UFC Fight Night 140: Magny vs. Ponzinibbio - Predictions and Picks

#2 Darren Elkins vs. Ricardo Lamas

Can Darren Elkins grind out another win, this time over Ricardo Lamas?

A pair of perennial contenders at 145lbs – Lamas fought for the title against Jose Aldo in 2014 – both Lamas and Elkins might be on the downswing of their UFC careers now following losses to some younger talent, and that means that both men will have their backs against the wall here as they are both craving a big win to get back on track.

Both men have similar styles – relying on a strong wrestling background and a solid if rudimentary striking game to grind their opponent down. Lamas has more finishes on his record, but overall they’re cut from the same cloth.

The fight will likely come down to two areas; whether Lamas proves to be a stronger grappler than Elkins, and whether Lamas, after his losses to Josh Emmett and Mirsad Bektic, can still absorb the same kind of punishment he was once able to.

Elkins has become renowned for taking insane amounts of punishment – hence his nickname ‘The Damage’ – and it doesn’t appear that his chin is shot just yet as he has only been stopped once in his UFC career, by the hard-hitting Chad Mendes back in 2013. Even if Lamas finds some success early, he may well find it difficult to continue to beat on an opponent who simply won’t go away.

It is notable however that all of Elkins’ UFC losses have come against fighters who were capable of outgrappling him rather than trying to put him away with strikes – Hacran Dias, Jeremy Stephens and Alexander Volkanovski all had success taking Elkins down – and I believe that Lamas, with his powerful wrestling, could replicate that gameplan.

Elkins can’t be counted out due to his toughness and likely superior cardio but in a match of mirror images, I’m favouring the slightly superior athlete in Lamas to be able to grind Elkins down for a likely close decision.

The Pick: Lamas via split decision