UFC Fight Night: Oban Elliott vs Michael Oliveira Preview & Prediction
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A welterweight bout on the card sees the Welsh Oban Elliott attempt to halt his slide against undefeated Brazilian powerhouse debutant Michael Oliveira.
Oban Elliott vs Michael Oliveira facts
What time are Oban Elliott and Michael Oliveira expected to walk out?
Where is UFC Fight Night: Medic vs Rodriguez? Belgrade Arena, Belgrade, Serbia
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Night: Medic vs Rodriguez? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC Fight Night 283
What TV channel is UFC Fight Night: Medic vs Rodriguez on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – Paramount
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night: Medic vs Rodriguez? UK – TNT Sports can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and HBO Max / USA – Paramount+ & UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Night: Medic vs Rodriguez main card
Uros Medic vs Daniel Rodriguez (Welterweight)
Jan Blachowicz vs Navajo Stirling (Light Heavyweight)
Aleksandar Rakic vs Marcin Tybura (Heavyweight)
Dusko Todorovic vs Robert Valentin (Middleweight)
Vlasto Cepo vs Gilbert Urbina (Middleweight)
Milos Janicic vs Noah Gugnon (Lightweight)
UFC Fight Night: Medic vs Rodriguez prelims
Ludovit Klein vs Tofiq Musayev (Lightweight)
Oban Elliott vs Michael Oliveira (Welterweight)
Borislav Nikolic vs Mark Vologdin (Bantamweight)
Dennis Buzukja vs Bogdan Grad (Featherweight)
Mateusz Rebecki vs Kyle Prepolec (Lightweight)
Nina Milosevic vs Hailey Cowan (Women’s Bantamweight)
Jovan Leka vs Alexander Poppeck (Heavyweight)
Marina Spasic vs Stephanie Luciano (Women’s Strawweight)
Oban Elliott: “The Welsh Gangster” looking to bounce back
Oban Elliott (12-4) started his UFC run going 3-0, capping it with a third-round knockout of Bassil Hafez at UFC 309 that earned Performance of the Night. Everything has gone sideways since. He was outclassed by Seok Hyeon Ko on the Korean’s debut while sitting as a favourite, conceding multiple takedowns and being controlled dominantly, then Jonathan Micallef choked him out in round two at UFC 325. The 28-year-old is a disciplined pressure boxer who cuts the cage and does good work in the clinch with knees, he wins through accumulation of strikes rather than one punch power.
Michael Oliveira: Brazilian powerhouse brings a perfect record to his debut
Michael Oliveira (9-0) has knocked out eight of his nine opponents, six of them inside the first round. Raised in Rocinha and a Brazilian Army paratrooper for eight years, the 28-year-old earned his contract last October, dropping Victor Valenzuela with a clean left on the Contender Series. At 6’1” with a 78 inch reach, he is big for the division, and he’s a physical, cage-cutting pressure striker who does most of his damage with his hands. The ground game however, remains relatively unknown.
Oban Elliott vs Michael Oliveira prediction
Elliott will try make this a grappling fight, because that’s the one place that Oliveira carries the question mark. We’ve not seen the Brazilian tested on the mat and we don’t know how he will respond off his back. If Elliott drags him down, we could see a potential upset. The problem is that Elliott doesn’t appear to be that fighter anymore, he went 0-2 for takedowns against Ko and his last two defeats were lost on the ground rather than won there.
Getting Oliveira down could be a difficult job. He is physically strong with good takedown defence, he pressures forwards so you’re shooting while retreating, and he also doesn’t leap into his entries, there’s no obvious moment to time a takedown against him. Patient pressure is a nightmare to wrestle.
On the feet the matchup is lopsided. Oliveira is the bigger, longer, more damaging fighter by quite a bit it seems, six inches of reach in a boxing match is a lot to give away. Elliott has been stopped on the feet twice already, both against regional opponents nowhere near as dangerous, so the outcome should write itself here.
Prediction: Michael Oliveira to win by KO/TKO
