Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Johnny Walker headline UFC Vegas 124 and it’s kind of strange here we got here.
Saturday’s show was supposed to feature Gabriel Bonfim vs. Sean Brady in a welterweight main event, but Brady was forced out with an injury and no replacement could be found, so instead a heavyweight bout between Cortes-Acosta and Walker was thrown together to close out the evening. Good thing, too, because it’s not like they had a pair of top 5 UFC title contenders in the co-main ready to step
into that spot.
Oh, wait.
Admittedly, Tatiana Suarez vs. Virna Jandiroba doesn’t scream fireworks on paper, but both have fought for UFC gold and Suarez could end up facing champion Mackenzie Dern with a win (and maybe Jandiroba gets a trilogy bout?), so you’d think they could at least try to push this pivotal strawweight bout. But what do I know?
Let’s hope Cortes-Acosta and Walker deliver the kind of fun, wild, and unpredictable fight they’re capable of and not a dreary slog, which they are also capable of, sadly.
What: UFC Vegas 124
Where: Meta Apex in Las Vegas
When: Saturday, Nov. 7. The eight-fight early preliminary card begins at 5 p.m. ET, followed by a six-fight main card at 8 p.m. ET. The entire event streams live on Paramount+.
(Numbers in parentheses indicate standing in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings)
Waldo Cortes-Acosta (8) vs. Johnny Walker
Let’s start on a positive note. Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Johnny Walker know how to deliver fun finishes. “Salsa Boy” surged to a top 10 ranking by showing off heavy hands and a lively personality. The same can be said about Walker, who oozes charisma and had a fair share of memorable knockouts at light heavyweight and in his heavyweight debut against Parkin. If these two mix just right, instant highlight.
If the styles clash in the wrong way though, this could be a looooooong 25 minutes.
One criticism of Walker is that he’s been hesitant to pull the trigger when he can’t figure out his opponent early. Sometimes landing that perfect strike means waiting for the perfect moment, and he’s lost some dull fights in which that moment never presented itself. Cortes-Acosta isn’t always the most aggressive fighter, so you can see where I’m going with this. It’s potentially a staring contest.
We always root for fun here, so let’s collectively will the main event to end in an explosive knockout. Since Cortes-Acosta is yet to be put down and Walker has been on the receiving end of some brutal finishes, that leads me to one conclusion: Cortes-Acosta by KO in Round 2.
Pick: Cortes-Acosta
Tatiana Suarez (3) vs. Virna Jandiroba (2)
Fortunately, Tatiana Suarez and Virna Jandiroba should be a treat for grappling fans out there, rather than a contest where their skill sets neutralize each other leading to a regrettable standup battle. Jandiroba’s ground game is elite, but we learned from her recent loss to Mackenzie Dern that she can be outmuscled. In the case of Suarez, Jandiroba once again faces an athleticism gap that is difficult to overcome.
I can see a scenario where Jandiroba wins the grappling battle in Round 1, which could discourage Suarez enough to throw her off of her game. In a three-round fight, that could be all it takes for Jandiroba to score the upset here. But I’ve been impressed by how Suarez rebounded from her loss to Zhang Weili, a result that had to be disheartening, but not enough to stop her from scoring impressive wins in her past two fights.
Suarez will have success with her takedowns and top control, winning on the scorecards despite Jandiroba threatening on the ground on more than one occasion.
Pick: Suarez
Davey Grant vs. Elijah Smith
Flawless matchmaking here as far as veteran vs. prospect fights go. On one side, you have Davey Grant, one of the most consistent action fighters on the roster and a major step up in competition for Elijah Smith; on the other side is Smith, 3-0 in the UFC, 17 years Grant’s junior, and potentially a future contender in the loaded bantamweight division.
If Grant wins, it’s another feather in the cap of the bonus-collecting Brit and a learning moment for Smith; if Smith wins, as expected, it takes him into another tier of competition and the UFC has a clearer picture of how to build him, especially with Smith revealing this week that this is the final fight on his contract.
Selfishly, I’d love to see Smith meet Grant on his terms and just throw down in a blatant attempt to snag the $100,000 Fight of the Night bonus. Smith definitely has pop and there has to be a part of him that wants to be the first fighter to knock Grant out. As for Grant, he’s always ready to stand and bang, and that might actually be his best path to victory.
As unlikely as it sounds, Grant once had the reputation of a grappler, and I’m guessing Smith wants to test that aspect of his game, too. Smith can do a lot of damage with ground-and-pound, so if he can put Grant on his back, he can wear his older opponent down fast.
That’s eventually where I see this fight going, with Smith hurting Grant on the ground and finishing with a choke.
Pick: Smith
Billy Elekana vs. Lucas Fernando
First of all, this should be Lucas Fernando vs. Luke Fernandez. It’s right there!
I’m surprised Fernando is such a heavy favorite here. I understand the intrigue of backing a fighter on a hot streak with serious punching power, but Billy Elekana is a tricky matchup for him. Elekana’s methodical approach can lull quicker fighters into making a mistake, and he also has a ground game that could frustrate Fernando.
The rangy Fernando is dangerous when given the freedom to walk forward without reprisal, so Elekana has to be ready to counter, whether it’s with a well-timed strike or a body lock to slow Fernando’s roll. It doesn’t take much for Fernando to find a rhythm, and if he gets going downhill, Elekana is toast.
That said, I’m picking Elekana for the upset. He’s smart enough not to stand there and go blow-for-blow with Fernando, which will force Fernando to overextend and fall into an Elekana trap.
Elekana by submission.
Pick: Elekana
Priscila Cachoeira vs. Nina Milosevic
This has got to be the end of the road for Priscila Cachoeira, right? Respectfully.
Cachoeira has lost three straight fights following a shocking (to me, anyway) knockout win over Josiane Nunes. She’s in a 1-5 slump dating back to 2023 and at times has looked disturbingly uncompetitive. “Zombie Girl” deserves praise for her toughness, but at some point that comes because fans have seen you take one beating too many.
The talented Milosevic won’t have much trouble here. She’ll work Cachoeira over on the feet and then put her on her back via takedown or knockdown. Then Cachoeira will hang in as long as she can before Milosevic mercifully gives her an excuse to tap out.
Pick: Milosevic
Mitch Raposo vs. Marcos Degli
Mitch Raposo is a tough out for anyone, but I think just the right level for Marcos Degli’s UFC debut.
“Tailandes” is a proven fight finisher, with knockouts or submissions in all but one of his 15 pro wins. He has absolute napalm in both hands, so Raposo has to be at his most agile and evasive to avoid being squashed early. One problem for Raposo is his own lack of finishing ability, because as long as there’s time on the clock in this matchup, Degli has a chance to catch him.
Raposo will stick and move as usual, and he’ll mix in wrestling to slow Degli down, but Degli will only be denied for so long. Near the end of the first, he finds that chin and Raposo goes down and stays down.
Pick: Degli
Preliminaries
Keiichiro Nakamura def. Ollie Schmid
Thomas Petersen def. Gabriel Lorenco
Gabriella Fernandes def. Karine Silva
Murtazali Magomedov def. Jose Delano
Austin Bashi def. Carlos Calderon
Mantas Kondratavicius def. Andre Petroski
Seokhyon Ko def. Wellington Turman
Jose Souza def. Jonny Parsons
