like Burns, losing to Malott could induce an existential crisis.<\/a> Just win, Buck.<\/p>\nIn the co-main event, Erin Blanchfield and Jasmine Jasudavicius battle for a flyweight title shot\u2026 or do they? Presumably, Valentina Shevchenko gets the chance to regain the belt she never lost in the cage whenever she\u2019s ready to return, but if she takes too long, the door might be open for either Blanchfield or Jasudavicius to challenge Natalia Silva. There\u2019s also the possibility one of the co-headliners puts on such a convincing performance, they can simply wait for the Silva-Shevchenko winner.<\/p>\n
If that turns out to be Jasudavicius, maybe she\u2019s the Canadian championship hopeful we should be focusing on.<\/p>\n
Where: Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada<\/p>\n
When: Saturday, Oct. 17. The seven-fight preliminary card begins at 5 p.m. ET on Paramount+, followed by a six-fight main card at 8 p.m. ET also on Paramount+.<\/p>\n
Joaquin Buckley (14) vs. Mike Malott<\/p>\n
I know what we\u2019re all thinking: Remember when Mike Malott completely flamed out against Neil Magny?<\/p>\n
That was an eye-opening loss for Malott and I genuinely believe he learned a ton from that result. Isn\u2019t that what fighters like Magny are for? To expose one\u2019s weaknesses in the hopes that they can be fixed? So far, so good for Malott, who has won four straight since that disappointing night in Toronto.<\/p>\n
Malott knows how to win ugly and in a fight with Joaquin Buckley that could potentially go the full 25 minutes, he might have to. He knows his way around a takedown and his best bet is to do a passable impression of Sean Brady and Kamaru Usman, which is easier said than done. He\u2019s a threat in the standup as well, but that\u2019s not a game he\u2019ll want to play for too long given Buckley\u2019s history of highlights.<\/p>\n
Even if Malott goes full wrestler, it\u2019s not as if Buckley is completely useless against wrestlers. He\u2019s won a number of fights where he\u2019s managed to sprawl and brawl his way to victory and if Malott\u2019s gas tank is drained early by a few failed attempts, he\u2019ll be a sitting duck for Buckley in the championship rounds.<\/p>\n
So back to the whole Magny thing. Malott has gone the distance twice since then, and almost a third time against Gilbert Burns. But the question remains whether he can go a hard five rounds. We find out Saturday and sorry to \u201cThe Maple Leaf Militia,\u201d you might not like the answer.<\/p>\n
Erin Blanchfield (5, P4P-9) vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius (9, P4P-19)<\/p>\n
I fully expect one of these fighters to make a statement that allows them to sit and wait for a title shot, and that fighter is Erin Blanchfield.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve seen \u201cCold Blooded\u201d grow up in the cage, from her days as a blue-chip prospect in Invicta FC to her undeniably successful UFC run that has seen her lose just once. Her powerful grappling gets all the attention, but she\u2019s improved her striking to the point that she could win a scrap with Jasmine Jasudavicius if it goes that way.<\/p>\n
You can be sure Jasudavicius won\u2019t hesitate to push the action, which only makes me more confident that this matchup brings out the best in Blanchfield. Jasudavicius won\u2019t settle for being neutralized, she\u2019ll fight to the bitter end, and that means she will force Blanchfield to match her aggression. It also means Blanchfield should find openings to go for the kill.<\/p>\n
Blanchfield sets the tone early with some well-timed takedowns and pulls away in Round 2, becoming the first woman to submit Jasudavicius.<\/p>\n
Kyle Nelson vs. Cristian Perez<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve written ad nauseam about how Kyle Nelson is a classic spoiler, but only because it\u2019s true. He doesn\u2019t always pull off the upset, but there was a stretch there where he went 3-0-1 as an underdog with three of those wins coming at +200 or worse. Obviously, never bet on MMA\u2026 but if you must, Nelson is always a fun option, especially against a fighter making their UFC debut.<\/p>\n
Perez is slick on the feet, with the kind of agility and flexibility that allows him to wrap a leg around an opponent\u2019s head in the blink of an eye. He loves to come forward with kicks and combinations, with defense a secondary concern. He\u2019s also not afraid to get into a gnarly fight, though that\u2019s where Nelson could turn this fight on its head. Experience can be an excellent counter to raw talent.<\/p>\n
