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Contender Series Week 10: Ramon Tavares vs. Cortavious Romious continues in the flyweight division with a fight between Rickson Zenidim and Andre Lima. Zenidim has won 13 of his 14 professional bouts with his last win coming by knockout meanwhile, Lima is an undefeated prospect who has won all six of his professional bouts with five of them coming by knockout. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Ruffy-Magomedaliev prediction and pick.
Rickson Zenidim (14-1) was originally scheduled to face off against Kevin Borjas in Week 1 of the Contender Series but had to withdraw due to visa issues. Now, he finally gets to show Dana White and the matchmakers that he belongs in the UFC when he takes on fellow Brazilian flyweight prospect Andre Lima.
Andre Lima (6-0) is an undefeated flyweight prospect fighting out of Brazil who possesses some serious striking abilities. He has finished five of his six professional wins by knockout and he was able to knock out both opponents he faced during his time fighting for the Legacy Fighting Alliance. He will be taking on his most experienced competitor to date when he takes on Rickson Zenidim on the season finale of the Contender Series.
Here are the Contender Series UFC Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
UFC Contender Series Odds: Rickson Zenidim-Andre Lima Odds
Rickson Zenidim: +194
Andre Lima: -260
How to Watch Rickson Zenidim vs. Andre Lima
TV: ESPN+
Stream: ESPN+
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET/ 5:00 p.m. PT
*Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Rickson Zenidim Will Win
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Rickson Zenidim is one of the most experienced fighters on this week's episode of the Contender Series with 15 professional bouts on his resume which is more than double that of his opponent Andre Lima. Zenidim's only loss in his professional career was when he attempted to move up in weight to fight the Fusion FC Bantamweight Championship and lost a unanimous decision to Rodrigo Vera who is one of the top Latin American bantamweight prospects.
Zenidim is taking on another stellar prospect in Andre Lima who's undefeated as a professional and has looked the part winning five of his six fights by knockout. The thing about Lima is that he has been facing subpar competition on the regional scene and this will be his toughest test date by a wide margin. If Zenidim can avoid the big shots of Lima and wear him down with his grappling, where 10 of his 14 wins have come by submission, he can
Why Andre Lima Will Win
Andre Lima is a talented flyweight prospect fighting out of Brazil who is undefeated at 6-0. He must recently won both of his fights over in the Legacy Fighting Alliance organization both of which came by knockout before the third round. He is very exciting and only 24 years old which is the prime age for a flyweight contender to rise through the ranks in the UFC's flyweight division.
He takes on a fellow 24-year-old flyweight prospect Rickson Zenidim who is the same age as he but has more than twice the amount of experience. Also, Zenidim should be looking to take this fight to the mat in an attempt to get this fight to the mat but on the feet, it looks like Lima will be the one who will be faster and land the more impactful shots. If Lima can fend off the takedowns without gassing out in the process he can potentially get the knockout and the UFC contract.
Final Rickson Zenidim-Andre Lima Prediction & Pick
This should be a great scrap between these two Brazilian flyweight prospects. Rickson Zenidim will be looking to make the most of his second chance on the Contender Series when he takes on Andre Lima. While Zenidim had a much easier proposition in his last fight against Kevin Borjas he still has some advantages in this fight against a much tougher opponent in Andre Lima. His experience will be the key, especially the experience of fighting against elite competition for 25 minutes at a higher weight class.
Andre Lima on the other hand is by far the more explosive striker of the two with more capabilities of getting the knockout on the feet. He will be exceptionally faster than Zenidim and will need to bring the fight to him in the early going to get him out of there because the longer this fighter goes the higher the chance that Zenidim will get his grappling going wearing him out. Ultimately, Lima is going to be coming with a ton of aggression early landing heavy shots this will force Zenidim to shoot for takedowns from way too far out where Lima will be able to defend and the more that Lima makes Zenidim work the more tired he will get as then Lima eventually finishes him midway through the fight for the knockout or TKO finish and the UFC contract.
Final Rickson Zenidim-Andre Lima Prediction & Pick: Andre Lima (-260)
