UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Holland Predictions, Odds & Picks

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• The time for trash talk is done as top-10 middleweights Derek Brunson and Kevin Holland finally settle their score on Saturday night
• Wrestling all-star Gregor Gillespie returns to the octagon in the co-main event for the first time since suffering his first professional loss
• The main card behind with two women’s strawweight making their UFC debuts

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UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Holland – Picks & Predictions

Derek Brunson vs Kevin Holland – Middleweight Division

Kevin Holland (-182)

Gregor Gillespie vs Brad Riddell – Lightweight Division

Gregor Gillespie (-265)

Adrian Yanez vs Gustavo Lopez – Bantamweight Division

Adrian Yanez (-225)

Song Kenan vs Max Griffin – Welterweight Division

Song Kenan (+155)

Cheyanne Buys vs Montserrat Ruiz – Women’s strawweight Division

Cheyanne Buys (-375)

How to Watch UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Holland

Derek Brunson vs Kevin Holland – Middleweight Division

Derek Brunson

Following back-to-back losses in 2018 against Ronaldo Souza and Israel Adesanya, Brunson has gone on to win three in a row and he heads into Saturday night looking for his fourth.

Brunson last fought against rising contender Edmen Shahbazyan and he was able to derail the hype train with a third-round TKO victory. His two fights prior we back-to-back unanimous decision victories over Ian Heinisch and Elias Theodorou.

Derek Brunson will enter the cage with several disadvantages. He is shorter than his opponent and has a shorter reach. He’s also nine years older than Kevin Holland. He only has two more pro fights than Holland but he has more experience under the bright lights of the UFC. Fighting since 2010, Brunson trains with Sanford MMA and the southpaw holds a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Renzo Gracie as possesses NCAA Division II wrestling credentials.

He is currently ranked as the seventh-best middleweight in the division.

Kevin “Trailblazer” Holland

There is no doubt that Kevin Holland had the best the year of 2020 out of all middleweights. After finishing 2019 with a loss against Brendan Allen, Holland went on to not only fight five times in 2020 but to win five times all as well.

The streak started with back-to-back TKO wins over Anthony Hernandez and Joaquin Buckley. He was then awarded a split-decision over Darren Stewart before going on to TKO Charlie Ontiveros. He capped his year off last December with his biggest win” a knockout victory over middleweight legend Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza – and he did it from his knees. The five wins tied a record for most fights in a calendar year and he was awarded three-fight bonuses in that span.

Fighting since 2015, Holland trains out of Texas with the Phalanx MMA Academy as well as with Travis Lutter BJJ – the latter of which he holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under. He also holds a second-degree black belt in kung-fu. He comes into this bout with Brunson as the number-10 middleweight in the division.

Gregor Gillespie vs Brad Riddell – Lightweight Division

Gregor “The Gift” Gillespie

Gregor Gillespie entered the UFC in 2016 as an undefeated 7-0 fighter and he did not slow down once he joined the promotion. From 2016 through to 2019, Gillespie went 6-0 with the UFC and went into his most recent fight with all the hype in the world.

He went up against Kevin Lee in November 2019 and was brutally knocked out via head kick in the first round at UFC 244. He hasn’t fought since.

Boasting NCAA Division I wrestling credentials, Gillespie has been fighting professionally since 2012 and trains out of Long Island with Long Island MMA. He holds a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Joe Scarola and Carlos Rosado. He is currently ranked as the 15th-best lightweight in the promotion.

Brad “Quake” Riddell

Like Gillespie, Brad Riddell entered the UFC as a hot prospect – having just one loss on his record when he signed in 2019. So far Riddell has fought three times for the UFC and he has won them all. His debut against Jamie Mullarkey was deemed fight of the night and he subsequently went on to defeat both Magomed Mustafaev and Alex da Silva Cohelo by decision.

The New Zealander trains with the infamous City Kickboxing gym as well as with Tiger Muay Thai. He holds a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Andre Galvao. He has been fighting professionally since 2013 and is currently unranked by the UFC.

Adrian Yanez vs Gustavo Lopez – Bantamweight Division

Adrian Yanez

Adrian Yanez is another hot prospect on this card. A former Fury FC and LFA fighter, Yanez appeared on the Dana White Contender Series last August and knocked out Brady Huang in 39-seconds. He debuted for the UFC two-months later and knocked out Victor Rodriguez with a first-round head kick.

Born in Texas, Yanez trains with the Metro Fight Club. He is currently on a five-fight professional win streak and will be two inches taller than and have a 3.5-inch reach advantage over his opponent this Saturday.

Gustavo Lopez

Like his opponent, Gustavo Lopez has two UFC appearances under his belt. He debuted for the promotion last June against Merab Dvaslishvili but was defeated by a unanimous decision. He rebounded, however, in his most recent appearance which came against Anthony Birchak last November. Lopez secured a first-round rear-naked choke submission victory.

Fighting since 2012, the Washington native trains out of Las Vegas with Xtreme Couture and 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu. He holds a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Half of his professional wins have come via submission.

Song Kenan vs Max Griffin – Welterweight Division

Song Kenan

.A mainstay of the UFC since 2017, Song Kenan has a 4-1 record with the promotion as well as two performance bonuses. Currently riding a two-fight winning streak, Kenan defeated Derrick Krantz by unanimous decision before most recently knocking out Callan Potter in the first round last February.

Born in China, Kenana trains with the MY Fighting Academy. He has been fighting professionally since 2014. This is his first fight in over a year.

Max “Pain” Griffin

A member of the UFC roster since 2016, Max Griffin has struggled to put wins together, as he is just 4-6 under the promotion’s banner. Griffin recently found himself on a two-fight skid, losing back-to-back decisions to Alex Morono and Alex Oliveira before bouncing back in his most recent bout. Last November, Griffin took on Ramiz Brahimaj and won via doctor’s stoppage TKO.

Griffin has been fighting since 2009 and holds several notable rankings including black belts in Bok Fu and Marinoble’s fighting system as well as a first-degree black belt in kickboxing. He currently trains out of California with Marinoble’s Martial Arts school where he is coached by Bo Sandoval and Dave Marinoble. He is a former TPF welterweight champion.

Cheyanne Buys vs Montserrat Ruiz – Women’s Strawweight Division

Cheyanne “The Warrior Princess” Buys

Cheyanne Buys was riding a three-fight professional win streak when she appeared on the Contender Series last August. Her bout on the show took place against Hilarie Rose and Buys earned the unanimous decision victory. Saturday’s fight against Montserrat Ruiz will mark her UFC debut.

Born in Florida, Buys trains out of Texas with Fortis MMA under coaches Sayif Saud and Richie Quan. She will stand three-inches taller than her opponent Saturday night and will have a reach advantage of two inches. She is the biggest betting favorite on the main card.

Montserrat “Conejo” Ruiz

Like Cheyanne Buys, Montserrat Ruiz will be making her UFC debut Saturday night – and she’s making it with just one week’s notice. The Mexican fighter last fought under the Invicta FC banner last July. She defeated Janaisa Morandin via keylock submission in the first round.

Born in Mexico, Ruiz is currently associated with Eddie Bravo’s 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu. She is replacing Kay Hansen who was forced to pull out of the fight due to injury. Ruiz has been fighting professionally since 2014.