UFC 302: Islam Makhachev vs. Dustin Poirier continues on the main card with a fight in the middleweight division between Kevin Holland and Michal Oleksiejczuk. Holland has suffered back-to-back losses in his last two fights meanwhile, Oleksiejczuk is coming off a submission defeat his last time out. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Holland-Oleksiejczuk prediction and pick.
Kevin Holland (25-11) is coming off his second consecutive defeat at welterweight prompting his move back up to middleweight. This move up to middleweight, Holland hopes will help him get back on track when he takes on the dangerous Michal Oleksiejczuk this weekend at UFC 302.
Michael Oleksiejczuk (19-7) has alternated wins and losses in his last three fights, losing two of these three, and losing his most recent fight against Michel Pereira by first-round submission. Oleksiejczuk will be looking to get back on track and move up the middleweight rankings when he takes on Kevin Holland this weekend at the Prudential Center.
Here are the UFC 302 Odds, courtesy of BetOnline.
UFC 302 Odds: Kevin Holland-Michal Oleksiejczuk Odds
Kevin Holland: -280
Michal Oleksiejczuk: +240
Over 1.5 rounds: -140
Under 1.5 rounds: +110
*Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Kevin Holland Will Win
Kevin Holland is coming off back-to-back losses for the first time in his UFC career at 170 lbs. After those setbacks, Holland is choosing to make back up to 185 lbs to take Michal Oleksiejczuk in hopes of getting back into the win column this weekend at UFC 302.
When Holland is on his game he is a tough out for anyone he faces off against. It's just when he fights with his antics, he suffers defeat like he did when he fought against Stephen Thompson while not trying to go for a takedown. Holland has a pretty clear path to victory in this matchup against Oleksiejczuk and that's by utilizing his grappling to take him down and submit him as he is a Travis Lutter Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt. While Holland possesses power on the feet to knockout Oleksiejczuk he should utilize his reach to stay out of range and then mix in the takedowns to get himself back on track this weekend.
Why Michal Oleksiejczuk Will Win
Michael Oleksiejczuk was deemed too small for the light heavyweight division, so he finally made the move down to 185 lbs where he is now 3-2. However, Oleksiejczuk is now 1-2 in his last three fights and is coming off a first-round submission loss at the hands of the surging Michel Pereira. Oleksiejczuk will look to turn his middleweight career around when he takes on Kevin Holland this weekend at UFC 302.
Oleksiejczuk does his best work on the feet where he utilizes his crisp boxing combinations he is able to mix in the targets from head to body seamlessly. In a close-quarters striking affair, Oleksiejczuk will beat up on Holland making his preferred range to be in the pocket. He will need to utilize his feints to get on the inside of the reach of Holland to land his combinations. If Oleksiejczuk can do that all while defending any takedowns that Holland attempts he could land a big shot potentially putting Holland out and getting back into the win column.
Final Kevin Holland-Michal Oleksiejczuk Prediction & Pick
This fight should be an absolute barnburner between these two middleweight contenders. Kevin Holland has always had the skills to be a top-ranked fighter but his antics and not taking fights seriously sometimes have held him back. Hopefully, we get a dialed-in Kevin Holland this weekend if he intends to get back into the win column at UFC 302. As for Michal Oleksiejczuk, he's always been a fighter that didn't want to cut weight which is why he had fought at 205 lbs for the longest time and now that he's back in his rightful weight class he's been getting grapplers who have been giving a ton of trouble like what could potentially happen here if Holland has his head screwed on correctly.
Ultimately this fight could go two ways, we get an entertaining striking affair between Holland and Oleksiejczuk after Holland elects to not use his advantageous grappling, or Holland fights with the IQ we hope and wish that he has coming into this fight and he strikes to grapple where he then takes down Oleksiejcuk and submits. It's hard to go with the latter but that's how it should play out and that's what we should expect as Holland goes in and fights a smart fight for once utilizing his reach to stay out of the boxing range of Oleksiejczuk then eventually getting a takedown, taking his back, and sinking in the rear-naked choke to get the job done.
Click here for more betting news and predictions
Final Kevin Holland-Michal Oleksiejczuk Prediction & Pick: Kevin Holland (-280), Under 1.5 Rounds (+110)
Follow Us
Subscribe
