UFC 276 Adesanya vs Cannonier: Prelims Odds, Predictions, Picks

• Ian “The Future” Garry looks to increase his winning streak to ten in a row

• Brad Riddell faces Jalin Turner in the featured prelim

• Andre Muniz is the biggest favourite on the preliminary card

Brad Riddell vs Jalin Turner Lightweight Division

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Topping off the UFC 276 prelims we have a lightweight fight of the highest calibre between two great fighters. Brad “Quake” Riddell, a New Zealand born fighter who put together a four fight winning streak before suffering a spinning wheel kick KO defeat in his most recent bout vs former Tiger Muay Thai team mate Rafael Fiziev, in what was an elite level MMA fight.

The former kickboxer, is a longtime teammate of the main card headliner and middleweight champion Israel Adesanya who faces Jared Cannonier in what will be his fifth title defence, as well as featherweight champion Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski, who faces Max “Blessed” Holloway in his fourth title defence.

Riddell’s UFC winning streak consisted of four decision wins over Jamie Mullarkey, Magomed Mustafaev, Alex Da Silva, and Drew Dober consecutively. Despite winning by KO in the past, its doubtful he will be able to pull it off this time against a younger and fresher Jalin Turner, who will be looking to put the pressure on Riddell Early.

Jalin Turner earned himself a UFC contract, as many do these days via a contender series win over Max Mustaki who suffered a broken foot in the first round, resulting in a victory for Turner. His UFC debut was a nightmare matchup vs Vicente Luque and the Brazilian Welterweight made quick work of Turner by finishing him in the first round via knockout.

He would rebound back from that loss with a first round KO win over Callan Potter, only to be defeated by unanimous decision to a game Matt Frevola in the following bout.

Since then it has been nothing but smooth sailing for “The Tarantula” as he has managed to finish all four of his last opponents within two rounds. These include Joshua Culibao via ground and pound finish in round two, Broke Weaver via rear naked choke submission in round two, Uros Medic by rear naked choke submission in round one and finally Jamie Mullarkey, who he finished with a right hook followed by ground strikes in the second round.

This is Jalin Turner’s big chance to put his name out there and get a number next to his name, on what could possibly be the biggest UFC pay per view event of the year, and due to the fact that he is facing a highly skilled kickboxer, it would be wise of him to work his way to the ground and look for a submission.

Our Picks

Jalin Turner by Submission in round 2 (+1400)

Jalin Turner by Submission (+400)

Exact method of victory: Submission (+350)

Round of finish: Jalin Turner in Round 2 (+500)

Robbie Lawler vs Bryan Barberena Welterweight Division

Former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler is coming off a third round retirement win in a rematch vs Nick Diaz which took place on the main card of UFC 266. This was Diaz’s return to the sport after six long years away due to being suspended.

Prior to this, the MMA legend was on a four fight losing streak. The first one was a unanimous decision loss to Rafael Dos Anjos in a five round fight night main event, followed by a highly controversial first round submission loss via bulldog choke to Ben Askren.

Lawler then went on to lose another two fights via unanimous decision to Colby “Chaos” Covington in a five round fight as well as Neil Magny in a three round fight. There is no doubt that all the countless wars Lawler has been in have taken their toll, and he has slowed down significantly over the past few bouts.

Bryan “Bam Bam” Barberena is not one to shy away from a war either and has put on some of the most entertaining fights the sport has seen in recent years. His fight vs Vicente Luque, is an all time classic, despite the fact that “Bam Bam” ended up losing the fight by KO in the third round. Recently Barberena has been on a good run, stacking up two wins in a row over Darian Weeks and Matt “The Immortal” Brown, both by decision.

Given the age difference and the fact that Barberena has been improving in recent fights, expect him to be patient and look to win the rounds rather than look for a finish over Robbie Lawler who happens to be tough as nails.

Our Picks

Bryan Barberena by Unanimous Decision (+300)

Bryan Barberena by Decision (+225)

To go the distance (-175)

Exact method of victory: Decision (-175)

Ian Garry vs Gabe Green – Welterweight Division

Ian “The Future” Garry continues to live up to his nickname and he currently finds himself on a nine fight, undefeated winning streak. He made a name for himself in the United Kingdom fighting for the British MMA promotion “Cage Warriors” where he finished the majority of his opponents, all while exposing his talents to hardcore fans of the sport worldwide.

