Ufc Fight Night 118 Predictions
- Oct 21, 2017 The UFC is in Poland this weekend as English up-and-comer Darren Till tries to knock off veteran 'Cowboy' Donald Cerrone in the main event. Kenai Andrews checks in with his thoughts on the main card matchups. MAIN CARD (3PM ET/12 PM PT FIGHT NETWORK & UFC FIGHT PASS) OSKAR PIECHOTA (9-0-0) VS.
- UFC Fight Night 118 from Gdansk, Poland, kicks off this weekend and features 12 bouts. Use these free predictions to give yourself an edge when betting!
- UFC Fight Night 118 - Cerrone vs. Till pits Darren The Gorilla Till vs Donald Cowboy Cerrone fight in Ergo Arena, Gdansk, Poland on Oct 21, 2017.
UFC Fight Night 118 airs tomorrow on FightPass
Oct 20, 2017 UFC Fight Night 118 predictions, preview, and analysis for the Donald Cerrone vs. Darren Till-led mixed martial arts (MMA) event on Sat., Oct. 21, 2017, inside Ergo Arena in Gdansk, Poland, on UFC.
Every now and then I like to break out of news mode and see how much I can embarrass myself by making fight predictions. We typically allow fight fan and friend of our site Devon Sawa to handle the big PPV cards, but I’m going to handle this one. So without further adieu, here are who I feel will be victorious in Poland, and how.
Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone vs. Darren Till
Donald Cerrone (32-9) is one of the most popular fighters in the UFC. He’s not only popular because of how often he fights, but how he chooses to do so. He steps in and throws down, with little fear of consequence. He enters this fight on what is a rare slump. He’s lost two consecutive fights to Robbie Lawler and Jorge Masvidal. He is looking to rebound against Till, someone who Donald says he didn’t even recognize until fight week.
Darren Till (15-1) is a young up and coming fighter with a massive upside. He’s 3-0 since coming to the UFC, however, a fight with Cerrone marks a MASSIVE upgrade in difficulty. His strength of schedule is pretty low, as opposed to Cerrone who has been in with every top name fighter at Lightweight and Welterweight.
Darren Till has been very brash in regards to this fight. He sees it as he has little lost and a ton to gain with a victory. That said, if he steps in and is knocked out by Cerrone, it’s going to set him back. Cerrone is much more seasoned and I see him winning this one by submission. Cerrone might have to weather the early storm, but I see him hurting Till on his feet, and taking him to the canvas where he holds a massive advantage. I’m going with Donald Cerrone via Submission in Round 2.
Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Jodie Esquibel
Karolina Kowalkiewicz (10-2) is entering this fight on a two-fight losing skid. She lost to Joanna Champion as well as Claudia Gadelha. Karolina definitely needs a big win here, or she could find herself on the outside looking in in terms of the Strawweight division. She has good hands and championship experience. Not to mention she’s fighting in her home country of Poland.
Jodie Esquibel (6-2) is making her UFC debut here and is doing so in hostile territorial She has been on the Invicta roster and split her last two fights. She defeated DeAnna Bennett and lost to Alexa Grasso. She’s a talented fighter and has the potential to develop into a contender.
Even though I feel she can become a contender, doesn’t mean I think she can win this fight. She’s jumping into the deep end of the pool and could be overwhelmed here. Karolina is an active striker, and I feel like she will control the pace and dictate how the fight takes place. I expect to win this fight in pretty dominant style. She will win all three rounds, and might even hang up a 10-8. Karolina Kowalkiewicz via Unanimous Decision.
Jan Błachowicz vs. Devin Clark
Jan Blochowicz (19-7) is another fighter who is fighting in his homeland this weekend. He’s a tough fighter, known for his grit and toughness. He’s lost four of his last five fights and has plummeted in the rankings. If he were to lose this fight as well, he’d run the very serious risk of getting a pink slip.
