UFC 215 Johnson vs. Borg: Picks, Prognostications + Odds

September 9, 2017

Rogers Place

Edmonton, Alberta

     This poor card has had the shit beaten out of it. Junior Dos Santos failed a PED test and was pulled a while ago. And a day before the weigh-ins, Ray Borg has withdrawn with an illness. This card is a disaster and with one of the weaker undercards ever, there is no saving it. It seems the UFC wanted to punish Demetrious Johnson and Amanda Nunes by forcing them to headline a card of never-will-be's, and now we may be looking at one of the least bought PPV's ever! This card would be bad for a UFC Fight Pass event but nevertheless, we struggle on. 

Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson versus #4 Ray Borg has been cancelled. Borg contracted a "viral" illness and was pulled from the card. History, it seems, will have to wait.

Bantamweight Champion Amanda Nunes (14-4) +110 vs. #2 Valentina Shevchenko (14-2) -130 [Re-Rematch]

And here we are yet again a few months after this rematch was supposed to go down but Nunes caught the sniffles the day of the event. Despite how anyone feels about that particular snafu, we are going to try and do the damn thing again.

The "Lioness" seemed like a lovely human being, and MMAFO could not be more supportive of her being the 1st openly gay UFC Champ, but since destroying Miesha Tate and Ronda Rousey, she has taken on an arrogance while seemingly worried more about her grip on the title than the skills that brought her to victory. There is no denying the striking skills of Nunes (who has gone 7-1 for the promotion) as she finished every opponent she has beaten, save for Valentina. Working with ATT has only upped her game and she now has something else to prove to the fans who say she got scurred (sic) and ran away.

For the "Bullet," things have been steadily improving. The "weakness" in her game was supposed to be her ground game and then she faced famed grappler Julianna Pena and defeated her with Jiu-Jitsu just to prove she could. Shevchenko has always been a great striker, coming over from a successful kickboxing career, and she really seems to be finding her comfort zone while keeping in immaculate shape.

It seems as though Shevchenko can withstand the initial barrage from Nunes, and then slowly ramps up the work rate for a come from behind win while becoming the new champion.

WINNER-Valentina Shevchenko by Decision

Francis Ngannou versus Junior Dos Santos has been cancelled as "Cigano" was flagged for a potential PED violation.

Gilbert Melendez (22-6) -110 vs. Jeremy Stephens (25-13) -110

Oh Gil, where did it all go wrong? Well, probably when he was screwed out of the title against Benson Henderson in'13, but we digress. The foray into the UFC has not been good for Melendez as he gained but a single win (against Diego Sanchez) while losing his other 4 efforts. It has been against the most elite competition (and 3 former champs) but then came the heartbreaking PED violation and year long suspension. Now at 35, "El Nino" is exiting his prime but he is still skilled in every area of MMA and has been around the world to see it all.

"Lil Heathen" has been up and down his entire career failing when he reached top tier talent, and doesn't have the best cage awareness. Jeremy has great power in all his striking whether knees or punches, but he's never taken the next step in his career or evolved.

This should be Melendez's bout but based upon how his UFC career has gone, you never know. Giblert (sic-Reebok) has more tools to employ and is the much smarter fighter. "El Nino" puts together enough points to finally get another win in a fun scrap.

WINNER-Gilbert Melendez by Decision

#10 Neil Magny (19-6) +165 vs. Rafael Dos Anjos (26-9) -190

RDA continues his 170 experiment after besting Tarec Saffiedine back in June. Now the former Lightweight Champion looks to stop perennial contender Neil Magny who wants back in the title hunt.

Magny beat the hapless Johny Hendricks last December and then took time off to heal injuries and slow his torrid work pace. Magny has only improved himself so it will be interesting to see what new talents he has honed. Neil has a loooooong steady jab and a massive size advantage.


RDA is stuck in-between worlds. Too big for 155 and too small for 170. This is one of those match ups where Anjos size is going to be a major disadvantage. Magny avoids the leg kicking assault and maybe even sneaks in a trip takedown or two for a sneaky close win.