None of those fights compare to his UFC debut however, where he knocked out Jordan Williams with a counter right cross, with just a second remaining on the clock in round one. His most recent fight was not as flashy as his debut, but he ultimately did defeat Darian Weeks by unanimous decision.

The young Irishman is yet to meet his match in the sport and unless Gabe Green has something to say about that, Garry could be facing a ranked opponent next.

Green’s UFC debut was not an easy matchup for him at all and he got thrown right into the deep end with a fight vs Daniel Rodriguez who dominated him to a unanimous decision win.

Since the debut loss, Green has rebounded and put together a two fight winning streak with a unanimous decision win over Philip Rowe, as well as a second round knockout win vs Yohan Lainesse, who was making his UFC debut.

“Gifted” Gabe Green possesses a very well rounded skill set and has all kinds of wins to his name with many knockouts and submissions. This is a very close matchup however Ian Garry has all the momentum he needs and will be looking to finish his opponent early rather than drag the fight on.

Our Picks

Ian Garry by KO/TKO/DQ in round 1 (+475)

Ian Garry by KO/TKO/DQ (+225)

Exact method of victory: KO/TKO/DQ (+150)

Round of finish: Ian Garry round 1 (+400)

Donald Cerrone vs Jim Miller – Welterweight Division

It’s very rare you get a matchup between two fighters with so much experience, the two UFC legends have competed in a combined 105 MMA fights throughout their careers, with the vast majority of those fights taking place in the UFC.

Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone has been a fan favourite for many years and has had plenty of memorable wins as well as losses, especially at this late stage of his career where he finds himself on a five fight losing streak.

The recent losses came mostly against elite level opponents such as Tony Ferguson, Conor Mcgregor, and Justin Gaethje, all of whom went on to fight for a title shortly after defeating Cerrone. “Cowboy’s” last three scheduled fights which were meant to take place vs Joe Lauzon all ended up getting cancelled for various reasons, and so when Jim Miller’s original opponent Bobby “King” Green pulled out of this fight, Cerrone stepped in.

“Cowboy” is mainly known for mixing up kickboxing and muay thai strikes, but also has an excellent submission game for when things go to the ground. While both of these fighters are at the tail end of their respective careers, Cerrone seems to be slowing down, while Jim Miller has shown big improvements and adaptability over the past two fights.

Jim Miller has shown an excellent submission game throughout his career and will definitely look to utilise that skill in this fight due to the obvious size and reach disadvantage.

“Cowboy” is known to be a very slow starter, so if Miller can get him to the ground early and land some ground and pound strikes, he may earn himself another submission victory and increase his streak to three wins in a row.

Our Picks

Jim Miller by Submission in round 1 (+380)

Jim Miller by Submission (+215)

Exact method of victory: Submission (+150)

Round of finish: Jim Miller Round 1 (+225)

Check out our UFC 276: Adesanya vs Cannonier Main card picks here!

Early Prelims

Uriah Hall vs André Muniz – Middleweight Division

Prior to his recent unanimous decision loss to Sean Strickland, Uriah Hall was on a four fight winning streak over the span of four years. He was the favourite to win the Ultimate fighter 17 finale back in 2013, by ending up losing a split decision to Kelvin Gastelum. His most recent win did not go the way he wanted either.

He faced Chris Weidmann at UFC 261 and broke the former middleweight champion’s leg by checking the first kick that was thrown in a freak accident. In general his UFC career has had many ups and downs, but more recently the most glaring weakness in his game has been his inability to pull the trigger and engage in tactical brawls when needed.

Andre Muniz has looked nothing short of unstoppable so far in his UFC career and has won every matchup he has been given, with the last three wins all coming by way of armbar submission in the first round. None of those wins were more shocking than his first round armbar submission of Brazilian UFC legend Jacare Souza who refused to tap and ended up having his arm broken. Muniz seems to have found his formula and preferred method of victory and he will be looking for more of the same in this fight.

Our Picks

Andre Muniz by Submission in round 1 (+180)

Andre Muniz by Submission (-120)

Exact method of victory: Submission (-125)

Total rounds: Under 1.5 (-150)

Jessica Eye vs Maycee Barber – Women’s Flyweight Division

It’s safe to say that long time UFC veteran Jessica “Evil” Eye has seen better days in the sport. Back in 2018 she managed to stack up three decision wins in a row over Kalindra Faria, Jessica-Rose Clark, and Katlyn Chookagian.

