Preview: UFC on ESPN 59 ‘Namajunas vs. Cortez’

Middleweights

Abdul Razak Alhassan (12-6, 6-6 UFC) vs. Cody Brundage (10-6, 4-5 UFC)

ODDS: Alhassan (-162), Brundage (+136)

Brundage has consistently shown a clear ceiling, but he has put together a decent UFC career over the last three years. A former collegiate wrestler with a solid amount of athleticism, Brundage has gotten by with the kind of game planning a lot of fighters simply lack. He usually comes into a fight with a solid idea of whether or not to strike or wrestle and does well to stick to that approach. However, he also tends to fade over the long haul, as once things start to go south, Brundage doesn’t tend to have much of a backup plan, and while he can often remain a tough out, there’s usually a point where his fights turn into one-way traffic going against him. Such was the case in his last appearance, where he was the toughest test to date for uber-prospect Bo Nickal and survived into the second round. Here, he looks to rebound against Alhassan, who has had an unexpected evolution as a fighter, to say the least. A judoka by trade, Alhassan came to the UFC as about the purest one-round fighter there was on the roster. He would swing wildly and either knock out his opponent in minutes or tire out badly on his way to a decision loss. Somewhere around his fight against Joaquin Buckley early in 2022, Alhassan learned to pace himself and pick his spots, even banking some control time by turning his fights into a grind through the clinch and wrestling. It’s nowhere near as fun to watch but still results in Alhassan being dangerous in spots and a consistent knockout threat for as long as his fights last. Alhassan’s both powerful and durable, so while Brundage might get off to a hot start, it’s hard to see how he can turn that into either a finish or some long-term success. It seems quite likely that Alhassan will eventually be able to adjust to what Brundage brings to the table, at which point things should come to a quick and violent end. The pick is Alhassan via second-round knockout.

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Namajunas vs. Cortez
Ponzinibbio vs. Salikhov
Dober vs. Silva
Bonfim vs. Loosa
Rodriguez vs. Erosa
Alhassan vs. Brundage
The Prelims