UFC Fight Night full card picks & predictions for Manel Kape vs. Asu Almabayev

The UFC is back in Las Vegas this weekend for another UFC Fight Night event, and MMA KO’s Drew Beaupré is here to provide predictions for the entire 10-fight card.

UFC Fight Night Main Card

Manel Kape vs. Asu Almabayev

Kape had some significant momentum halted by Muhammad Mokaev but rebounded in a big way against Bruno Silva, while Almabayev impressively hasn’t lost a fight since 2017.

Asu Almabayev fights CJ Vergara during UFC 299 at Kayesa Center. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

“Starboy” should definitely be favored here, but this feels like the kind of style matchup where he’s going to have a tough time unless he’s able to connect with something fight-ending during the early going.

(Pick: Almabayev)

Opening bout for Kape vs. Almabayev UFC Fight Night scrapped on weigh-in day

Cody Brundage vs. Julian Marquez

This card is obviously lacking in big-name matchups, but even with that in mind this is a bit of a lackluster co-main event.

Cody Brundage reacts to defeating Zachary Reese during UFC Fight Night at Moody Center. | Dustin Safranek-Imagn Images

One clear plus to the pairing is that it seems unlikely that this fight will make it to the scorecards, and with Marquesz coming in on a three-fight skid I’ll side with Brundage to score his first win since 2023.

(Pick: Brundage)

Nasrat Haqparast vs. Esteban Ribovics

I’m surprised this fight wasn’t given the co-main event slot given that Haqparast is a longtime UFC veteran and Ribovics is coming off a Fight of the Night performance on the main card of UFC 306.

Nasrat Haqparast fights Landon Quinones during UFC 293 at Qudos Bank Arena. | Jasmin Frank-Imagn Images

Ribovics has all the hype behind him after that victory against Daniel Zellhuber, but Naqparast is currently on the best run of his UFC career and I’ll slightly lean with him to score the upset.

(Pick: Haqparast)

Hyder Amil vs. William Gomis

I’m kind of surprised the UFC set up this matchup for Amil so early into his run with the promotion given that he scored back-to-back finishes in his first two bouts.

William Gomis fights Yanis Ghemmouri during UFC Fight Night at Accor Arena. | Per Haljestam-Imagn Images

The American is obviously a threat to catch Gomis and end things, but “Jaguar” has the experience and skillset necessary to frustrate Amil and hand him his first pro loss.

(Pick: Gomis)

Danny Barlow vs. Sam Patterson

This well-matched welterweight bout seems like it’s guaranteed to kick off the UFC Vegas 103 main card with a finish.

Danny Barlow fights Josh Quinlan during UFC 298 at Honda Center. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

I think Patterson is being a bit underestimated by the odds makers here, but after seeing how "The Future" got caught in his UFC debut it’s hard to pick against a knockout artist like Barlow.

(Pick: Barlow)

Best fights and fighters to watch at UFC Fight Night Manel Kape vs. Asu Almabayev

UFC Fight Night Preliminary Card

Austen Lane vs. Mario Pinto

Mario Pinto punched his ticket to the UFC with a stoppage-win on Dana White's Contender Series. | (Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

Lane was able to preserve his spot on the UFC roster with his upset-win over Robelis Despaigne, but this matchup looks like it’s designed for Pinto to kick off his own UFC career with a big finish.

(Pick: Pinto)

Ricardo Ramos vs. Chepe Mariscal

Chepe Mariscal reacts after defeating Jack Jenkins during UFC 293 at Qudos Bank Arena. | Jasmin Frank-Imagn Images

This could play out as one of the more entertaining matchups on the card, but Mariscal should be able to add another victory to his lengthy win streak when he and Ramos enter the cage.

(Pick: Mariscal)

Danny Silva vs. Lucas Almeida

Andre Fili reacts after defeating Lucas Almeida during UFC 296 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Almeida should be fighting with quite a bit of desperation given that he's gone 2-2 through his first four UFC bouts, and after missing weight for this fight he’ll know that a loss would put his spot on the roster in serious jeopardy.

(Pick: Almeida)

How to watch UFC Vegas 103 & betting odds for Manel Kape vs. Asu Almabayev

Andrea Lee vs. JJ Aldrich

JJ Aldrich fights Veronica Hardy during UFC Fight Night at Enterprise Center. | Jeff Le-Imagn Images

A sixth-straight loss would all but guarantee the end of Lee’s UFC career, and while it’s not an especially confident pick I have to side with Aldrich here.

(Pick: Aldrich)

Charles Johnson vs. Ramazan Temirov

Charles Johnson knocks out Joshua Van during UFC Fight Night at Ball Arena. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Johnson has been buried on the prelims of this card despite being the only ranked fighter outside of the main event, and while UFC newcomer Temirov is a dangerous challenge I think “InnerG” can get the job done and hopefully get a chance to fight up the rankings in his next outing.

(Pick: Johnson)

MMA KO will be providing comprehensive coverage for UFC Vegas 103 all throughout fight week, and be sure to check back on our homepage for a preview of the event as well as live results and highlights on fight night.

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