That winning streak took her all the way to the top of the women’s flyweight rankings and she soon found herself facing arguably the best female MMA fighter of all time, women’s flyweight champion Valentina “Bullet” Shevchenko.

Jessica Eye lost that title fight by vicious head kick in round two. She managed to bounce back after the devastating loss with a unanimous decision win over Viviane Araujo, however since that win she has been on a downward slope, losing three in a row.

She suffered unanimous decision losses to Cynthia Calvillo, Joanna Wood and Jennifer Maia consecutively. If she doesn’t pull off a win in this fight it’s likely that she’ll retire from the sport.

While Jessica Eye was climbing up the rankings, Maycee “The Future” Barber earned her UFC contract with a win over Jamie Colleen on the contender series back in 2018. She then won her first three UFC fights vs Hanna Cifers, JJ Aldrich, Gillian Robertson all via TKO and within two rounds. She then suffered her first loss over female MMA pioneer Roxanne Moddafferi in a controversial match where she suffered a knee injury mid-fight which ultimately resulted in a unanimous decision loss.

She then lost to Alexa Grasso in a match where she got out struck and out grappled by the more experienced opponent. These two losses have since fuelled Barber to put together a two fight winning streak over Miranda Maverick and Montana De La Rosa, both highly touted prospects in the division.

Maycee Barber has matured since joining the UFC and has been displaying an ability to be patient and pick her shots rather than empty the gas tank early in search for an early finish.

Our Picks

Maycee Barber by unanimous decision (-135)

Maycee Barber by decision (-120)

Maycee Barber to win and over 2.5 rounds (-165)

To go the distance (-250)

Brad Tavares vs Dricus Du Plessis – Middleweight Division

Brad Tavares is a long time veteran of both the UFC and of MMA in general. He earned his UFC contract back in 2010 after participating on “The Ultimate Fighter 11”. He has faced the best of the middleweight division throughout the years, and has gone 14-6 so far in the promotion.

He is well versed in all aspects of mixed martial arts making him a tough matchup for any opponent. Tavares also faced the UFC 276 headliner and middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya as well as former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker over the past few years.

Dricus Du Plessis exploded onto the UFC scene with a vicious left hook knockout over Markus Perez in his debut back in October of 2020. The South African phenom then went on to extend his winning streak to four in a row, with a second round knockout win over Trevin Giles during UFC 264: Poirier vs McGregor 3.

Since Du Plessis has been knocking out everyone in his path since joining the promotion, most UFC fans expect another KO but are unaware that he has nine submission wins to his name. Due to the fact that he is up against a savvy veteran it is likely he will try a different approach to what he has been showing recently.

This is his first ranked opponent and a win over Tavares means Du Plessis will be ranked #12 in the middleweight division after the fight. Look for Du Plessis to work his way to a rear naked choke or jump for a guillotine when the opportunity presents itself.

Our Picks

Dricus Du Plessis by Submission in round 2 (+1600)

Dricus Du Plessis by Submission (+550)

Exact method of victory: Submission (+450)

Dricus Du Plessis to win in rounds 1-2 (+175)

Jessica-Rose Clark vs Julija Stoliarenko – Women’s Bantamweight Division

Although “Jessy Jess” is coming off a loss to Stephanie Egger, who happens to be a high level judoka, she definitely possesses the skill set to win this matchup fairly easily. She started off her UFC career with a win over fellow aussie Bec Rawlings by split decision.

She followed that up with a dominant unanimous decision win over Paige VanZant. Overall she is a solid grappler with good striking who generally wins by judges decision.

Julija Stoliarenko entered the UFC on a five fight winning streak which she put together fighting at various promotions in the regional scene. She started off her UFC run with a short notice fight where she faced Yana Kunitskaya who defeated her easily by unanimous decision.

She would then go on to lose her next two fights to Julia Avila by third round armbar submission, followed by Alex Davis who beat her by decision. Stoliarenko is yet to get a win in the promotion and if she loses this one it could be her final UFC fight.

Our Picks

Jessica-Rose Clark by Decision (+120)

Jessica-Rose Clark by Unanimous Decision (+150)

Jessica-Rose Clark to win and over 2.5 rounds (-110)

To go the distance (-200)

Check out the official UFC rankings here!