Pedro Munhoz
Age: 31
Nationality: Brazilian
MMA Record: 15-3, 1 NC
UFC Record: 5-3, 1 NC
Notable Wins: Rob Font, Justin Scoggins, Russell Doane
Notable Losses: Jimmie Rivera, John Dodson, Raphael Assuncao
Last Fight: Decision loss to John Dodson
Fighter Profile: One of the most dangerous submission artists in the UFC bantamweight division, Munhoz has been a very solid contributor so far in his young UFC career. He has won four fights in the UFC by submission (one overturned) as well as another bout via TKO. He has a very dangerous ground game although his striking still needs a lot of work. Munhoz has beaten all of the lower-ranked guys he’s fought but when he’s stepped up to fight the best guys he’s lost. If he really wants to make a run for the title, then he needs to beat someone with a name or with a high ranking. The UFC had to give him a step back after losing to Dodson in his last fight, but it’s not like Johns is some easy fight. This is going to be a tough matchup for Munhoz and it will say a lot about where he’s at in his career depending on how this fight goes.
Brett Johns
Age: 26
Nationality: Welsh
MMA Record: 15-1
UFC Record: 3-1
Notable Wins: Joe Soto, Albert Morales, Walel Watson
Notable Losses: Aljamain Sterling
Last Fight: Decision loss to Aljamain Sterling
Fighter Profile: A former Titan FC champion, Johns had a hot start to his UFC career with a three-fight win streak only to see it snapped by Sterling in his last fight. After having shown few flaws in his game up to that point we finally saw some defensive issues in Johns’ game and he will need to fix that if he wants to make a run for the bantamweight title. But considering he is such a young guy, there’s no reason he can’t make the necessary improvements to get better. He just has to go out there show that now.
Fight Breakdown: This is one of the best fights on the card in my opinion, and by far the most intriguing preliminary card bout. Both Munhoz and Johns are two of the best bantamweights in the UFC in my opinion, and this is going to be a really exciting matchup between two well-rounded fighters. Munhoz has looked amazing in the UFC and his submission game is top notch, but I’m still not completely sold that he’s a title contender. Johns had an amazing unbeaten start to his career before running into a tough out against Sterling in his last fight, but he showed a number of holes in that fight that need to be fixed if he wants to make a run for the title. All in all, I think this is a close fight, but considering the odds I lean towards Johns. As good as Munhoz is, I really feel like Johns can match him in pretty much every area of the game except for submissions. So I’ll go against the grain and say Johns grinds out a decision.
Prediction: Brett Johns via decision
