UFC On ABC 8: Hill vs. Rountree Jr. Predictions

UFC On ABC 8: Hill vs. Rountree Jr. takes place on Sunday (AEDT) at the Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan – and we’ve got our UFC predictions for all the fights below, and you can place your bets with the best betting sites Australia has to offer!

UFC On ABC 8 Predictions

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Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. Prediction

Jamahal Hill suffered a KO loss to Alex Pereira last year in an unsuccessful attempt to reclaim the 205lb title and was then TKO’d by Jiri Prochazka at the start of this year. Now he’ll try to get back on track against Khalil Rountree Jr, who was TKO’d by Pereira in a title clash last October, ending a five-fight winning streak.

The 34-year-old Hill is a long-limbed striker who likes to fight from range, offering up a diverse and high-volume selection of strikes. He’s not the most refined technician, but he does have very good speed and knockout power. His offensive focus means his defense can be compromised at times, and having just been stopped twice by strikes in the space of a year that leads to potential durability concerns at a time when he’s reaching beyond his prime years. Meanwhile, Hill is not a fish-out-of-water on the mat and he can grapple, but it’s still the weaker side of his game, and he’s yet to win by submission in his career.

The 35-year-old Rountree Jr is a powerfully built 205lb’er, but he will be giving up 3″ in height and 2.5″ in reach to Hill on Saturday night. Rountree Jr has technically sound kickboxing ability and possesses finishing power to go along with his damaging kicks to the legs and body. Despite that, Rountree isn’t usually a fighter who goes to war in his fights, and instead likes fighting at a measured pace with a degree of caution in regards to his output and cardio, and is happy to work on the counter. However, last time out against Pereira he did find himself in a hard-fought battle against the elite kickboxer, and while he came off second-best and took a lot of damage in the process, he still performed better than expected, showed a tough, gritty and determined side to his game that won him new fans. Rountree has less to offer on the mat than Hill though, and will look to keep the fight upright throughout.

There’s plenty of firepower on display here, and with both fighters having taken a lot of damage in recent times that could either increase the likelihood of a finish, or make them more hesitant to engage in the first place. After seeming to gain confidence even in defeat last time out I think Rountree is less likely to retreat into his shell though, and given that he’s a bit more compact and composed with his striking I think he can get the better of Hill here to win by TKO in the 2nd round.

Khalil Rountree Jr to win by TKO in Rd2

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Rafael Fiziev vs. Ignacio Bahamondes Prediction

Rafael Fiziev comes in off a three-fight losing slump to fight Ignacio Bahamondes, whose 1st round submission win over Jalin Turner last time out extended his winning streak to three fights.

The 32-year-old Fiziev was an obvious choice to fight on this first ever Azerbaijan card as he represents the country, despite having actually been born in Kazakhstan. when it comes to Fiziev’s recent losing slump it’s worth bearing in mind that includes two decision losses to Justin Gaethje, while the other defeat was due to the torn ACL he suffered against another highly regarded fighter Mateusz Gamrot, leading to a lengthy layoff. Prior to his losses Fiziev had been on a six-fight winning streak though, during which time he showed off his impressively polished muay thai striking technique, which was honed competing frequently in that sport in Thailand before focusing his full attention on MMA. Fiziev is a good athlete with excellent agility and speed, particularly with his accurate, dynamic kicks that are a key component of his striking game. Fiziev also utilizes solid high-guard striking defense and has a knack for fending off takedowns, aided by his very good balance, while he’s starting to show more willingness to wrestle too. Fiziev’s energetic style can start to wear on his cardio in the latter stages of his fights though.

The 27-year-old Bahamondes is a very tall striker for a lightweight at 6ft 3″, and that’ll give him a 7″ height and 4″ reach advantage over Fiziev, although he does like to apply forward pressure and is happy to battle at closer quarters. He’s a high-volume kickboxer who has good power in his hands and a versatile array of kicks at his disposal that have already led to head kick and wheel kick finishes during his time in the Octagon, and his knees are good too. Bahamondes is able to maintain his pace from start to finish and can also mix things up with some capable grappling that’s led to a couple of submission wins, including in his last Octagon appearance.