Devin Clark (8-1) has won two in a row heading into this fight. He was part of Dana White’s Looking for a Fight series but lost his debut in the UFC to Alex Nicholson. He has a lot of positives, but he isn’t known to have elite striking or submissions. He’s got experience in wrestling from high school and college and brings it to the cage with him.
This fight is a tough one for me to pick. I think we’ll have a wild first round, with one or both men getting dropped. However, by the second round, I think Jan could be gassed, and Clark could start to control the action. In the end, I think Clark might get the finish, but more than likely Jan’s toughness is enough to go the distance. Devin Clark by Unanimous Decision.
Jonathan Wilson vs. Oskar Piechota
Jonathan Wilson (7-2) Jonathan is a talented fighter who has lost two fights in a row coming into this fight. Wilson used to fight at heavyweight but debuted in the UFC at Light Heavyweight. He’s gone 1-2 since joining the UFC defeating Chris Dempsey at Fight Night 73 in less than a minute. He has heavy hands and loves to throw him.
Oskar Piechota (9-0) is yet another Polish fighter on this card. He’s making his UFC debut here and brings to the Octagon a perfect record consisting of all victories via stoppage. He is a violent fighter and will be looking to debut in a big way in front of his home fans. He has the ability to hurt you standing and on the ground.
This is likely going to be a fun fight while it lasts. I’m pretty sure this one won’t go the distance. Expect a firefight until someone drops to the mat. I’m leaning towards it being Wilson who hits the canvas. Going with Oskar Piechota via 2nd Round TKO.
Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Jodie Esquibel
Karolina Kowalkiewicz (10-2) has plenty at stake going into UFC Fight Night 118. She’s on a two-fight skid, albeit against two of the best women’s strawweights that the UFC has to offer. Kowalkiewicz did manage to hang in there for five rounds with Joanna Jedrzejczyk, which is a feat in itself but would ultimately lose to the champion. Not long after, at UFC 212, Kowalkiewicz was submitted early in the first round by Claudia Gadelha.
Jodie Esquibel (6-2) will be making her UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 118 in Kowalkiewicz’s home country, Poland. Esquibel has managed a 3-1 record in her last four fights with her one lone loss coming at the hands of current UFC fighter, Alexa Grasso. Esquibel featured on The Ultimate Fighter 24 and lost a somewhat controversial decision before being eliminated.
Breakdown
Jodie Esquibel fights like a truck with no brakes. She keeps coming forward through everything that her opponent has to offer. If Kowalkiewicz is hoping to keep Esquibel at bay with teep kicks and long strikes, she’ll need to be prepared for Esquibel to keep eating them and coming forward. She also is built like a mini-truck and is definitely short and stock for the strawweight division.
Prediction and Betting Guide
Kowalkiewicz’s striking should be too much for Esquibel and she’s way too classy for the UFC newcomer.
Prediction: Karolina Kowalkiewicz by decision
The safest play here is, of course, betting on Karolina Kowalkiewicz. But the odds here are outrageous. Esquibel is quite ‘raw’, but she knows how to bring the fight and she is definitely capable of causing some trouble for Karolina. We’ll bet against our prediction here because the odds are just that good.
You can find the best odds for a Jodie Esquibel victory at 888Bet
Jan Blachowicz vs. Devin Clark
Jan Blachowicz, believe it or not, was a guy with 14 wins in a 15-fight period not that long ago. Now, though, he’s lost four of his last five and is struggling to get things going inside the octagon. With losses to Patrick Cummins, Alexander Gustafsson, Corey Anderson and Jimi Manuwa, Blachowicz is clearly still competing against real contenders in the division. A fight with Devin Clark will be his easiest spot to date, and probably a must-win considering his recent decline.
Devin Clark is on quite the opposite trajectory than that of Jan Blachowicz. After losing his UFC debut against Alex Nicholson, Clark has since moved up weight classes and won his next two bouts. Clark worked his way to unanimous decision wins against Jake Collier and Josh Stansbury and a win over Blachowicz will make it three in a row for Clark
Breakdown
It’s been difficult to get a read on Jan Blachowicz lately. He looked quite good against Alexander Gustafsson, in a bout that no one gave him a chance. Blachowicz managed to tag ‘Gus’ a few times in the first round before falling away as the fight progressed. He did the same against Patrick Cummins, too. Jan beat up Cummins for the entirety of round one before nearly stopping him, but it would be Cummins who came away victorious after winning rounds two and three.
