Picking & Grinning: UFC Fight Night ‘Dos Anjos vs. Ferguson’

The margin for error has grown narrow for Rafael dos Anjos and Tony Ferguson, as they jockey for position near the top of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s deepest weight class.

The two lightweights will collide in the UFC Fight Night 98 main event on Saturday at Mexico City Arena in Mexico City, the victor perhaps emerging as the No. 1 contender at 155 pounds. Meanwhile, “The Ultimate Fighter 1” winner Diego Sanchez meets Bellator MMA crossover Marcin Held in the lightweight co-main event. The rest of the six-fight main draw features a catchweight clash matching Ricardo Lamas with Charles Oliveira, a women’s strawweight affair pitting the unbeaten Alexa Grasso against Heather Clark and a pair of lightweight tilts, as Beneil Dariush takes on Rashid Magomedov and Martin Bravo locks horns with Claudio Puelles.

Ahead of UFC Fight Night “Dos Anjos vs. Ferguson,” members of the Sherdog.com staff swallowed their pride and put their reputations on the line with bold predictions:

STANDINGS

Tristen Critchfield (92-54-3)
Jordan Breen (90-56-3)
Mike Fridley (89-57-3)
Brian Knapp (85-61-3)
Mike Sloan (85-61-3)

THE LINEUP

155: Rafael dos Anjos (25-8) vs. Tony Ferguson (21-3)
155: Diego Sanchez (26-9) vs. Marcin Held (22-4)
155: Ricardo Lamas (16-5) vs. Charles Oliveira (21-6)
155: Martin Bravo (10-0) vs. Claudio Puelles (7-1)
155: Beneil Dariush (13-2) vs. Rashid Magomedov (19-1)
115: Alexa Grasso (8-0) vs. Heather Clark (7-5)
135: Erik Perez (16-6) vs. Felipe Arantes (18-7-1)
140: Marco Beltran (8-3) vs. Joe Soto (16-5)
170: Erick Montano (7-4) vs. Max Griffin (12-3)
135: Enrique Briones (16-5-1) vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade (23-1)
185: Sam Alvey (28-8) vs. Alex Nicholson (7-2)
155: Marco Polo Reyes (6-3) vs. Jason Novelli (11-2-1)
145: Enrique Barzola (11-3-1) vs. Chris Avila (5-3)

THE PICKS

Tristen Critchfield: Ferguson, Held, Lamas, Bravo, Magomedov, Grasso, Perez, Beltran, Griffin, Briones, Alvey, Reyes, Barzola

Jordan Breen: Dos Anjos, Held, Lamas, Bravo, Dariush, Grasso, Perez, Soto, Griffin, Andrade, Alvey, Reyes, Barzola

Mike Fridley: Dos Anjos, Sanchez, Oliveira, Bravo, Magomedov, Grasso, Arantes, Soto, Griffin, Andrade, Alvey, Novelli, Barzola

Brian Knapp (85-61-3): Dos Anjos, Sanchez, Oliveira, Bravo, Magomedov, Grasso, Perez, Soto, Griffin, Andrade, Alvey, Reyes, Barzola

Mike Sloan: Dos Anjos, Held, Lamas, Bravo, Magomedov, Grasso, Perez, Soto, Montano, Andrade, Alvey, Novelli, Barzola