The MMA Daily

We have a showdown in the Featherweight division, as Brian “Boom” Kelleher takes on Umar Nurmagomedov. A winner of two-straight and three of his last four, Kelleher heads into this bout with excellent momentum. While Kelleher has notably fought most his bouts in the Bantamweight division, it appears that Featherweight may be his new home. Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov comes into this fight a perfect 13-0. Having successfully debuted in January of last year, with a submission victory over Sergey Morozov, Nurmagomedov will look to continue his dominance. One in which, has been associated with his cousin, Khabib Nurmagomedov.

As for a prediction, I have Nurmagomedov winning. While Kelleher has shown off his wrestling of late, he’s going to need his takedown defense and patented guillotine to keep Nurmagomedov off him. Something which I don’t believe Kelleher will be able to do. With a 60% takedown defense, and having been taken six times in a loss to Ricky Simon, there is little reason not to expect Nurmagomedov to achieve similar results. In his debut, he scored five takedowns and nearly three minutes of control before sinking in a fight ending submission in round two. A likewise result that I’m predicting here, as Nurmagomedov gets it done via submission.