UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs Magny Predictions, Odds & Picks

• Originally slated to have Leon Edwards fight Khamzat Chimaev in the main event, both fighters have has issues with COVID-19 over the past two months
• This event will be the second of three Fight Island events held over the span of one week
• The winner of the main event could easily see either Michael Chiesa or Neil Magny crack into the top-five of the welterweight division

Odds from DraftKings. Get up to a $1,000 sign-up bonus at DraftKings today or check out more offers and promo codes for the best online sportsbooks.

UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs Magny – Picks & Predictions

Michael Chiesa vs Neil Magny – Welterweight Division

Michael Chiesa (+110)

Warlley Alves vs Mounir Lazzez – Welterweight Division

Mounir Lazzaez (-200)

Isaac Villanueva vs Vinicius Moreira – Light Heavyweight Division

Isaac Villaneuva (+143)

Roxanne Modafferi vs Viviane Araujo – Women’s Flyweight Division

Viviane Araujo (-335)

Lerone Murphy vs Douglas Silva de Andrade – Featherweight Division

Lerone Murphy (-250)

Matt Schnell vs Tyson Nam – Flyweight Division

Matt Schnell (+105)

How to Watch UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs Magny

Michael Chiesa vs Neil Magny – Welterweight Division

Michael “Maverick” Chiesa (17-4)

Michael Chiesa has spent most of his UFC career in the lightweight division. A former Ultimate Fighter reality winner, Chiesa made the move to welterweight in late-2018 following back-to-back losses to Kevin Lee and Anthony Pettis and after suffering a poor weight cut prior to the Pettis fight.

Chiesa’s first fight in the 170-pound division came against former interim champion Carlos Condit at UFC 232. Chiesa impressively submitted the former champion one minute into the second round. He followed that performance with back-to-back unanimous decision victories over Diego Sanchez and, most recently, former interim lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos. The dos Anjos fight took place in January 2020. Chiesa is riding a three-fight win streak but it has been almost a full calendar year since he last fought.

A large frame for a welterweight, let alone lightweight, Chiesa stands at 6 ft. 1 in. tall and has a reach of 75.5 inches. Fighting since 2008, Chiesa spends his time training with Sik Jitsu Fighting Systems as well as with Team Alpha Male. He works under trainer Rick Little and holds a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under James Weed. At 33-years-old, Chiesa is currently ranked as the welterweight division’s eighth-best fighter.

Neil “The Haitian Sensation” Magny (24-7)

Since a 2018 knockout loss to Santiago Ponzinibbio, Neil Magny has been on the rise in the UFC welterweight division. He followed his loss to Ponzinibbio with back-to-back unanimous decision victories against Li Jingliang (UFC 248) and Anthony Rocco Martin (UFC 250).

His most recent bout came back in August of last year when he took on former welterweight champion Robbie Lawler. Magny impressively defeated Lawler by unanimous decision. Lawler was the third former welterweight champion that Magny has beaten, having defeated Carlos Condit and Johnny Hendricks in the past.

Magny stands at 6 ft. 3 in tall – two-inches taller than Chiesa. He has a reach of 8- inches which means he’ll also have a 4.5-inch reach advantage over his opponent Wednesday. Fighting since 2010, Magny trains with the Elevation Fight Team and holds a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Miguel Torres and Andre Leite. Magny enters the octagon Wednesday ranked as number-nine in the UFC welterweight division.

Warlley Alves vs Mounir Lazzez – Welterweight Division

Warlley Alves (13-4)

Warlley Alves has seen mixed success during his time in the UFC. Once an undefeated 10-0 fighter with a win over Colby Covington, Warlley has gone just 2-2 over his last four fights. He also hasn’t fought since his two fights in 2019. He had an impressive knockout win over Sergio Moraes at UFC 237 but was defeated in his next, and most recent, fight by Randy Brown, who submitted Alves with a triangle choke.

The 30-year-old Brazilian fighter stands at 5 ft. 11 in. tall and has a reach of 72 inches. He trains with X-Gym out of his home country, where he’s been training and fighting professionally since 2011. He was the winner of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3 middleweight tournament.

Mounir “The Sniper” Lazzez (10-1)

Wednesday will mark just the second UFC appearance for Mounir Lazzez, who made his debut last July with a unanimous decision victory over Abdul Razak Alhassan. He has previously fought for promotions such as Brave CF and UAE Warriors. He is currently riding a three-fight winning streak.

Born in Tunisia, Lazzez stands at 6 ft. 1 in. tall – giving him a two-inch advantage over his opponent. His reach measures 76 inches which mean he will also hold a four-inch advantage over Alves in the striking department. He currently trains with Team Nogueira Dubai.

Isaac Villaneuva vs Vinicius Moreira – Light heavyweight Division

Isaac “Hurricane” Villaneuva (16-11)

Isaac Villaneuva was riding a four-fight winning streak with Fury FC when he signed with the UFC, He debuted last May against Chase Sherman and was defeated via second-round TKO. His follow up performance was against Jordan Wright this past August. In this most recent fight, Villaneuva would again suffer a TKO loss although this time due to a doctor’s stoppage as “Hurricane” was cut badly. He has yet to register a win for the promotion.

The 36-year-old American stands at 6 ft. 1 in. tall but only has a reach of 73 inches. He currently fights out of Texas where he spends his time training with the 4oz. Fight Club team.

Vinicius “Mamute” Moreira (9-4)

Vinicius Moreira is another fighter who has yet to register a win under the UFC banner, having three UFC fights under his belt and losing them all. He appeared on the Dana White Contender Series, fighting John Allan Arte and submitting him in the second round. He entered the UFc with a 9-1 record but went on to lose to Alonzo Menifield, Eryk Anders, and Paul Craig – all by the first-round stoppage.

