UFC Vegas 79: Rafael Fiziev vs. Mateusz Gamrot continues on the prelims with a fight in the bantamweight division between Dan Argueta and Miles Johns. Argueta has won four out of his last five but is coming off a No Contest in his most recent bout. Meanwhile, Johns has won three out of his last four and is coming off a unanimous-decision victory in his last fight. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Argueta-Johns prediction and pick.
Dan Argueta (9-1) was taking it to Ronnie Lawrence, who he had in a mounted guillotine before the referee stopped the fight at 2:20 of the first round. However, upon further review, Lawrence was not out, nor did he tap from the submission, so the fight ultimately ended in a No Contest. That was a big letdown as Argueta was looking good in that fight early and was hoping to get the big win he was looking for. He is certainly hoping that a big win is on the horizon when he takes on Miles Johns this weekend at UFC Vegas 79.
Miles Johns (13-2) has quietly put together a decent 4-2 run inside the octagon as he most recently outstruck Vince Morales for the latter portion of his most recent fight getting back into the win column. He has now won three out of his last four fights and is looking to get back onto a winning streak when he takes on Dan Argueta Saturday night at the UFC Apex.
Here are the UFC Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
UFC Vegas 79 Odds: Dan Argueta-Miles Johns Odds
Dan Argueta: -196
Miles Johns: +152
Over 2.5 Rounds: -172
Under 2.5 Rounds: +134
How to Watch Dan Argueta vs. Miles Johns
TV: ESPN +
Stream: ESPN+
Time: 4:00 p.m. ET/ 4:00 p.m. PT (Prelims)
Why Dan Argueta Will Win
Dan Argueta's rise was when he was part of season 29 of The Ultimate Fighter, where he lost in the quarterfinals to eventual winner Ricky Turcios. Argueta has done very well since that loss and has rattled off four wins in his last five fights, capturing the Legacy Fighting Alliance bantamweight title. He ultimately lost his short-notice opportunity up a weight class against Damon Jackson but was able to get back into the win column to secure the UFC win his next time out against Nick Aguirre.
After losing out on the opportunity for a big win against Ronnie Lawrence which ended abruptly, he gets to take on a veteran of the UFC bantamweight division in Miles Johns. Johns has quietly been performing well as of late, especially with his last performance against Vince Morales. Johns possesses good striking but sometimes just doesn't do enough to win fights, and that's something Argueta can take advantage of. He pushes a hard pace, always working and making his opponent for the entirety off the feet, so if Johns doesn't do enough, Argueta can take over and win minutes to get the job done and get the first win streak of his UFC career.
Why Miles Johns Will Win
Miles Johns is now 4-2 in the UFC and looking to continue his momentum into this weekend's matchup against Dan Argueta at the UFC Apex. Like Argueta, Johns was also the former Legacy Fighting Alliance bantamweight champion before he made his appearance on the Contender Series where he won by unanimous decision. He has now won three of his last four fights and looking to make it two in a row coming up.
Johns has shown glimpses of what we expected coming into his UFC debut but then had a couple of hiccups against top-end talent like Mario Bautista and John Castaneda who both rocked Johns and then eventually finished him. The good thing for Johns is that Argueta isn't a potent striker like those two mentioned as he is a wrestler and grinder who just looks to outpace and outwork his opponents. Johns has shown great takedown defense in his previous fights, so if he is to defend them here, he should be able to sprawl and brawl his way to victory.
Final Dan Argueta-Miles Johns Prediction & Pick
These two bantamweights will be looking to keep their momentum going as they go head-to-head this weekend at UFC Vegas 79 live at the UFC Apex. Argueta will look to come in and do what he does best, which is to come forward and push a grappling pace that is just really to match for most in the bantamweight division. That is obviously something Johns will have to be worried about, but his takedown defense has been stout for the majority of his professional career and it's hard to see it any different in this matchup. Ultimately, as long as Johns defends the takedowns of Argueta early and keeps this fight on the feet, he should pick Argueta apart from range to get the win and continue climbing up the bantamweight rankings.
Final Dan Argueta-Miles Johns Prediction & Pick: Miles Johns Argueta (+152), Over 2.5 Rounds (-172)