UFC 334 Full Prelim Fight Card Picks & Predictions for Ciryl Gane vs. Josh Hokit

The wait for UFC 334 is nearly over, and MMA KO’s Drew Beaupré is here to provide predictions for all eight of the card’s prelim fights.

The night’s main event will see Ciryl Gane kick off his reign as undisputed heavyweight champion against undefeated challenger Josh Hokit, who has collected four wins since joining the UFC off of Dana White’s Contender Series last year.

The co-main event is also a huge title bout, as Kayla Harrison welcomes UFC Hall of Famer Amanda Nunes back from retirement after the two women were originally scheduled to meet at UFC 324 back in January.

UFC 334 Preliminary Card Predictions

Stephen Thompson vs. Charles Radtke

Stephen Thompson (red gloves) fights Joaquin Buckley (blue gloves) during UFC 307 at Delta Center. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

I appreciate that the UFC elected to give Thompson a challenging but winnable matchup for his retirement fight, and as long as “Wonderboy” can avoid being taken down he should be able to piece Radtke up on the feet.

(Pick: Thompson)

Drew Dober vs. Chris Duncan

Drew Dober (red gloves) fights Michael Johnson (blue gloves) during UFC 326 at T-Mobile Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This might be the most underrated fight on the entire card, and if Duncan elects to try and trade strikes with Dober it could end up being a fairly quick night for the Scotsman.

(Pick: Dober)

Jim Miller vs. Terrance McKinney

Jim Miller (red gloves) fights against Chase Hooper (blue gloves) during UFC 314 at Kaseya Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

McKinney did himself absolutely no favors as far as fight night reception by missing weight against a fighter as beloved as Miller, who should be capable of surviving the early storm before extending his record number of UFC wins with another finish.

(Pick: Miller)

Donte Johnson vs. Cesar Almeida

Cesar Almeida (red gloves) fights Ihor Potieria (blue gloves) during UFC 307 at Delta Center. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Almeida steps in here after Johnson was originally scheduled to face another undefeated middleweight in Baisangur Susurkaev, and I’ll slightly lean with the Brazilian to keep things standing here in order to snap a two-fight skid.

(Pick: Almeida)

UFC 334 Early Preliminary Card Predictions

Jared Gordon vs. Melquizael Costa

Dan Ige (red gloves) fights Melquizael Costa (blue gloves) in a featherweight bout during UFC Fight Night at Toyota Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

We already have one confirmed retirement fight later in the card for Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Gordon also leave his gloves in the cage if he suffers a third-straight loss against Costa.

(Pick: Costa)

Macy Chiasson vs. Bia Mesquita

The UFC clearly doesn’t feel like it needs to waste much time building Mesquita up, and it’s hard to see a path to victory here for Chiasson if she isn’t able to fend off the Brazilian’s takedowns.

(Pick: Mesquita)

Alatengheili vs. Juan Diaz

It’s a tough look that Diaz missed weight here given that Alatengheili is the one that’s coming in on short notice, and he’ll need to put in a very convincing performance in order to encourage both fans and the UFC brass to overlook that mistake.

(Pick: Diaz)

Evan Elder vs. Juan Diaz

Evan Elder (red gloves) reacts after defeating Gauge Young (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at T-Mobile Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It’s unfortunate that Elder hasn’t been able to establish any real momentum in the UFC due to extended layoffs, but hopefully “The Phenom” will be able to stay a bit more active after collecting what would be a fourth-straight win here.

(Pick: Elder)

Be sure to check back with us tomorrow for main card predictions as well as live results and highlights from all the action at UFC 334.

Add us as a preferred source on Google