UFC 228 will be held at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas on Sunday 9th September (AEST) and it is headlined by a bout between UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley and Darren Till.
Woodley will be looking to defend his belt for a fourth time and this will be his first fight in over 12 months.
His opponent is Englishmen Darren Till, who is one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC and who is yet to taste defeat inside the Octagon.
The Co-Main Event comes in the UFC’s newest weight division, the Women’s Flyweight.
Nicco Montano will defend her belt for the first time against former Bantamweight title challenger Valentina Shevchenko.
There are a host of intriguing bouts on this card and our complete UFC 228 tips can be found below.
UFC 227 Main Card Australian Time
Sunday 9th September 1pm AEST
Main Event
Tyron Woodley has been champion of the Welterweight Division since he knocked out Robbie Lawler to claim the title back in July 2016.
He has not been seen inside the Octagon since he defeated Demian Maia at UFC214 over twelve months ago, but from all reports is feeling better than ever and is ready to defend his title for the fourth time.
The UFC has been stacked full of talent the past 12-24 months and there hasn’t been too many more exciting fighters rise through the ranks than Scouser Darren Till.
He is a man that is not short of confidence and his KO win against UFC stalwart Cowboy Cerrone put his name on the map as a genuine contender in this division.
He then went on to beat Stephen Thompson via a unanimous decision to get his title shot.
Till is a lot taller than his opponent and he is also a Southpaw however these characteristics are not foreign to Woodley.
This division is full of taller Southpaw’s including his last three opponents in Maia, Thompson and Lawler.
There is no doubting the ability and talent of Darren Till not to mention his self belief, but this is a big test for the young fighter.
Woodley can at times be very calculated in his fights and therefor can be quite boring to watch but he has a mammoth right hand when he lets it fly.
This should be a fascinating fight and the punters are struggling to separate the two in betting, but I am with the champ.
Back Tyrone Woodley To Win @ $1.90
Co-Main Event
The Co-Main event sees the youngest of the UFC’s Divisions, the Women’s Flyweight’s, first title defence.
Nicco Montano claimed the belt by winning the final of The Ultimate Fighter in December last year via a unanimous decision against Roxanne Modafferi.
Valentina Shevchenko’s only losses in the UFC have come at the hands of dominant Bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes, who she went the distance with and lost via a split decision at UFC 215.
Shevchenko was clearly fighting out of her ideal weight division in her time in the UFC and she looks like she will benefit greatly from the UFC’s decision to make a smaller division for the women.
I won’t waste anymore time as I think this is a formality and Shevchenko will win this fight easily.
I don’t see how the fight lasts the full five rounds so there is value available there.
Back Under 2.5 Rounds
Main Card
Another example of the UFC’s new talent surge is Russian Zabit Magomedsharipov, who will take on Brandon Davis in this Featherweight fight.
Magomedsharipov has shown his strong Mixed Martial Art skills in his three fights in the UFC; with two submission wins and a unanimous decision win in his last fight.
All four of Brandon Davis’s fights in the UFC have required the judges opinion with two going his way and two going down as losses.
Davis struggled to defend the take down of Enrique Barzola in his last fight, hitting the canvas 16 times during the fight.
This will cause him problems against the Russian MMA talent of Magomedsharipov but he has found his right price and I’ll be watching on.
No Bet
The next fight on the card sees the number two ranked Women’s Strawweight Jessica Andrade take on the number four ranked Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
Andrade bounced back from her title fight defeat at the hands of then champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk with back to back wins including an impressive decision win against Tecia Torres.
Howalkiewicz is another that failed at her only title fight against Jedrzejczyk, but has bounced back to record two successive wins heading into this fight.
The division was dominated by Jedrzejczyk for so long but has been bust right open by Namajunas and this opens the door back up for the likes of Andrade and Howalkiewicz.
Howalkiewicz has actually defeated the current champion, Namajunas, in a split decision win at UFC201 so will fancy her chances if given the chance at a title shot.
I am giving the advantage to Andrade however in a fight that has big ramifications for both fighters should they win or lose.
Back Jessica Andrade To Win By Points @ $1.85
The main card kicks off with a bang as two up and coming Welterweights do battle in what should be an entertaining fight.
Abdul Razak Alhassan is the kind of fighter that brings the fans through the gate and buying those PPVs!
He has won three of his four fights in the UFC and all have come via a KO in the first round.
Niko Brown has also won three of his four fights in the UFC and is a very well rounded Mixed Martial Artist.
He showed his fighting IQ with a clever hammer fist knock out from the bottom against Randy Brown in July.
This fight is sure to have plenty of fireworks however I feel as though Alhassan is too much of a one trick pony.
He has devastating KO credentials, but I do think that he may struggle against a more rounded opponent with a lot more weapons in his arsenal.
Back Niko Price To Win @ $2.20