machine on the mat and on the feet and while training at American Top Team, he is only getting better. As long as he takes Kutateladze seriously on the feet and is patient in his openings, he will dictate the fight and if he decides to take the fight to the ground, he will aggressively hunt knockout or submission.
Prediction: Gamrot via Submission
GILLIAN ROBERTSON VS POLIANA BOTELHO
Gillian Robertson (8-4) is coming off the sixth submission of her career which came against Cortney Casey back in June. This came in response to getting pummelled by Maycee Barber snapping an impressive two-fight streak including a submission over Veronica Macedo and a TKO over Sarah Frota.
She takes on Poliana Botelho (8-2) who we have not seen since April 2019. She decided to move back up to flyweight in her last fight and looked great beating Lauren Mueller via unanimous decision. This was also in response to losing against a beast in the form of Cynthia Calvillo who submitted her in the first round.
PREDICTION
This will come down to the takedown defence of Botelho which is 88% and Calvillo is the only fighter who has taken her down in the UFC. Robertson has a takedown average of 3.33 every 15 minutes and will be relentless in trying to get the Brazilian down to the canvas where she does her best work.
Botelho has the speed and power advantage and knows she can light Robertson up on the feet. She can wrestle herself and is strong in the clinch but needs to keep the distance.
Robertson has switched training camps from American Top Team, but her game plan will be the same and her jiu-jitsu is at a level where she only needs one takedown. Botelho’s power will be a problem for Robertson but we are backing her to find a submission.
Prediction: Robertson via Submission
JOHN PHILLIPS VS JUN YONG PARK
John Phillips (22-10 (1)) has lost four of his last five fights. He lost three on the bounce to Charles Byrd, Kevin Holland and Jack Marshman before picking up a much-needed win and vintage knockout over Alen Amedovski but then got introduced to Khamzat Chimaev. He got slaughtered which probably did not damage his future in the UFC at the time but another loss on Fight Island could be terminal.
Jun Yong Park (11-4) is the man hoping to pile on more misery to Phillips. He got submitted on his UFC debut getting caught in Anthony Hernandez’ anaconda choke. That broke his seven-fight winning streak which included three submissions and three knockouts. He then met Marc-Andre Barriault back in December last year and earnt a hard-fought unanimous decision.
PREDICTION
Phillips is rather one-dimensional which should make him easy to prepare for but unless you can grapple, the chances are that you will get slept by his left hand.
If Park plays it safe, he can look for the takedown early any exploit Phillips’ weakness on the ground and it is the smart play as Phillips has the power to end the fight with one touch of the gloves. If Park can avoid the hands of Phillips, a decision is there for him.
Prediction: Park via Decision
JAMIE MULLARKEY VS FARES ZIAM
After Brad Riddell ended Jamie Mullarkey’s (12-3) run of four straight knockouts a year ago in an epic battle, the Aussie is back and looks to make up for his UFC debut loss. Riddell is one tough fight for a debut and Mullarkey is clearly a dangerous fighter finishing all but one of his wins with eight knockouts and three submissions.
He takes on the Frenchman, Fares Ziam (10-3) who is also looking to bounce back from his UFC debut loss. After five wins on the trot, Don Madge welcomed him to the octagon in September last year and out grappled him for a unanimous decision win.
PREDICTION
Thankfully for Ziam, Mullarkey will not try and clinch up for three rounds and what we are likely to see is an exciting tussle with more striking. Ziam is a dangerous kickboxer but will not enjoy his usual reach advantage as Mullarkey is also a rangy lightweight.
If the fight stays on the feet for three rounds, we could easily see a late finish but if Ziam starts to get the better of the exchanges, the Aussie may look for a takedown. As we saw in the Riddell fight, Mullarkey can also take a hit or three and we are backing him to squeeze out a decision, but a variety of results are possible here.
Prediction: Mullarkey via Decision
GADZHIMURAD ANTIGULOV VS MAXIM GRISHIN
Gadzhimurad Antigulov (20-7) is potentially fighting to save his UFC career after three losses on the bounce. After submitting Marcos Rogerio de Lima and Joachim Christensen in his first two UFC fights, he was sitting at 20-4 but then ran into Ion Cutelaba. The Moldovan knocked him out in the first round and then Michal Oleksiejczuk followed suit in his next fight. He was then grateful to fight a fellow grappler but suffered his third first round finish in a row getting caught in Paul Craig’s triangle back in July.
He takes on Maxin Grishin who is at the start of his UFC career. He got the call-up after impressing in the PFL where he went 4-0-2 against quality competition. He impressed enough to get the call-up and landed UFC veteran and heavyweight Marcin Tybura for a debut. He lost via unanimous decision back in July, but he knows he has a lot more to offer and this is a great chance to show that.
PREDICTION
We know how dangerous Antigulov is, particularly on the ground but the odds are stacked against him here. Grishin has an eight-inch reach and four-inch height advantage and a decision loss to Tybura up at heavyweight should not carry too much weight for this fight.
Grishin is a beast but if Antigulov can take him down he is in trouble. Antigulov may not waste any time in shooting in as he knows his UFC career is on the line. Grishin knows he has the power to finish Antigulov on the feet and his best form of takedown defence may be leverage that reach to hunt the knockout early.
Prediction: Grishin via KO/TKO
MARK STRIEGL VS SAID NURMAGOMEDOV
Mark Striegl (18-2 (1)) finally makes his UFC debut after he had to pull out of his fight with Timur Valiev in August. After his loss to Reece McLaren in 2015 where he dominated most of the fight and eventually got submitted in a brilliant comeback, Striegl has gone on to win four fights and is coming off that ‘no contest’ with Shunichi Shimizu where Striegl’s kick to the jewels rendered Shimizu unable to continue. A strange one, but Striegl has put that behind him and is raring to go on Fight Island.
He has a huge step-up in competition as Said Nurmagomedov (13-2) welcomes him to the UFC. He lost his last fight back in December last year to the surging Raoni Barcelos who earned the unanimous decision. That broke a seven-fight win streak including two UFC fights where he beat Justin Scoggins down at flyweight via a split decision and then went on to fold Ricardo Ramos with a spinning back kick up at bantamweight.
PREDICTION
Striegl is getting underestimated here considering how big a favourite Nurmagomedov is. We are still going to back the Russian for the win, but this will be a tough fight for him.
Striegl is very strong and grinds his opponents down, wearing them out with his wrestling until a submission opens up. He will keep working until he finds the back looking for his favourite rear-naked choke.
So, if Nurmagomedov finds himself on his back he will be in trouble however, he has too much experience to make any big mistakes and the skill to keep the fight where he wants it. His striking is on a different level to Striegl and he should earn a decision at least.