This should be an exciting battle between these two high-level strikers. Bahamondes is not only the bigger of the two here, but also younger and fresher too, and he’s carrying real momentum after three 1st round stoppage in a row. However, Fiziev has a great deal of experience to draw on, and text-book technique, so this one could go either way. In the end, with the home crowd support behind him I’ll take Fiziev to prove to be the faster, sharper striker of the two to edge out a highly competitive fight on the scorecards.

Rafael Fiziev to win by decision

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Tofiq Musayev vs. Myktybek Orolbai Prediction

Former Rizin and Bellator fighter Tofiq Musayev will have the home advantage on Saturday when the fighter hailing from Azerbaijan makes his UFC debut against Myktybek Oralbai, who is coming off a split-decision loss, but had won his first two UFC fights before that.

The 35-year-old Musayev hasn’t fought since racking up back-to-back KO victories in Rizin back in 2023. In fact, generally speaking he’s a fighter who hasn’t fought on a regular basis during the latter years of his career, but he has picked up some notable wins along the way, including defeating Patricky Pitbull to win Rizin’s 2019 lightweight grand-prix. Musayev has had a reputation as a finisher throughout his career, with 18 wins coming via strikes in his 22-5 career overall. He’s not just as heavy-hitter either as he does have good technique and strikes in volume. He can grapple to an extent too, and while three of his losses have come via submission, two of those were very early in his career, and other other was against BJJ ace ‘Jacare’ Souza.

The 27-year-old Oralbai initially arrived in the UFC from LFA as a short-notice replacement to fight Uros Medic in 2023 and made an immediate impression by submitting him in the second round. Oralbai is a sturdy, well-rounded fighter who has a good wrestling base and is an assured grappler, while he also has solid boxing and respectable power. It’s a mix of skills that’s led him to finish 11 of his 13 career victories inside the distance so far, but his two losses came on the scorecards.

Musayev has the home advantage here, but there’s a risk or ring-rust here, and meanwhile Oralbai is eight-years younger and will have the advantage on the mat with his wrestling and grappling, so I’m taking him to win by 2nd round submission here.

Myktybek Orolbai to win by submission in Rd2

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Curtis Blaydes vs. Rizvan Kuniev Prediction

Curtis Blaydes was KO’d in 60 seconds by Tom Aspinall in an interim heavyweight title fight last year and now looks to bounce back against debuting Contender Series recruit Rizvan Kuniev, who is 12-2-1 (+1nc) in his career so far.

Despite the swift nature of his latest defeat It’s surprising to see the 34-year-old Blaydes go from interim title contention to fighting an unranked newcomer here. Blaydes has come close to fighting for the undisputed title several times now over the years, but always fallen short at the final hurdle, and it tends to be on the feet where his issues lie, as while he has competent boxing fundamentals and good mobility, his patient approach and lack of aggressive firepower makes him less of a threat. The real crux of the issue though is his durability against heavy-hitters, as all five of his career losses have come via strikes during his time in the UFC, including two 1st round defeats in the last couple of years. However, there’s more to Blaydes game than just striking as he’s actually a very skilled wrestler by heavyweight standards and is able to land takedowns with authority, has excellent control on top and is far more dangerous with his ground-and-pound strikes on the mat than he is when engaging on the feet. That always gives him a strong avenue to victory, but a potential flaw is that he has a tendency to be quite vulnerable when closing the gap to transition from striking to wrestling.

The 33-year-old Kuniev’s MMA career didn’t get off to the most promising start all the way back in 2011 as he only went 2-2-1 in his first four years as a pro. However, he’s since gone unbeaten in his last 11 fights, though it has to be said he’s not been very active in the last five years in particular, typically only competing only once a year. That does include two Contender Series appearances however, both of which he won by TKO. Despite hailing from Dagestan, Kuniev is more of a striker than a wrestler. He’s a solid boxer with respectable power, and mixes that with some kicks and good knees, but overall he’s not the most active with his offensive output. Meanwhile he can also operate from the clinch and isn’t adverse to the occasional takedown too, while he can grapple if required.

