UFC 236: Holloway vs. Poirier - Odds and Predictions

Where: State Farm Arena – Atlanta, GA.

When: Saturday, April 13, 10PM EST.

How: Main card on PPV, Prelims on TSN5 and ESPN, Early Prelim on UFC Fight Pass.

Max Holloway (20-3) vs. Dustin Poirier (24-5-1) – Lightweight Interim Title

Featherweight champion Max Holloway, age 27, moves up to lightweight (155lbs) to take on the last man to finish him in the Octagon, Dustin Poirier. The bout is for the interim lightweight title as current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov continues to serve a suspension for a post-fight brawl late last year.

As mentioned, Holloway is the current featherweight (145lbs) champion and is ranked at number four in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings. He last fought at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018, where he earned a fourth-round stoppage victory over the then-undefeated Brian Ortega. The fight earned him the fight of the night and performance of the night honors. He set the record for most significant strikes thrown in a fight, most thrown in a round, and most wins in the featherweight division.

”Blessed” stands at 5 feet, 11 inches and has a 69 inch each. He fights out of Hawaii under Rylan Lizares and Ivan Flores with the team Gracie Technics. He has a mostly Muay Thai style and has a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Rylan Lizares and Pedro Sauer.

Dustin Poirier, age 30, is currently ranked number three in the UFC lightweight rankings. He is on a three-fight win streak that last saw him defeat former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez at UFC on Fox 30 on July 28, 2018. He defeated Alvarez via second-round TKO and earned a performance of the night bonus.

”The Diamond” is 5 feet, 9 inches tall. His reach has a three-inch reach advantage over Holloway. He currently fights with American Top Team out of Coconut Creek, Florida. He trains under coach Phil Daru and has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

Kelvin Gastelum (15-3-1) vs. Israel Adesanya (16-0) – Middleweight Interim Title

Number one contender Kelvin Gastelum, ranked number four in the UFC middleweight rankings, faces off against young phenom Israel Adesanya in the co-main event for the interim Middleweight (185lbs) title. Gastelum was set to face champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 234 but Whittaker was forced to pull out of the fight the day, due to a hernia. Adesanya defeated Anderson Silva the same night and Gastelum and Adesanya will now fight for the placeholder title as the division awaits the return of Whittaker.

Gastelum, age 27, is on a two-fight win streak that saw him knockout former middleweight champ Michael Bisping, which earned him the performance of the night honors, and, more recently, earned a split decision over Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza at UFC 224 on May 12, 2018. They were both awarded fight of the night.

Gatelum is a southpaw that stands at 5 feet, 9 inches with a 71.5-inch reach. He fights out of Yuma, Arizona with Kings MMA and Yuma United MMA. He holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Brian Beaumont of 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu.

Israel Adesanya, age 29, has yet to be defeated in mixed-martial arts. He last competed at the aforementioned UFC 234. There he defeated UFC legend and former middleweight champion Anderson Silva via unanimous decision. The fight was bumped to main event status after the withdrawal of Robert Whittaker from his championship bout. The fight earned fight of the night. The victory moved him to the number six rank in the division.

”The Last Stylebender” stands at 6 feet, 4 inches tall and has an 80-inch reach – good for a 7.5-inch advantage over Gastelum. He is known for his kickboxing and muay thai style and he also has a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Andre Galvao. He fights with the City Kickboxing Team.

Eryk Anders (11-3) vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. (7-3-1) – Light Heavyweight Division

Eryk Anders, 31, is coming off of two losses in a row for the first time in his career. He lost to Thiago Santos via TKO in a light heavyweight (205lbs) bout and more recently dropped a split decision to Elias Theodorou at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018, in a middleweight bout.

”Ya Boi” fights out of Birmingham, Alabama. There he fights with the Spartan Fitness gym. He stands 6 feet, 1 inch and has a 75-inch reach. Anders has a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

Khalil Rountree Jr., age 29, is also coming off of a loss. His last fight came against light heavyweight prospect Johnny Walker at a UFC Fight Night on November 17, 2018. He lost the bout via first-round knockout. He was on a 3-0-1 run heading into that fight.

”The War Horse” also stands at 6 feet, 1 inch tall and has a 76.5-inch reach advantage – a slight advantage over his opponent. He fights out of LAs Vegas, Nevada with Syndicate MMA. Five of his Seven wins have come by knockout.

Alan Jouban (16-6) vs. Dwight Grant (9-2) – Welterweight Division

Alan Jouban, age 37, last fought on February 24, 2018, on a UFC on Fox event. He shared fight of the night honors with his opponent Ben Saunders, whom he knocked out in the second round. He was coming off back-to-back losses heading into the Saunders fight.

”Brahma” stands at 6 feet tall and has a 74-inch reach. He fights out of Los Angeles, California with Black House and 10th Planet jiu-jitsu where he holds a brown belt under Eddie Bravo. He also trains muay thai with Julio Trana Jr. and wrestling with Kenny Johnson.

Dwight Grant, 34, last fought earlier this year on February 23, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 145. He fought and defeated, Carlo Pedersoli Jr. via first round TKO.

”The Body Snatcher” stands 6 feet, 1 inch tall with a 76.5-inch reach – a 2.5-inch advantage over Jouban. He fights out of the American Kickboxing Academy.

Ovince St. Preux (23-12) vs. Nikita Krylov (24-6) – Light Heavyweight Division

St. Preux, age 35, has gone 2-2 in his last four fights. His last fight came at UFC 229 on October 6, 2018, where he lost via unanimous decision to LHW prospect Dominick Reyes. He is currently ranked number 12 in the UFC light heavyweight division.

OSP stands at 6 feet, 3.5 inches tall. His reach is 80 inches. He fights out of Knoxville, Tennessee where he trains at the Knoxville Martial Arts Academy. He has a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Rafaello Oliveira.

Nikita Krylov, 27, made his return to the UFC on September 15, 2018, at a UFC Fight Night. It was there where he lost to Jan Blachowicz via a second-round arm triangle choke. His last UFC fight before that came back in 2016, where he lost to Misha Cirkunov, also by submission.

”The Miner” stands 6 feet, 3 inches tall. He fights out of the Donetsk People’s Republic. He has a 77.5-inch reach. He fights with the Vale Tudo MMA Academy. He has a black belt and Master of Sports Ukraine in Kyokushin karate, a Master of Sport Ukraine in hand-to-hand combat, and a Master of Sports in submission fighting.

Odds

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