Tomorrow night on the main card of UFC 307, we are going to see a big time matchup in the bantamweight division. A spot in the top ten is on the line as former featherweight champion and tenth ranked Jose Aldo (32-8) takes on eleventh ranked Mario Bautista (14-2).
The King of Rio retired from the octagon back in 2022 after he lost a decision to Merab Dvalishvili. However, he decided to make a comeback earlier this year and took on Jonathan Martinez in Rio at UFC 301. In that fight, Aldo showed he still had plenty of fight left in the tank as he won a decision against the rising contender. Now, he’ll have to defeat another one in Mario Bautista.
Mario Bautista comes into this fight riding a six-fight win streak. In his last fight back in January, he defeated Ricky Simon by decision. He continues to improve with each performance. After losing his octagon debut against Cory Sandhagen, he’s gone 8-1 in his last nine and he’s looking to step up the competition on his way to potential title contention.
UFC 307 Prediction
It’s no secret that Jose Aldo is getting up there in age. He’s listed at 38-years-old, but it’s widely known that he’s older than that. Father Time is undefeated, but Jose Aldo looked really good in his last fight and Mario Bautista presents a tough test but a winnable matchup.
Mario Bautista fights with a ton of forward pressure. He can get a little wild at times but he’s non-stop action and he’s not going to stop coming forward. He’s going to mix attacks and rely on his cardio and pace. We saw Jose Aldo struggle with the cardio and pace of Merab Dvalishvili.
However, this is a different kind of cardio and pace at UFC 307. This cardio and pace is more tied to striking and that’s where Aldo can take advantage. Aldo’s boxing and overall striking is at a much higher level. Bautista leaves a ton of openings especially with shots down the middle that Aldo can connect on.
Bautista can win this fight if he overwhelms the former champion with volume. However, I think he’s going to get hurt a few times throughout this fight on the feet and that’s going to cause him to lose rounds. I think we see a decision and I think Jose Aldo wins at UFC 307.
Prediction: Jose Aldo by Decision