Adesanya vs. Romero: UFC 248 Odds and Predictions

It’s one of two title fights on the night. Here’s a preview of both (no Canadians on the card overall) with the main card starting at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view.

Israel Adesanya (18-0) vs. Yoel Romero (13-4)

Division: Middleweight

Prediction: Adesanya by KO/TKO

There’s some talk that if Adesanya wins, he will fight light heavyweight champion and UFC pound-for-pound king Jon Jones next. Sports Interaction already has odds up on that potential bout, with Jones at -130 and Adesanya +100. Those two have been trading insults and calling each other out for months. More than likely, Adesanya, No. 6 in the pound-for-pound rankings, will fight the second-ranked middleweight Paulo Costa first. Costa and Adesanya had been targeted to meet instead of Romero, but Costa had some health issues.

It’s likely Costa next because Adesanya, a 30-year-old from Nigeria, already dominated former champion and No. 1 ranked Robert Whittaker, beating him by second-round KO last October to win the undisputed belt. In April 2019, Adesanya won the interim belt (Whittaker was sidelined) with a unanimous decision victory over Kelvin Gastelum. Thus, this will be the first defence as undisputed middleweight champion for “the Last Stylebender.” A total of 14 of his 18 wins are by KO or TKO and none by submission.  Adesanya is one of 13 fighters in UFC history to win an undisputed title with an undefeated record. His 18-fight winning streak is the third-longest active run in the UFC.

Romero is a 42-year-old who wrestled for the Cuban national team in the 2000 Olympics (and 2004) and won a silver medal in the freestyle competition yet never has won an MMA fight by submission. “Soldier of God” now calls Miami home and is ranked third in the middleweight division. Probably his last title shot at his age. Romero got two previous title chances and lost both to Whittaker via the judges. Romero was last in the Octagon in August 2019 and lost to Costa by unanimous decision. Romero is 1-3 in his past four overall.

Weili Zhang (20-1) vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (16-3)

Division: Women’s strawweight

Prediction: Zhang by decision

Zhang is the first Chinese fighter in UFC history, male or female, to be a champion. Of course, China is ground zero for the coronavirus sweeping over the world, and Zhang was forced to move her training camp because of it. She says it didn’t affect any preparation and wants to inspire those affected by the disease in her home country with a victory.  The 30-year-old Zhang is 4-0 since joining the UFC and won the belt with a shockingly fast TKO (42 seconds in) of Jessica Andrade last August. “Magnum” is ranked as the No. 3 pound-for-pound fighter among women and her 20-fight winning streak is second among all active UFC fighters, male or female.

Jedrzejczyk, a 32-year-old from Poland, is ranked No. 4 in the strawweight division and No. 5 in pound-for-pound. She ruled atop the strawweight division for a few years before losing back-to-back fights vs. Rose Namajunas. In December 2018, Jedrzejczyk tried her luck at flyweight with a title fight vs. Valentina Shevchenko but lost by unanimous decision and moved back to strawweight. She comes off a unanimous decision win over Michelle Waterson. Jedrzejczyk has earned 11 of her 16 victories by decision.