Upset Pick WINNER-Neil Magny by Decision

#8 Sara McMann (11-3) -270 vs. Ketlen Vieira (8-0) +230

Now this, is the Sara McMann MMAFO expected when she joined the UFC in '13. The Olympian has run off 3 wins in a row with the last 2 being finishes. It seems as though Sara is putting it all together now and at 36 she had to get cracking. The striking is still slow but it has improved, and she always has the great grappling skills and natural power. 

"Fenomeno" is 2-0 in the UFC and undefeated in her pro career. She is absolutely going to get worked by "Momma Mega Arms" who throttles her into oblivion. 

WINNER-Sara McMann by Rd.2 Submission

Ilir Latifi (13-5, 1) +110 vs. Tyson Pedro (6-0) -130

The Aussie lacks experience but he's a prospect for true, but this may be too much too soon. Latifi has more tools and experience as he sledges his way to a win.

Upset Pick WINNER-Ilir Latifi by Decision

#3 Henry Cejudo (10-2) -320 vs. #5 Wilson Reis (22-7) +260

And now we have "Mighty Mouse's" leftovers facing each other in hopes of getting another chance to be embarrassed by Demetrious, again. That's a bit harsh but neither man is going to make the strides necessary to defeat the Flyweight king. 

The other Olympian on the card has found his ceiling. After getting throttled by DJ, Henry lost a close fight against perpetual #2 Joseph Benavidez and he must win here if he's going to stay in the conversation.

Mr. Wilson isn't a bad fighter by any stretch, but he's a grappler facing a foe who is a much better grappler. Its highly doubtful Reis has suddenly developed a dangerous striking game at this point and he'll lose on the cards.

WINNER-Henry Cejudo by Decision

Sarah Moras (4-3) +220 vs. Ashlee Evans-Smith (5-2) -260

Even though AE-S is overrated, Moras isn't setting anything on fire either. The "Rebel Girl" is a vicious G&Per but she lacks experience. Fortunately for her, Sarah is destined to return to the minors sooner rather than later.

WINNER-Ashlee Evans-Smith by Decision

Gavin Tucker (10-0) -300 vs. Rick Glenn (19-4-1) +250

Mad respect to Gavin in taking on the "Guv'nor" nickname (give it a Google if'n you are unaware) and he has to be tough to use that moniker. Tucker will be facing an upright, slow moving Glenn whom he will outwork with a lot of strikes and aggression.

WINNER-Gavin Tucker by Decision

Mitch Clarke (11-4) +175 vs. Alex White (11-3) -210

Mitch is a pretty cool dude in interviews but he's not very athletic and needs takedowns to do his work. Unfortunately, along with his 2-4 UFC record, Clarke has only landed 18% of his takedown attempts. Mitch has moved to the MMA Lab and shown a bit of improvement in his striking but the grappling is his bread and butter.

The Mizzou "Spartan" hasn't fared much better amassing a 2-3 UFC record but he is more of a natural athlete and possesses solid takedown defense. Alex has greatly improved his striking and uses kicks more often than punches. 

This is tough to pick as both men just aren't that impressive fighters and will never compete in the elite levels of the 155ers. We side with the lefty White to gain more points in what could be a slow burn of a fight.

WINNER-Alex White by Decision

Luis Henrique da Oliveira (10-3, 1) +160 vs. Arjan Bhullar (6-0) -185

Watch for WWE Champion Jinder Mahal to escort fellow Indian-Canadian Bhullar to the cage which is interesting. Arjan is a wrestler's wrestler who has competed everywhere including the Olympics. Arjan is solid but he lacks experience against any decent level of competition.

"KLB" is a big man who throws wild and gasses out about 0:15 into every fight. He's a banger but not much else and when Bhullar takes him to the ground, he'll grind him out via exhaustion.

WINNER-Arjan Bhullar by Rd.2 TKO

Kajan Johnson (21-12-1) +385 vs. Adriano Martins (28-8) -485

ATT's Martins is a large favorite for a reason here. Adriano is the better fighter everywhere and Johnson's entire body has seemingly been shattered with numerous injuries and put back together. Its just not a good combo.

WINNER-Adriano Martins by Rd.1 TKO