Tomorrow night on the main card of UFC Houston, we are going to see a top ten heavyweight showdown. Former PFL champion Ante Delija (26-7) will look to bounce back as he takes on the “Polar Bear” Serghei Spivac (17-6).
Heavyweight is far from glamorous these days and this fight being a top ten matchup shows that off. However, we still should keep a close eye on this one because with how shallow the division is now, it only takes a couple of impressive wins to get into the title picture.
Ante Delija came into the UFC last year and immediately stopped Marcin Tybura in the first round. A couple of months later, he seemingly stopped Waldo Cortes-Acosta in the first round until a referee review saw that he poked him in the eye. The fight was restarted and Delija got knocked out by Cortes-Acosta.
Now, he’ll take on Spivac. Spivac has lost two fights in a row heading into UFC Houston. His last win came against Marcin Tybura but in between that win was three total losses making him 1-3 in his last four. If he wants to stay relevant, he needs to beat the former PFL champ tomorrow night.
UFC Houston Prediction
I’m having a really hard time finding a path to victory for Serghei Spivac in this matchup. Spivac’s success inside the octagon has come from being able to bully guys with his grappling while taking them down. I don’t see him being able to take Delija down and honestly, Delija likely has better wrestling.
On the feet, it’s not close as to who is the better striker. Spivac has shown no real power in the feet either which again makes it hard to find a path to victory for him at UFC Houston. I think this is a great fight for Delija to get back on track and I expect him to get a finish here.
Prediction: Ante Delija by TKO
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