UFC 248: Adesanya vs. Romero - Predictions and Picks

#3 Drakkar Klose vs. Beneil Dariush

Drakkar Klose is looking for the biggest win of his career over Beneil Dariush

This battle of Lightweight contenders was supposed to go down way back in July 2019, but Dariush ended up dropping out with an injury, and so the fight was scrapped. Since then, both men have won their most recent fights; Dariush impressively choked out Frank Camacho in October while Klose took a decision over Christos Giagos in August.

Interestingly, both men are largely flying under the radar right now; Dariush hasn’t really been in contention since his run from 2017 to 2018 that saw him go 0-2-1, and while he’s still an excellent grappler with solid striking fundamentals, he’s also seemingly older than his 30 years and is worryingly slow for a 155lber. But still, he is on a three-fight win streak and has some of the most dangerous ground skills in the division.

Klose meanwhile – with a name like an intergalactic bounty hunter from a sci-fi movie – is actually 5-1 in the UFC and looked excellent in a couple of his wins, namely over Marc Diakiese and Bobby Green, but his defeat at the hands of David Teymur, along with stretches of inactivity, have left him as somewhat of a forgotten man.

Essentially, this is a fight of athleticism and potential against polished but far less naturally talented skills. Klose is far quicker than Dariush, hits harder and pushes an astonishing pace at times, but Dariush is a far more technical striker and on the ground, he’s light years ahead with his grappling.

The question then is whether Klose can push a hard enough pace that Dariush tires out to the point that his offense is neutralized, or whether he can even catch him unawares with something violent just as Alexander Hernandez did in 2018. If he can’t do that – or if Dariush can close the distance and take him down – then he’s probably going to be in a lot of trouble.

I think I’m leaning towards Dariush here; Klose has never shown the kind of knockout power that Hernandez or Edson Barboza used to KO the Iranian and being a wrestler, he’s much more likely to initiate a grappling exchange, particularly if Dariush hurts him with strikes of his own – which he’s definitely capable of doing.

Dariush might find himself in trouble at some point, particularly if Klose turns out to be far faster than him, but overall I think it’s his fight to lose.

The Pick: Dariush via second-round submission