This is an odd bit of matchmaking and I think Blaydes will show why he continues to be a mainstay in the top-end of the heavyweight rankings by using his wrestling to control Kuniev for extended periods, before ramping up his ground-and-pound in the second-half of the fight to win by TKO.

Curtis Blaydes to win by TKO in Rd2

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Nazim Sadykhov vs. Nikolas Motta Prediction

Nazim Sadykhov has earned three wins and a draw since joining from the Contender Series in 2022 and now fights Nikolas Motta, who has gone 3-2 (+1nc) so far.

The 31-year-old Sadykhov’s latest win was a big one, TKO’ing the respected ismael Bonfim, but it was also controversial, with a doctor deeming his opponent unable to continue due to a cut below his eye. Still, Sadykhov deserves credit for landing the head kick that caused that cut in the first place, which he claimed afterwards was something he’d specifically practiced for that fight. And as a fighter with good striking technique, footwork and solid power, Sadykhov is no stranger to stoppage victories, with seven of his 10 career victories being via strikes, while two others came via submission, including a rear-naked choke finish of Terrence McKinney a couple of years ago.

The 32-year-old Motta is a heavy-handed striker with an offensive focus who is always looking to land that one big punch that can end the fight. And he’s managed to do that numerous times during his career, with 10 of his 15 wins coming via strikes, including two 1st round TKO victories in the UFC so far. However, there’s not much depth to Motta’s all-round game, and together with defensive lapses and a questionable chin that has led to him being punished at times, with four of his five career losses being via strikes, including both KO and TKO losses in the Octagon.

Sadykhov is the better technician on the feet here and has the advantage on the mat too if he wants to switch things up. In the end I think he should be able to find the openings he needs on the feet to deliver a TKO finish here at some stage in the first half of the fight.

Nazim Sadykhov to win by TKO in Rd2

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Muhammad Naimov vs. Bogdan Grad Prediction

Muhammad Naimov has gone 4-1 during his time in the UFC so far and now goes up against Bogdan Grad, who is on a four-fight winning streak since joining from the Contender Series.

The 30-year-old Naimov comes from a taekwondo background, but has drawn from kickboxing and muay thai influences too. He’s a versatile kicker and will throw occasional spinning attacks to keep his opponents on their toes, and he can operate on the counter. He’s quite tough too and perhaps leans on that a bit too much defensively at times, while despite not having the highest output his cardio can be an issue at times if his opponent pushes the pace. Meanwhile, Naimov’s well-rounded skill-set means he can also change things up by using his respectable wrestling, and he can grapple too, though he was submitted for the first time in his career last year.

The 29-year-old Grad has an aggressive approach, looking to apply pressure wherever the fight goes. He tends to put everything into his strikes on the feet at the expense of clean technique, and will throw in things like jumping knees and spinning strikes. He’ll also use his wrestling too and has a handful of submission wins sprinkled in amongst his finishes via strikes. Constantly pushing the pace with at times reckless pressure and suspect defense does make him quite hittable though.

This seems like a fairly well matched fight between two fighters who should be able to stay competitive wherever the fight goes. In the end though I think Naimov is the more technical striker of the two and can more than hold his own in the wrestling department. As such I think he can get the better of the first two rounds, though Grad’s pace might start to wear on him in the final five minutes, requiring him to dig deep to emerge with a win on the scorecards.

Muhammad Naimov to win by decision

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UFC On ABC 8: Hill vs. Rountree Jr. Prelims

(Predicted winners in bold)

Tagir Ulanbekov vs. Azat Maksum
Ismail Naurdiev vs. Park Jun-yong
Melissa Mullins vs. Daria Zheleznyakova
Hamdy Abdelwahab vs. Mohammed Usman
Ko Seok-hyun vs. Oban Elliott
Irina Alekseeva vs. Klaudia Syguła

MMA Writer

Ross Cole

Ross Cole is one of the most prolific mixed martial arts writers in the world.

Having written more than 22,000 MMA news stories for MMA Insight, which he founded in 2009 as a way to channel his passion for the sport of mixed martial arts.

Few people know the UFC and the sport of MMA like Ross, and he has built a solid reputation for being one of the best MMA tipsters in the world.

You can read more of Ross's work at MMAInsight.com.