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UFC 307 takes place Saturday, so it's time to break down the top fights, plus make DFS picks and predictions for the key matchups on the card.
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Facing Oliveira in June
Simon will face Vinicius Oliveira in a three-round bantamweight contest at UFC 303 on June 29 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, per MMAJunkie.USAToday.com.
ANALYSIS
Simon will face "Lok Dog" Oliveira coming off back-to-back losses to Yadong Song and Mario Bautista, respectively. Prior to these losses, the five-foot-six American had enjoyed a five-bout win streak dating back to May 2020. The younger Brazilian represents a tough challenge for Simon, with Oliveira and his knockout power heading into Vegas riding a three-fight win streak across promotions.
Simon will face "Lok Dog" Oliveira coming off back-to-back losses to Yadong Song and Mario Bautista, respectively. Prior to these losses, the five-foot-six American had enjoyed a five-bout win streak dating back to May 2020. The younger Brazilian represents a tough challenge for Simon, with Oliveira and his knockout power heading into Vegas riding a three-fight win streak across promotions.
Crushing defeat in Vegas
Simon lost to Mario Bautista via unanimous decision (27-30, 27-30, 28-29) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Simon was primed to make a move at 135 pounds as recently as last April. He had won five in a row before being dominated by Yadong Song in a lopsided main event loss. He had a chance to get back in the win column here against Bautista as a -180 favorite and simply wasn't able to put it all together. Ricky is known as a high-volume wrestler with excellent cardio, yet it was Mario that had the better gas tank. With the fight possibly in the balance in the closing minutes, Simon faded, while Bautista excelled. It's going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the 31-year-old Simon to overcome these back-to-back setbacks. There's simply too much depth and talent at bantamweight these days.
Simon was primed to make a move at 135 pounds as recently as last April. He had won five in a row before being dominated by Yadong Song in a lopsided main event loss. He had a chance to get back in the win column here against Bautista as a -180 favorite and simply wasn't able to put it all together. Ricky is known as a high-volume wrestler with excellent cardio, yet it was Mario that had the better gas tank. With the fight possibly in the balance in the closing minutes, Simon faded, while Bautista excelled. It's going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the 31-year-old Simon to overcome these back-to-back setbacks. There's simply too much depth and talent at bantamweight these days.
Scheduled to fight Bautista
Simon will compete against Mario Bautista in a bantamweight fight at UFC Vegas 83 on Jan. 13, according to Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Simon will look to begin his 2024 on a positive note. The bantamweight logged only one fight during 2023, during which he was dominated for all but one of five rounds against Yadong Song.
Simon will look to begin his 2024 on a positive note. The bantamweight logged only one fight during 2023, during which he was dominated for all but one of five rounds against Yadong Song.
Dominated in main event loss
Simon lost to Yadong Song via TKO (punches) at 1:10 of Round 5 at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
The winner of five straight fights and competing in his first UFC main event, Simon appeared to be overwhelmed by the moment. The only round in which he hung around was the first. Song pulled away as the fight progressed, and by the time it was done, this one had deteriorated into a rout. Simon is extremely reliant on his wrestling and cardio for success. He landed just 2-of-9 takedowns in this one, good for 0:51 worth of control time. That's not going to get the job done against a high-level striker such as Song. This is a massive setback to Simon's chances of making a run in a loaded bantamweight division. Set to turn 31 years of age in late-August, Ricky's only truly notable UFC victory came over Merab Dvalishvili, and that was more than five years ago.
The winner of five straight fights and competing in his first UFC main event, Simon appeared to be overwhelmed by the moment. The only round in which he hung around was the first. Song pulled away as the fight progressed, and by the time it was done, this one had deteriorated into a rout. Simon is extremely reliant on his wrestling and cardio for success. He landed just 2-of-9 takedowns in this one, good for 0:51 worth of control time. That's not going to get the job done against a high-level striker such as Song. This is a massive setback to Simon's chances of making a run in a loaded bantamweight division. Set to turn 31 years of age in late-August, Ricky's only truly notable UFC victory came over Merab Dvalishvili, and that was more than five years ago.
Fight rescheduled
Simon is set to face off with Yadong Song at UFC Fight Night on April 29, Marc Raimondi of ESPN reports.
ANALYSIS
Simon and Yadong Song's bout has been flexed to the headline event of UFC Fight Night on April 29. Simon, who most recently defeated Jack Shore in July, will look to stay hot against Song.
Simon and Yadong Song's bout has been flexed to the headline event of UFC Fight Night on April 29. Simon, who most recently defeated Jack Shore in July, will look to stay hot against Song.