FC action returns to the APEX Facility in Las Vegas, Nevada this weekend for UFC Vegas 48. This event was supposed to be headlined by former UFC lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos and Rafael Fiziev but the latter encountered visa problems forcing the bout to be rescheduled.
Ultimately, the co-main event between Johnny Walker and Jamahal Hill was promoted to main event status while the catchweight bout between Kyle Daukaus and Jamie Pickett is now the co-main event. Veteran Jim Miller and Nikolas Motta are also scheduled to meet at the event while Joaquin Buckley and Abdul Razak Alhassan will open the main card.
Before the big bouts happen though, an interesting prelims undercard with veterans and newcomers is expected to spice up the event.
Let’s take a look at the UFC Vegas 48 prelims undercard bouts and make our predictions.
Gabriel Benitez is a former featherweight champion at Xplode Fight Series, Xtreme Fighters Latino, Xtreme Combat, and Ultimate Warrior Challenge promotions in Mexico. The 33-year old joined the UFC in 2014 and started his Octagon career with a 5-2 record. However, Benitez has lost three out of his last four bouts and is coming off a knockout loss to Billy Quarantillo.
Benitez has a record of 22-9 with 8 knockouts and 10 submission losses. He is a southpaw who stands 5-8 tall with a reach of 71 inches.
David Onama fought under the Cageside Promotions and Fighting Alliance Championship. The 27-year old from Kansas City, Missouri is a former FAC champion, beating Brad Robison via first round knockout last October. He joined the UFC right after that win but suffered a decision loss to Mason Jones in his UFC debut.
The loss to Jones was the first of Onama’s career. He has a record of 8-1 with five knockouts and three submission victories. Obama stands 5-11 tall with a reach of 74 inches and is an orthodox fighter.
Benitez is one of the hardest kickers in the division and he is capable of creating violence inside the Octagon. However, his loss to Quarantillo was an eye-opener. Quarantillo was able to penetrate his defense very easily and was able to land big shots without much resistance. Quarantillo even dropped Benitiez which raises questions on his durability.
Those will not work against Onama who possesses serious knockout power. Benitez will need to keep his taller and longer opponent on the outside using his kicks and that won’t be easy to do if Onama closes the distance. Benitez will try to keep Onama off with his kicks while the latter will try to set up the KO with his lethal jab. I think this will be competitive early on but once Onama drops that big right hand, it’s game over.
Prediction: David Onama
Jessica-Rose Clark started her MMA career in the regional promotions in Australia and won the XFC Australia bantamweight and Roshambo MMA bantamweight titles. The 34-yea old from Cairns, Australia also fought under Invicta FC before joining the UFC in 2017. She is 4-2 in six UFC bouts and heads to this event after defeating Joselyne Edwards via unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 41 last October 23, 2021.
Clark has a record of 11-6 with three knockouts and two submission victories. She stands 5-5 tall with a reach of 64 inches and fights out of the orthodox stance.
Stephanie Egger is a former U23 European Judo champion who also won a pair of European ADCC grappling titles. The 33-year old from St. Gallen, Switzerland is 6-2 with three knockouts and two submission victories. She stands 5-6 tall with a reach of 68 inches and fights out of the orthodox stance.
Clark loves to grind opponents to victory and that should be key against Egger who is vulnerable to getting taken down to the mat despite her judo pedigree. However, if Clark gets too predictable, Egger has the tools to throw here around while trying to work against the fence.
But Clark not only has the experience but she also has never been finished. I think that Clark will be able to power through tough situations and grind out Egger from the guard. I expect Clark’s wrestling to carry her to victory here.
Prediction: Jessica-Rose Clark
Chas Skelly is a veteran who competed under Bellator MMA and Legacy Fighting Championships. The 36-year old from Bedford, Texas joined the UFC in 2014. After losing his UFC debut against Mirsad Bektik, Skelly won four consecutive bouts before losing to Darren Elkins. Including the Elkins loss, Skelly is just 3-2 with one no-contest. In his last bout, Skelly defeated Jordan Griffin via unanimous decision in September 2019.
Skelly has a record of 18-3 with three knockouts and 10 submission wins. He is 5-11 tall with a reach of 72 inches and fights out of the orthodox stance.
Mark Striegl is a veteran of Total Combat, Pro Fighting, URCC, Legend FC, PXC, and ONE Championships in Asia before coming over to the UFC in 2020. Striegl has fought only once under the promotion, losing to Said Nurmagomedov via KO at UFC Fight Night 180 in Oct. 2020.
Streigl has a record of 18-3 with 14 submission wins. The 33-year old from Baguio City in the Philippines is a southpaw who is 5-8 tall with a reach of 70 inches.
