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#2 UFC Heavyweight division: Aleksei Oleinik vs. Sergey Spivak

Aleksei Oleinik is one of the UFC heavyweight division's most dangerous grapplers

These two European heavyweights will be looking to move up the ladder and hopefully crack the top ten with a win, and interestingly enough, they possess similar styles.

Both men are primarily grapplers, and while they are capable of knocking an opponent out, too, nobody would try to claim they’re the most technical strikers in the game.

Oleinik is obviously far older and thus has far more experience, both inside and outside the UFC.

'The Boa Constrictor' debuted in the octagon in 2014 with nearly two decades of experience behind him, and since then, he’s done surprisingly well. Oleinik, the owner of the UFC’s only two Ezekiel choke finishes, has a UFC record of 8-6, but outside of his recent loss to Chris Daukaus, he’s never been beaten by anything but a high-end opponent.

Spivak, meanwhile, debuted in 2019 and looked painfully out of his depth in a 50-second loss to Walt Harris.

However, since then, 'Polar Bear' has shown plenty of improvements. He’s outgrappled and submitted Tai Tuivasa, outpointed Carlos Felipe, and knocked out Jared Vanderaa, with his only loss coming at the hands of Marcin Tybura.

Spivak is a solid athlete, and he’s also a decent size for a heavyweight at 6’3” and 260lbs. In fact, he’ll probably enjoy a slight size advantage over Oleinik in this fight.

However, where he might struggle is with Oleinik’s experience levels.

Spivak isn’t an explosive finisher like Harris or Alistair Overeem, and Oleinik should have the veteran nous to be able to clinch with him, slow him down, and drag him to the ground.

And for as good as 'Polar Bear' is on the ground, he isn’t the grappler that Oleinik is and doesn’t possess the same kind of submission knowledge. Spivak probably should have some hope here, as Daukaus isn’t an elite-level fighter by any means, suggesting that Oleinik may be finally slowing down.

However, the smart money here is on 'The Boa Constrictor' finding a way to pull off the win.

The Pick: Oleinik via second-round submission