If there’s one thing that Blachowicz has been struggling with, it’s getting back to his feet when he needs to. Unfortunately for Blachowicz, Devin Clark is excellent at timing takedowns and maintaining heavy top pressure. Clark also has the type of pressure and forward momentum that can make a guy like Blachowicz run out of gas quickly.
Ufc
Prediction and Betting Guide
This one seems terribly obvious. Sadly, that’s when we’re probably more likely to be wrong… Clark may lose the first round but he’ll completely overwhelm Blachowicz in round two and three.
Prediction: Devin Clark by decision
Betting on this one is quite straightforward, too. Devin Clark is a moderate favorite and definitely still has plenty of value to his name.
You can find the best odds for a Devin Clark victory at Bet365
Oskar Piechota vs. Jonathan Wilson
Oskar Piechota is one of the most recent Polish fighters to join the UFC. Through ten fights, Piechota has nine wins to his name and one draw. What’s most impressive about Piechota, though, is that he has finished each of his nine victories so far in his career. He’s got that freakish kind of Volkan Oezdemir ower that just knocks people out at first touch.
UFC Fight Night 118 will mark Jonathan Wilson’s drop down to the middleweight division after having previously competed at light heavyweight for years. Wilson suffered losses to Luis Henrique da Silva and Ion Cutelaba in his last two fights, which has blemished his perfect 7-0 start to his career.
Ufc Fight Night 118 Predictions Bleacher Report
Breakdown
We rarely get to see much of Oskar Piechota in one outing, so it’s kind of like putting together a puzzle with many pieces. His most recent fight against Jason Radcliffe featured a scarily sharp counter left hook that knocked out the Cage Warriors champion. One thing, though, is that Piechota is extremely dangerous on the mat and we can’t look too much into his power on the feet.
Yes, he caught Radcliffe and he might be able to find a home for his hands in the same way Oezdemir keeps doing, but opponents will be most threatened by his submission game. There’s not really anywhere safe when you’re in the cage with Piechota, is where we’re getting at here.
If I was to describe Jonathan Wilson in just one word, it would be ‘hesitant’. He never seems to stamp authority on a fight and against Ion Cutelaba he was happy sitting back and waiting for the majority of the contest. The strange thing is, though, when Wilson wants to, he can land extremely damaging combinations. In particular, his mixture of punches and kicks in combination are both unpredictable and painful.
Ufc Fight Night 118
Prediction and Betting Guide
Wilson may be able to string some combinations together and beat up Piechota on the feet, but it’s difficult to measure what kind of Jonathan Wilson we will see at UFC Fight Night 118 after an extended layoff. I’ll take Piechota to win.
Prediction: Oskar Piechota by KO/TKO
Ufc Fight Night 118 Predictions Tonight
Oskar Piechota is a moderate favorite and there’s not a lot of value betting on him, admittedly. The best play here is backing a finish in the first two rounds with total rounds – under 1.5
You can find the best odds for Under 1.5 Rounds at Bet365
Best Bets
Ufc Fight Night 118 Predictions Against
Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Jodie Esquibel
Jodie Esquibel to Win
Saturday, 21st October – 4:00 pm (ET) / 08:00pm (GMT)
Odds: 4.50 – 888Bet
Jan Blachowicz vs. Devin Clark
Devin Clark to Win
Saturday, 21st October – 3:30 pm (ET) / 07:30pm (GMT)
Odds: 1.66 – Bet365
Ufc Fight Night 118 Predictions Bleacher Report
Oskar Piechota vs. Jonathan Wilson
Under 1.5 Rounds
Saturday, 21st October – 3:00 pm (ET) / 07:00pm (GMT)
Odds: 2.00 – Bet365