UFC Vegas 88 predictions: Late ‘Prelims’ undercard preview | Tuivasa vs. Tybura

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to its APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, this weekend (Sat., March 16, 2024) for its latest “Fight Night”-themed event, which sees struggling Heavyweight, Tai Tuivasa, look to snap a three-fight losing streak against Marcin Tybura in the ESPN+-streamed main event. UFC Vegas 88’s co-feature pits Bryan Battle vs. Ange Loosa, while Christian Rodriguez moves to 145 pounds after a pair of blown weight cuts to face undefeated prospect, Isaac Dulgarian.

Three UFC Vegas 88 “Prelims” undercard bouts remain (checkout the first batch here). Shall we have a look?

155 lbs.: Natan Levy vs. Mike Davis

Natan Levy (8-1) capped off a perfect (6-0) professional start by dominating Shaheen Santana on Contender Series to earn a UFC contract. Though “Lethal” fell to Rafa Garcia in his Octagon debut, he’s since bounced back with wins over fellow Contender Series veterans Mike Breeden and Genaro Valdez.

This marks his first bout in 15 months.

Less than one year after falling to Sodiq Yusuff on Contender Series, Mike Davis (10-2) stepped up on short notice to battle Gilbert Burns in the Octagon, only to suffer a second round submission loss to “Durinho” (watch highlights). He has since amassed three wins in the past five years, the most recent of them a decision over Viacheslav Borshchev in Oct. 2022.

Seven of his eight professional finishes have come via knockout.

Davis’ inactivity and occasional tendency to take his foot off the gas are worrying, but I can’t see him losing to “Lethal.” Levy is less than the sum of his parts — someone with his wrestling chops and versatile kicking game shouldn’t be dropping rounds to bottom-feeders like Breeden and Valdez. Against a vicious striker like Davis — who also boasts the takedown skills to recreate Levy’s loss to Garcia — he’s short on options.

So long as Davis is firing on all cylinders and didn’t pick up some horrific unreported injury during his stint on the sidelines, he’s better than Levy wherever the fight goes. In the end, expect one-way traffic en route to a sweep on the scorecards.

Prediction: Davis def. Levy via unanimous decision

135 lbs.: Josiane Nunes vs. Chelsea Chandler

Undeterred by a loss to Taila Santos in her second professional bout, Josiane Nunes (10-1) rode a six-fight win streak into her UFC debut and promptly made it seven with a first round knockout of Bea Malecki (see it). Her two fights since have seen her take home decision wins over Ramona Pascual and Zarah Fairn.

“Josi” fights for the first time in 14 months.

Chelsea Chandler (5-2) followed her 4-1 stint in Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) by mauling Julija Stoliarenko in her 2022 UFC debut. Then came Norma Dumont, who out-classed Chandler en route to a unanimous decision win.

She stands six inches taller than Nunes at 5’8.”

The biggest question for me is whether Chandler can actually juice herself down to 135 pounds. She didn’t seem to be carrying much extra weight 10 pounds north — and as limited as Nunes is — Chandler does not want to deal with that overhand left while compromised.

If she pulls off the cut, though, it should be smooth sailing. Nunes is an extremely one-dimensional slugger who benefitted from facing some of the worst UFC fighters of the modern era. Chandler’s size, power and vicious body attack give her a noteworthy edge on the feet and her ground-and-pound will ruin Nunes’ day if and when she gets on top. Expect her to out-bully the bully, ultimately muscling Nunes to the mat and raining down punches for her second UFC finish.

Prediction: Chandler via second round technical knockout

125 lbs.: Jafel Filho vs. Ode Osbourne

Jafel Filho (15-3) knocked out unbeaten Roybert Echeverria on Contender Series to earn a UFC debut against Muhammed Mokaev, which saw Filho severely damage Mokaev’s knee, but ultimately succumb to a comeback submission (watch it). “Pastor” then survived an opening-minute disaster to choke out Daniel Barez four months later and up his recent record to 6-1.

His professional finishes are split 9:5 between submissions and knockouts.

Ode Osbourne (12-6) punched his UFC ticket with a first-round armbar of Armando Villareal on Contender Series, only to drop two of his first three in the cage. He got back on track with a 3-1 run, but succumbed to Asu Almabayev’s grappling assault his last time out.

He’ll enjoy a 4.5-inch reach advantage.

I try not to get reductive in my analysis, but Osbourne’s complete inability to deal with Almabayev’s ground game has me questioning his chances against a top-notch Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist like Filho. Though Osbourne has the edge on the feet, Filho showed remarkable resilience against Daniel Barez’s early blitz, meaning “The Jamaican Sensation” is unlikely to put him down before “Pastor” wraps him up and puts him through the wringer.

Osbourne has never quite managed to organize his impressive physical attributes and grab-bag of skills into consistent success. Filho’s more focused approach figures to pay dividends as he takes down Osbourne in the opening minutes and works him over until Osbourne gives up his neck.

Prediction: Filho via first round submission

I mean, the carriage had to turn back into a pumpkin after UFC 299 last weekend, but the pumpkin didn’t have to be rotten. See you Saturday, Maniacs.

Current Prediction Record for 2024: 38-17

LIVE! Stream UFC Vegas 88 On ESPN+

HEAVYWEIGHT HOEDOWN! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to its APEX venue in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sat., March 16, 2024, with a titanic tilt between Australian power puncher and master of the Shoey, Tai Tuivasa (14-6), and longtime 265-pound keeper of gates, Marcin Tybura (24-8), across five rounds of heavyweight action. In UFC Vegas 88’s ESPN+-streamed co-main event, Tar Heel “Butcher” Bryan Battle (10-2) looks to win his third straight at the expense of Congo “Ninja” Ange Loosa (10-3) in a high-stakes Welterweight scrap.

Don’t miss a single second of face-punching action!

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 88 fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance (also on ESPN+) at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 88: “Tuivasa vs. Tybura” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.