Jose Aldo vs Merab Dvalishvili Pick, 8/20/2022 Predictions UFC 278 Odds

Jose Aldo vs Merab Dvalishvili

UFC 278

Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, UT

Saturday, August 20, 2022

Jose Aldo will enter the Octagon with Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278 on Saturday, August 20, 2022. The opening moneyline has Aldo at +105 while Dvalishvili is priced at -125.

Jose Aldo walks into the cage with a mark of 31-7-0. The 35-year-old will fight at 135 lbs and comes in at 5'7". The orthodox fighter has a reach of 70". Merab "The Machine" Dvalishvili comes in at 5'6" and is fighting at 135 lbs. The orthodox fighter looks to add a win to his total of 14-4-0. The 31-year-old has a reach of 68". Concerning significant strikes, Jose Aldo is landing 3.61 per minute while Merab Dvalishvili is landing 4.26 significant strikes per minute. Aldo is connecting on 46% of the significant strikes he throws while Dvalishvili connects on 41%. In terms of defending themselves, Aldo takes 3.74 significant strikes per min and "The Machine" absorbs 2.28. Aldo also prevents 60% of the significant strikes that are thrown his way while Dvalishvili thwarts 60% of them.

In the grappling category, Jose Aldo is not as effective of a grappler as he takes his opponents to the mat 0.51 times per 15 minutes. Aldo is finishing his takedown attempts on 54% of his tries and is defending 90% of the takedowns his opponents attempt. Dvalishvili is finishing his takedown tries on 45% of his takedown attempts and stopping 78% of all takedowns attempted on him. Regarding going for the sub, Aldo is the less likely of the two fighters to go for the finish by attempting 0.2 submissions per 15 min while Dvalishvili tries 0.3 submissions per 15 minutes.

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In his last appearance in the Octagon, Jose Aldo squared up with Rob Font and ended up getting the victory in the fight via unanimous decision in round 5. Font landed 193 of 350 total strikes that he threw in that contest. Aldo walked away from this fight having landed 96 of 172 total strikes. In the category of significant strikes, Font ended up landing 149 of 305, which gave him a percentage of 48%. He ended up landing 94 of 238 significant strikes to the head. Statistically, Aldo ended up landing 53% of the significant strikes he threw by landing 86 of 161. Of all the significant strikes, he was 57 of 129 pointed at the head. 90% of the significant strikes connected on by Font and 87% of them landed by Aldo were done at distance.

In the last bout for Merab Dvalishvili, he squared up with Marlon Moraes and ended up getting the victory in the fight by way of a punch to the head while on the ground in round 2. Moraes landed 72% of the significant strikes he attempted at distance while Dvalishvili ended up landing 17% of the significant strikes he attempted at distance. Dvalishvili landed 63% of the significant strikes he attempted by connecting on 69 of 109. He ended up connecting on 63 of 101 significant strikes directed at the head. Moraes connected on 29 of 44 significant strikes in that battle. Out of those significant strikes, he connected on 23 of 36 directed at the head. In relation to total strikes attempted in that contest, Moraes ended up landing 34 of 49 and Dvalishvili landed 246 of 307 of all the strikes he attempted.

Other bouts to watch

Another bout that you're not going to want to miss is when Marcin Tybura faces off with Alexandr Romanov. Tybura walks into the cage holding a record of 22-7-0. The 36-year-old weighs in at 249 lbs and stands in at 6'3". The orthodox fighter stretches 78". Romanov comes in at 6'2" and weighs 262 lbs. The southpaw fighter looks to add a victory to his record of 16-0-0. The 31-year-old extends his reach 75". In terms of takedowns, Marcin Tybura gets his opposition to the mat 1.54 times per 15 minutes and Alexandr Romanov takes his opponents down 6.46 times per 3 rounds. Regarding striking, Tybura tags his opponents 3.65 strikes/minute and is connecting on 49% of the strikes that he throws. On the other side of the cage you've got Alexandr Romanov, who tags the opposition on 52% of the strikes he has attempted and is connecting on 4.23 per min.

One more can't miss bout is when Harry Hunsucker is set to take on Tyson Pedro. Pedro looks to add a victory to his record of 8-3-0. The 30-year-old tips the scales at 205 lbs and comes in at 6'3". The orthodox fighter extends his reach 79". Hunsucker measures 6'2" and steps on the scale at 205 lbs. The orthodox fighter has a career mark of 7-5-0. The 33-year-old has a reach of 75". In terms of wrestling, Tyson Pedro deflects 52% of the takedowns fighters have attempted and is finishing his takedown attempts on 25% of his tries. Hunsucker is taking his opponents to the mat on 15% of the attempts he tries and is able to curb 15% of all takedown attempts. In the matter of striking, Pedro takes 2.36 strikes/min while he is connecting on 2.89 strikes per min. Hunsucker, in contrast, is taking 6.70 strikes/minute and is landing 3.83 per min.

Who will win tonight's UFC match against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take Jose Aldo (+105)

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