Standing at 6 ft. 4 in. tall, Moreira will have a three-inch height and reach advantage against Villaneuva this Wednesday. The 31-year-old Brazilian trains in Brazil with the Five Rounds gym and holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He has been fighting professionally since 2015.

Roxanne Modafferi vs Viviane Araujo – Women’s Flyweight Division

Roxanne “The Happy Warrior” Modafferi (25-17)

Joining the UFC roster in 2017, Roxanne Modafferi has consistently won a fight then lost a fight, holding a record of 4-4 since joining the promotion. Modafferi had a busy 2020 year that started with a huge upset victory over hot prospect Maycee Barber. She was then defeated via unanimous decision by Lauren Murphy (our women’s flyweight fighter of the year). In her final fight of last year, Modaferri got back in the win column by earning a unanimous decision win over Andrea Lee last September. If her record stays consistent and you’re a fan of patterns, then we can predict a loss on Wednesday.

“The Happy Warrior” stands at 5 ft. 6 in. tall and has a reach of 69 inches. The 38-year-old fighter trains with the Syndicate MMA gym and holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Mike Pyle and Evan Dunham as well as a brown belt in judo. Fighting since 2003, she is currently ranked as the number-eight women’s flyweight.

Viviane “Vivi” Araujo (9-2)

Less experience in her MMA career than Roxanne, Viviane Araujo joined the UFC in 2019 and has done quite well for herself, amassing a 3-1 record under the banner. She won her first two fights in the UFC(with her debut coming in the bantamweight division) before being beaten at UFC 245 by Jessica Eye. Her most recent fight was her only fight of 2020 – which came against Montana De La Rosa last September. She won the bout via unanimous decision.

Araujo stands one-inch shorter than her opponent and will also be at a one-inch reach disadvantage on Wednesday against Modafferi. The Brazilian trains with Cerrado MMA and also holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu – hers being under Leo Vieira. She also holds a brown belt in Luta livre. Fighting since 2015, Araujo’s career has spread across strawweight, flyweight, as well as a bantamweight. She is currently ranked right behind Modafferi as the ninth-best women’s flyweight.

Lerone Murphy vs Douglas Silva de Andrade – Featherweight Division

Lerone “The Miracle” Murphy (9-0-1)

Lerone Murphy debuted for the UFC back in 2019 against rising contender Zubaira Tukhugov. His debut didn’t quite go as planned, however, as the two fighters fought to a draw. Murphy would get his first UFC victory in his next, and a most recent bout against Ricardo Ramos last July. He won via first-round TKO.

Born in England, Murphy stands at 5 ft. 9 in. tall and has a reach of 73.5-inches. He trains with the Manchester Top Team under head coach Carl Prince. Excluding his draw, the 29-year-old has won 13 fights in a row including his undefeated amateur record.

Douglas “D-Silva” Silva de Andrade (26-3, 1 no-contest)

A UFc veteran since 2014, Douglas Silva de Andrade has gone 2-2 across his last four fights, taking on some pretty stiff competition. After a 2017 loss to Rob Font, de Andrade came back to defeat Marlon Vera via unanimous decision in 2018. In the bout that followed, de Andrade would suffer a TKO loss due to corner stoppage against the man who is now the bantamweight champion: Petr Yan. In his most recent bout, de Andrade returned to the featherweight division and took on Renan Barao. He defeated Barao (a former champion) by unanimous decision. That fight took place in November 2019 and de Andrade has yet to fight since, having had a 2020 bout canceled due to injury.

The Brazilian fighter will be at a noticeable physical disadvantage Wednesday as he stands two-inches shorter than Lerone Murphy and will have a reach disadvantage of 5.5-inches. The 35-year-old has been fighting since 2010 and currently trains with Corinthians MMA/Nabruta Fight Team. He is currently unranked.

Matt Schnell vs Tyson Nam – Flyweight Division

Matt “Danger” Schnell (14-5)

Debuting for the UFC in 2016 with a loss against Rob Font, Matt Schnell has gone 4-3 across his time with the promotion and even enjoyed a four-fight winning streak through 2017-2019; accumulating wins over the likes of Louis Smolka and Jordan Espinosa. Unfortunately for Schnell, that winning streak was snapped in his most recent fight when he was knocked out by Alexandre Pantoja in December of 2019. Schnell has not fought since that date. He was expected to face Tyson Nam in late 2020 but Schnell was forced to pull out due to health issues.

The 31-year-old American fighter stands at 5 ft. 8 in. tall and has a 72.5-inch reach. Fighting since 2009, he currently spends his time training with the American Kickboxing Academy. He boasts a black belt in karate as well as a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He enters the octagon Wednesday as the number-nine ranked flyweight in the division.

Tyson Nam (20-11-1)

After losing two fights in a row, Tyson Nam had quite a bounce back year in 2020 as he knocked out Zarrukh Adashev in the first round of their June 13th bout that earned Nam a performance of the night bonus. He followed that up with his most recent performance which came against Jerome Rivera last September. He would TKO Rivera in the second round. As mentioned earlier, he was to fight originally scheduled to fight Schnell in that September bout but Nam had his opponent changed at the last minute.

The Hawaiian stands one-inch shorter than Matt Schnell but the bigger disadvantage comes in the reach department when he will be 4.5-inches shorter than his opponent. Fighting professionally since 2006, Nam currently trains out of Portland with the Sports Lab team. He enters this fight ranked 13th in the flyweight division.