Roman Kopylov vs Cesar Almeida Prediction: Nothing but a Knockout

Get ready for an exhilarating showdown as the tournament makes its way to the United States on June 2nd. But before that, the octagon will witness the preliminary bouts. The stage is set for a thrilling clash between two of the sport's top strikers, Russian Roman Kopylov and Brazilian Cesar Almeida, in the middleweight category. 

Roman Kopylov is an honored Russian hand-to-hand combat master, world champion, and former AMC Fight Nights champion. Despite starting his UFC journey with two losses in 2019, he quickly adapted and embarked on a four-fight winning streak, all ending with knockouts. His last bout may have been a setback - a struggle with Anthony Hernandez's wrestling, but this opponent will be easier to beat, and the Russian fighter will be happy to take on such an arrangement.

I'm not too familiar with Almeida. Looked him up a bit: puncher, fights on his feet, and four knockouts in five fights. So Kopylov needs to look for diversity and don't just focus on his punches. In Rasul Magomedaliev's gym, there are many freestyle fighters. Roman took his last fight on short notice, so I do not regard it as a defeat.

Ramazan Ismailov, a Pro MMA Fighter

Cesar Almeida is a newcomer to the UFC. He's only fought once here, defeating by knockout over Dylan Budka. Almeida is a professional kickboxer with a record of 47-8 (27 wins by knockout). He's the Superkombat Fighting Championship champion and a former Glory fighter. Just to give you a bit more background, he had three bouts with Alex Pereira under kickboxing rules, with one victory.

It's a bit late for Almeida to make the switch to MMA, though. He's 36, and adapting to such change at that age is tough. Plus, as surprising as it may sound, his weaknesses in wrestling create additional opportunities for Kopylov. Roman's already had his share of setbacks, and his technique has really come along. The Russian doesn't know how to win on points, so if we choose him, we might bet on an early win.