Lightweight fighters Islam Makhachev and Thiago Moises look to climb up the UFC rankings when they meet in the main event of the UFC Fight Night Makhachev vs. Moises fight card on Saturday. The main card is scheduled to begin at 10 p.m. ET from the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas. Makhachev is ranked ninth in the UFC lightweight division, while Moises is No. 14. This will be the first meeting between the fighters.
Makhachev is favored at -650 (risk $650 to win $100), while Moises is a +475 underdog in the latest Makhachev vs. Moises odds from William Hill Sportsbook. In the co-main event, women's bantamweights clash when Marion Reneau (+110) takes on Miesha Tate (-130). Before locking in any UFC Fight Night: Makhachev vs. Moises picks or UFC Fight Night predictions, make sure you check out the MMA expert picks from SportsLine's Kyle Marley.
Over the past 28 months, $100 bettors who have followed Marley's picks are up more than $15,000. At UFC 264 last weekend, Marley's winners included Irene Aldana (-120) over Yana Kunitskaya (+100) on the main card. Anyone who has followed Marley is way up.
Now, Marley has made the call on Makhachev vs. Moises and every other matchup on the UFC Fight Night fight card. You should see Marley's UFC Fight Night picks before making any UFC picks and predictions of your own.
Islam Makhachev vs. Thiago Moises expert preview
After being shut down for more than a year, Makhachev continued where he had left off, dominating Drew Dober and picking up a win by submission at 1:37 of the third round at UFC 259 on March 6. It was his seventh consecutive win and second by submission during that stretch. He also has four unanimous decision victories in that stretch.
His lone defeat was by knockout at the 1:46 mark of the first round against Adriano Martins at UFC 192 in October 2015. Makhachev began his career in August 2010 with a unanimous decision win over Magomed Bekbolatov at Tsumada Fighting Championship 4. He went on to win his first 12 matches.
Moises has won three bouts in a row following an August 2019 unanimous decision defeat to Damir Ismagulov at UFC fight Night: Andrade vs. Zhang. Following the loss, he took several months off to regroup. He came back in May 2020 and defeated Michael Johnson by submission at UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Teixeira.
In October of that year, he defeated Bobby Green by unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night: Hall vs. Silva. In February of this year, he won by unanimous decision over Alexander Hernandez at UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gane. Moises, who started his career in May 2012, won nine of his first 10 bouts and is 15-4 in his career. You can see which Islam Makhachev vs. Thiago Moises picks to make for the UFC Fight Night only at SportsLine.
UFC Fight Night: Islam Makhachev vs. Thiago Moises predictions
We'll share one of Marley's UFC Fight Night selections here: He is going with Mateusz Gamrot (-220) to get his hand raised against Jeremy Stephens (+190) in a matchup of lightweight prospects. Gamrot has compiled an 18-1 career mark and is coming off a knockout win over Scott Holtzman this past April. The victory avenged his first career loss, a decision to Guram Kutateladze this past October.
Jeremy Stephens (28-18) is looking to snap a four-bout losing streak with a no-contest sandwiched in between. This will be his first bout in over a year since losing by knockout to Calvin Kattar in May 2020. Stephens, who began his professional career in January 2005, last tasted victory in February 2018, when he defeated Josh Emmett by knockout, earning Performance of the Night.
"I am going to lean with Gamrot in this one because of his wrestling. He is the more well-rounded fighter here and has more ways to win this fight," Marley told SportsLine.
How to make UFC Fight Night: Islam Makhachev vs. Thiago Moises picks
Marley also has strong picks for Thiago Moises vs. Islam Makhachev and every other fight on the UFC Fight Night card. He's also backing a fighter whose wrestling will result in a convincing decision win. You can only get Marley's expert UFC Fight Night picks at SportsLine.
Who wins Makhachev vs. Moises? And how exactly does each fight end? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed picks on every fight at UFC Fight Night, all from the expert who's up more than $15,000 on MMA in the past 28 months, and find out.
UFC Fight Night card, odds
Islam Makhachev (-650) vs. Thiago Moises (+475)
Meisha Tate (-135) vs. Marion Reneau (+115)
Mateusz Gamrot (-220) vs. Jeremy Stephens (+190)
Rodolfo Vieira (-215) vs. Dustin Stoltzfus (+185)
Gabriel Benitez (-170) vs. Billy Quarantillo (+150)
Daniel Rodriguez (-255) vs. Preston Parsons (+215)
Amanda Lemos (-500) vs. Montserrat Ruiz (+400)
Khalid Taha (-165) vs. Sergey Morozov (+145)
Miles Johns (-180) vs. Anderson Dos Santos (+160)
Francisco Figueiredo (-290) vs. Malcolm Gordon (+245)
Rodrigo Nascimento (-340) vs. Alan Baudot (+280)