Both these fighters rely heavily on wrestling and cardio but between the two, Skelly is superior to Striegl in every facet of the fight game. Without the striking ability and pace to put the pressure on Skelly, Striegl will be at the mercy of his opponent here.
Skelly is the more proven fighter and is the more effective fighter on the ground. Obviously, his long layoff is a cause of concern but I don’t think his gas tank will be any much different. Even if his time away from the Octagon has drained his gas tank, I think he will still have more left than what Striegl has. It’s going to be competitive early but Skelly takes over after round one.
Prediction: Chas Kelly
Diana Belbita is a former world and European kempo champion. She was also a title challenger at KSW, RXF, and Superior FC but never won the belt. The 25-year old from Romania joined the UFC in 2019 but lost her first two bouts against Molly McCann and Liana Jouja. In her most recent fight, however, Belbita defeated Hannah Goldy last July 24 in her strawweight debut.
Belbita is 14-6 with six knockouts and four submission victories. She is 5-7 tall with a reach of 68 inches and is an orthodox fighter.
Gloria de Paula is a veteran of Batalha MMA, Thunder Fight, Max Fight, and Standout Fighting Tournament before she joined the Contender Series in 2020 where she defeated Pauline Macias to earn a UFC contract. De Paula is 0-2 in the UFC with losses to Jinh Yu Frey and Cheyanne Vlismas.
De Paula is 5-4 with three wins by way of knockout. She is 5-5 tall with a reach of 67 inches and is an orthodox fighter.
This is a stylistic matchup that seems to favor DePaula. The Brazilian is the far more technical striker between the two and if Belbita can’t push the action and dictate the tempo of this bout, she will be at the mercy of De Paula’s counters and dominating clinch game.
Belbita’s chance will be to pressure De Paula as we’ve seen the Brazilian succumb to pressure fighters in the past. However, I think that De Paula will be busier than Belbita and she is going to land the more telling blows that will earn the judges’ nod.
Prediction: Gloria de Paula.
Jonathan Pearce began his career at Evolution Combat Sports Series, Valor Fights, Shogun Fights, APEX Fights, Warriors FC before joining the Contender Series in 2019 where he scored a knockout of Jacon Rosales that earned him his UFC contract. Peare lost to veteran Joe Lauzon in his UFC debut but has since bounced back with wins over Kai Kamaka III and Omar Morales.
Pearce is 11-4 with 8 knockouts and two submission wins. He is a switch hitter who stands 6-1 tall with a reach of 71 inches.
Christian Rodriguez made appearances for Bellator MMA, LFA, and Cage Fury Fighting Championships before appearing in the Contender Series where he defeated Reyes Cortez Jr. via unanimous decision. The win earned Rodriguez his UFC contract and he will be making his UFC debut in this bout.
Rodriguez is 5-7 tall with a reach of 71 inches and fights out of the orthodox stance. He has a record of 7-0 with three knockouts and three submission wins.
Rodriguez has slick striking and his powerful hands make him a dangerous opponent. However, those may not be enough against Pearce who has the ability to tie up Rodriguez and put him against the fence.
No question, Rodriguez is skilled and has plenty of potentials. However, it’s hard to imagine him dominating against someone like Pearce who suffocates his opponents, especially this one which he took on short notice. Pearce applies the pressure, takes Rodriguez to the ground, and grinds him to victory or ends up submitting his opponent. Either way, it’s going to be Pearce.
Prediction: Jonathan Pearce
Mario Bautista is a veteran of Tachi Palace Place and Smash Global. He also made appearances for LFA and Combat Americas before joining the UFC in 2019. After losing his UFC debut against Cory Sandhagen, he beat Jin Soo Son and Miles Johns in succession before losing to Trevin Jones via KO in his last bout.
Bautista is 8-2 with three knockouts and three submission victories. He is 5-9 tall with a reach of 69 inches and is an orthodox fighter.
Jay Perrin fought under Bellator, NEF, CZ, CES, and Cage Titans FC. He appeared in the Contender Series in 2019 where he lost on points to Dwight Joseph. The 28-year old from Hudson, New Hampshire in the USA will be making his UFC debut in this bout. HE is 7-1 in his last eight bouts.
Perrin has a record of 0-4 with two knockouts and four submission wins. He is a switch hitter who is 5-7 tall with a reach of 67 inches.
Perrin is allergic to long-range kicks to the legs and that’s something that Bautista loves to throw. Taha’s straightforward boxing also leaves him open to being countered, and Bautista has nice timing on his counters. Perrin though isn’t short on power and we’ve seen Bautista throw away everything after getting drilled so don’t count Perrin out here.
However, Bautista’s length will give him the ability to hurt Perrin both at range and close distance. If Bautista can stay focused for 15 minutes, he can get the job done, and I’m confident he will. Bautista outpoints Perrin while staying away from his big punches.
Prediction: Mario Bautista
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