Nelson\u2019s chin can get cracked, so there\u2019s a real chance Perez dusts him before the halfway point of Round 1. But if he doesn\u2019t, Nelson can take him into the kinds of deep waters many a UFC first-timer has drowned in. I\u2019m taking \u201cThe Monster\u201d by decision.<\/p>\n
Marc-Andre Barriault vs. Kyle Daukaus<\/p>\n
Chef\u2019s kiss to this fine piece of matchmaking.<\/p>\n
Kyle Daukaus is coming off of the biggest opportunity of his career, and while his UFC White House experience ended in under a round, at least this grinder got his well-deserved moment in the spotlight. Now he can go back to doing what he does best: taking on other middleweighty middleweights.<\/p>\n
Once upon a time, Marc-Andre Barriault was a promising prospect coming out of Canada\u2019s famed TKO MMA promotion. His contender hopes never quite materialized, but he\u2019s found his niche as a hard-hitting veteran that doesn\u2019t know when to quit. He\u2019s won three straight performance bonuses and could easily snag another dancing with Daukaus.<\/p>\n
Barriault\u2019s grappling defense will be tested and I don\u2019t see him having much of an answer for Daukaus, despite some decent submission defense. My expectation is Daukaus will throw hands early, then get back to his bread and butter and cap off the opening round by choking Barriault out.<\/p>\n
Louis Jourdain vs. Timmy Cuamba<\/p>\n
Louis Jourdain doesn\u2019t have quite the arsenal of his brother Charles, but he\u2019s no less dangerous on the ground and on the feet. He fights with a certain calmness, which allows him to capitalize on mistakes while staying defensively sound. That latter trait is a good one to have for a UFC debutant, most of whom know how to chase finishes but typically at the expense of their well-being.<\/p>\n
Timmy Cuamba is a notch above the kind of competition Jourdain faced on the Canadian regional scene, but he does fall in the defensively suspect category. And if Jourdain decides to turn this into a grappling contest, that\u2019s even worse. Cuamba\u2019s best chance here is to brawl, though even then, Jourdain likely has the advantage.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m expecting an entertaining back-and-forth fight, with Jourdain taking the decision.<\/p>\n
Mandel Nallo vs. Nate Landwehr<\/p>\n
Love that we\u2019re getting Mandel Nallo vs. Nate Landwehr. A little sad that we might have already seen the best these warriors have to offer.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, we always approve of age-appropriate matchmaking, especially when it involves two dudes known for proper punch-outs and standup wars. Nallo never goes to the cards and Landwehr always goes in there throwing hammers, so this is going to be awesome for as long as it lasts.<\/p>\n
It pains me to say it, but Landwehr\u2019s once sturdy chin is no more, and while I\u2019m sure he\u2019ll be as fearless as ever going toe-to-toe with Nallo, that\u2019s just not going to end well for him. Nallo keeps his 100 percent finish rate intact with another highlight-reel knockout.<\/p>\n
Jhonata Diniz def. Tanner Boser<\/p>\n
Nick Galanti def. Julien Leblanc<\/p>\n
Javad Mahjoub def. Joel Faglier<\/p>\n
Katlyn Cerminara def. Mackenzie Stiller<\/p>\n
Steven Koslow def. Chad Anheliger<\/p>\n
Melissa Croden def. Chelsea Chandler<\/p>\n
Cody Chovancek def. SuYoung You<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Mike Malott mission remains on track. Whether you believe Malott is The Next Great Canadian Hope or…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":931558,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[570],"tags":[64,63,786,1347,785,85,787,1396],"class_list":["post-931557","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mma","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-fighting","tag-latest-news","tag-mma","tag-sports","tag-ufc","tag-ufc-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/931557","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=931557"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/931557\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/931558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=931557"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=931557"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=931557"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}