The MMA Daily

The Bantamweight division plays host to a fun scrap, as Mario Bautista welcomes UFC newcomer Jay Perrin. Looking to rebound, Bautista will try to put his knockout defeat to Trevin Jones behind him. A fight where Bautista looked good early, but was just caught by a heavy shot. Previous to the loss, Bautista had won two straight, including a knockout victory over Miles Johns. Meanwhile, Perrin will make his UFC debut on three days notice. A former Dana White’s Contender Series competitor, Perrin will look to prove that he is UFC caliber. A winner of two straight and seven of his last eight, Perrin heads into his debut with momentum.

As for a prediction, I have Bautista winning. While Perrin looks to be a competitor with some good offensive wrestling and cardio, the short notice nature of the fight combined with some of his weaknesses lean me to Bautista. To me, Perrin just seems to lack takedown defense, his striking isn’t crisp and he doesn’t have much in terms of power. While Perrin doesn’t have to worry about takedowns, he does have to worry about Bautista’s striking output. Averaging nearly 6 significant strikes per minute, Bautista does a good job being active. So with all that said, I predict that Bautista wins via decision.