Muslim Salikhov vs Santiago Ponzinibbio Prediction: the Argentinian Doesn't Stand a Chance

The UFC on ESPN 59 tournament is happening on the night of July 14 in the United States. The co-main event will be a showdown between two tough strikers: Russian Muslim Salikhov and Argentine Santiago Ponzinibbio. The bout will be held in the welterweight category.

Muslim Salikhov is the most decorated wushu-sanda fighter in the world. He's been competing in mixed martial arts since 2011, where he's made a name for himself with his striking abilities. He typically wins by knockout. Muslim has been with the UFC since 2017, and up until 2022, he was on a roll—he had five straight wins, including victories over Eliseu Zaleski and Laureano Staropoli. But then he started failing, and now Salikhov has two consecutive losses, most recently by knockout to Randy Brown. As a result, surprisingly, the bookmakers have him listed as the underdog ahead of his fight with Ponzinibbio.

Santiago Ponzinibbio has been in the UFC for over a decade, but the period from 2018 to 2021 shaped his career. When he came back, he didn't look like the same knockout artist he was before. He's only got two wins in six fights since he came back. On the other hand, the Argentine isn't just known for landing knockouts — he's also occasionally been on the receiving end of some pretty solid punches. In his last fight, Kevin Holland knocked him out pretty badly.

If we believe Salikhov (and there's no reason not to), he's in great shape, and nothing has prevented him from preparing for the fight. Given that the Russian has a much more developed technical arsenal and a superior fighting IQ, he has a better chance of winning. In reality, Ponzinibbio only has one punch left in the tank. Even in terms of timing and speed, he's lost ground. If a Muslim doesn't make a mistake (and he shouldn't make a mistake), he could quickly finish his former formidable opponent.