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Anton Tabuena: The only thing that gives me pause in this prediction is 41-year-old Maia’s conditioning for five rounds.If this was three rounds, I wouldn’t even. Demian Maia will battle Ben Askren at UFC Fight Night 162 in Singapore Indoor Stadium on Saturday, October 26, 2019. The opening odds have Maia coming in at +120 while Askren is coming in at -140.

(Editor’s note: The headshot for Ciryl Gane is incorrectly of Bellator’s Nick Newell. We regret the error.)

The UFC returns to Singapore this week with a pair of highly touted welterweights in the main event.

UFC on ESPN+ 20 takes place Saturday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore. The card streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, former welterweight and middleweight title challenger Demian Maia (27-9 MMA, 21-9 UFC) takes on former Bellator and ONE Championship titleholder Ben Askren (19-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who is coming off a 5-second knockout loss to Jorge Masvidal. The oddsmakers have made Askren a favorite of around -175, and our 13 MMA Junkie editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers are taking him at a fairly heavy 9-4 clip.

In the co-main event, Michael Johnson (19-14 MMA, 11-10 UFC) is more than a 3-1 favorite in his lightweight fight against Stevie Ray (22-9 MMA, 6-4 UFC), and he’s the overwhelming pick of 11 of our 13 staff members.

Beneil Dariush (16-4-1 MMA, 10-4-1 UFC) is only a -150 favorite in his lightweight fight against Frank Camacho (22-7 MMA, 2-3 UFC), but he’s the biggest favorite among our staff members. Only one picker is taking Camacho to win a mild upset.

Ciryl Gane (4-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) is a heavy favorite, as well, among our pickers in his heavyweight fight against Don'Tale Mayes (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC). Gane is the biggest favorite on the entire card at -360 and has an 11-2 picks lead.

And to open the main card, Muslim Salikhov (15-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) takes on Laureano Staropoli (9-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) at welterweight in our most competitive fight, picks-wise. Salikhov nearly is a 2-1 favorite, but he has the narrowest possible picks lead at 7-6.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Askren (64%), Johnson (79 percent), Dariush (78 percent), Gane (82 percent) and Salikhov (54 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

Last week record: 5-7-1

Once again it is time for breakfast and fights when the UFC puts on a Fight Night card from Singapore Saturday morning. Welterweights Demian Maia and Ben Askren headline the eleven fight card, that should be sneaky fun. While there is lack of star power, this should be a nice card to lead the way to MSG next week. Time to pick!

Demian Maia (27-9) (10) vs Ben Askren (19-1) (11)

Dream match time for the hardcore fans! Maia is a BJJ legend. Askren is a wrestling legend. Who’s skill set is better? Maia is on a two fight win streak with wins this year over Lyman Good and Anthony Rocco Martin. Askren made his UFC debut in March with a controversial win over Robbie Lawler, but he was on the wrong end of a Jorge Masvidal knee in only five seconds in July.

Maia has struggled against the top wrestlers in the division as of late, dropping three straight decisions to Tyron Woodley, Colby Covington, and Kamaru Usman in 2017-2018, but I do think each of those fighters are more well rounded than Ben. On the flip side, Askren will not have to worry about the striking of a Robbie or Masvidal in this fight. Neither fighter has much of a standup game. I would probably give Maia the edge on the feet, but he’s still not a dangerous striker. This fight will end being a grappling contest, and I can’t wait. It really will be BJJ vs wrestling. Maia has looked really good this year, and I haven’t been impressed with Ben’s jump to the UFC. I think Maia gets the job done. Prediction: Demian Maia Decision

Michael Johnson (19-14) vs Stevie Ray (22-9)

Michael Johnson makes his return to Lightweight to battle Scotland’s Stevie Ray (not Harlem Heat’s Stevie Ray). Johnson moved down to Featherweight for a 2-2 run, including a loss in his last fight to Josh Emmett in March. Ray is also on a bit of a skid, going 1-3 in his last four fights. Both fighters are very capable of putting on a good fight. Both of these guys are pretty good on the feet, and I would be surprised it this spends much time on the ground. Johnson has very fast hand speed, and he won’t have to deal with the weight cut. I don’t see either of these guys making a real run in the very deep 155 division, but I like MJ to get his arm raised in his Lightweight return. Prediction: Michael Johnson Decision

Frank Camacho (22-7) vs Beneil Dariush (16-4-1)

Another fun fight in the Lightweight division here. Win or lose, Frank Camacho doesn’t have boring fights. After an unsuccessful 0-2 stretch at Welterweight, Frank moved back to Lightweight in June with a TKO win over Nick Hein. Dariush has looked very good at Lightweight, picking up two wins in the last twelve months. Camacho is better on his feet than he is on the ground, and Beneil is very well rounded. If Dariush gets the fight to the ground, I think the fight will be over. Prediction: Beneil Dariush 2nd Round Submission

Ciryl Gane (4-0) vs Don’tale Mayes (7-2)

Heavyweights clash when Ciryl Gane and “Kong” Mayes meet in Singapore. Two relatively unknown fighters, Gane won his UFC debut in August, while Mayes is making his debut. I liked what Gane showed in August, so I’ll take him for the win. Prediction: Ciryl Gane 2nd Round Submission

Muslim Salikhov (15-2) vs Laureano Staropoli (9-1)

Sneaky fun fight to start off the main card. Salikhov is 2-1 in the UFC. He had the highlight KO of Nordine Taleb in September. Staropoli is 2-0 in the UFC with his last win coming in May over Thiago Alves. Both of these guys are very fun to watch, but I think Salikhov’s power will be too much for Staropoli. Prediction: Muslim Salikhov 3rd Round KO

Six fights on the prelim card including a fun Randa Markos vs Ashley Yoder fight, and Farmington, MO’s Alex White makes his return to the Octagon. Quick picks for the prelims.

Randa Markos (9-7-1) vs Ashley Yoder (7-4) Prediction: Ashley Yoder

Alex White (13-5) vs Rafael Fiziev (6-1) Prediction: Rafael Fiziev

Ben Askren Vs Maia Predictions

Enrique Barzola (16-4-1) vs Movsar Evloev (11-0) Prediction: Enrique Barzola

Maia Vs Askren Predictions Today

Sergey Pavlovich (14) (13-1) vs Maurice Greene (13) (8-2) Prediction: Sergey Pavlovich

Loma Lookboonmee (3-1) vs Aleksandra Albu (3-1) Prediction: Loma Lookboonmee

Ufc Fight Night Maia Vs Askren Predictions

Raphael Pessoa (9-1) vs Jeff Hughes (10-2) Prediction: Raphael Pessoa

Maia Vs Askren Predictions

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