UFC 314 lands in Miami with the best card of the year so far.
The main event sees Alexander Volkanovski go for a second run at UFC Featherweight gold when he takes on the surging Diego Lopes for the vacant title.
The UK’s Paddy Pimblett gets a prime co-main event spot against veteran Michael Chandler in a fight that is sure to produce fireworks.
UFC 314 Volkanovski vs. Lopes Tips
- Paddy Pimblett to win @ 8/13
- Dominick Reyes to win by KO, TKO or DQ @ 7/2
- Jean Silva to win by KO, TKO or DQ @ 6/5
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Paddy brings the party to Miami
Paddy Pimblett (22-3-0) arrived in the UFC six fights ago with superstar status and that could be taken to the stratosphere if he defeats Michael Chandler (23-9-0).
Unbeaten inside the Octagon, the Liverpool fighter was last seen in July taking out veteran King Green in emphatic fashion by first-round submission.
The 30-year-old has passed each step up in competition and here he takes on another veteran in the explosive Chandler, who has more than entertained in his six-fight run in the UFC.
The former Bellator champion fought for the UFC title in his second fight, coming up short when subbed by Charles Oliveira, who also handed him a five-round decision loss last time out in November.
The 38 year old is 2-4 in the UFC with knockout wins over Dan Hooker and Tony Ferguson, while his other defeats have come at the hands of Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier.
Chandler may have had a better record if he wasn’t so intent on providing wild fights for the fans, often making critical mistakes in pursuit of looking for finishes.
Both have only seen the judges scorecards twice in their six fights each in the UFC, but with this one booked over five rounds, we are unlikely to see the final bell.
There is no doubt this is a dangerous fight for Pimblett, but the 30-year-old has the momentum and skillset to get this one done.
Silva doing the “Lords” work
Jean Silva (15-2-0) looks to get the biggest win of his career to date against controversial Bryce Mitchell (17-2-0).
The self-proclaimed “Lord” Silva has a perfect 4-0 record so far in the UFC, ending all of his fights within the distance.
Westin Wilson (R1 – TKO), Charles Jourdain (R2 – TKO) and Drew Dober (R3 -doctor stoppage) were the Brazilian’s 2024 victims, with the Dober fight coming at Lightweight.
The 28-year-old has already fought this year in Seattle in February, finishing Melsik Baghdasaryan by TKO late in the first round.
Mitchell, who is a grappler, was last seen submitting Kron Gracie in the first round in December.
The 30-year-old had taken twelve months off following a devastating knockout loss to Josh Emmett.
Overall, the American has an 8-2 UFC record, with six of his victories coming via the judges’ scorecards.
The danger for Silva is if he is able to be taken and held down for considerable periods of the fight.
However, a strong performance against Dober at Lightweight, where his takedown defence stood up to zero from four attempts, and the ability to finish Jourdain off the back of a takedown attempt are promising signs, albeit not against true grapplers.
On the feet, Silva will have too much for Mitchell and the Fighting Nerds team member is fancied to get another stoppage win.
Reyes to land early
From the depths of despair after losing four straight fights, Dominick Reyes (14-4-0) could find himself back in the top ten of the Light Heavyweight division if he can defeat Nikita Krylov (30-9-0) at UFC 314.
The records will show that Reyes was Jon Jones’ last 205lb title defence before he decided to vacate to move to Heavyweight, losing a unanimous decision in UFC 247’s Main Event in 2020.
However, the eye test for most that night felt Reyes should’ve had his hand raised and dethroned the consensus “greatest of all time”.
What followed wasn’t pretty; the now 35-year-old was knocked out three times on the spin and sent tumbling down the rankings.
With a series of health issues now sorted, Reyes cleared the mental hurdle of winning a fight by knocking out Dustin Jacoby in the first round last June, before stopping Anthony Smith in the second round at UFC 310 in December.
Krylov has not been seen in two years but comes into this on a three-fight win streak.
A first-round submission against Ryan Spann was his last outing in March 2023, which came off the back of victories over Volkan Oezdemir (dec) and Alexander Gustafsson (R1 TKO).
The Ukrainian brings a high-paced approach to both striking and grappling, as shown by his four TKOs and five submission wins from a total of eleven inside the Octagon.
Although he’s on a win streak it’s hard to gauge where Krylov is at after 24 months away.
The now 32-year-old found early trouble against both Spann and Oezdemir before getting the win and could run into problems if he is tested early against someone with Reyes’s speed and power, especially if there are any signs of ring rust.
Reyes has a strong takedown defence, and if he keeps this standing, he could find the mark and earn a sixth TKO win of his UFC career.
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