Top Flyweights Do Battle in Edmonton Saturday Night

It’s getting to be early November and if you’re in Canada, the calendar flipping over to the 11th month of the year can only mean one thing: Over the next three weekends, including this Saturday, the CFL‘s postseason will play out. Let’s be honest with ourselves here:

On the afternoon and evening of Nov. 2, not everyone in Canada will be watching three-down football. While teams in the East and West Divisions of the CFL fight it out to play in next week’s Division Finals, MMA takes the spotlight in the province of Manitoba.

This Saturday night, Dana White‘s promotion touches down in Edmonton’s Rogers Place for UFC Edmonton. Inside the United States, this card will be seen gavel-to-gavel over ESPN+.

Live coverage begins at 5 pm ET/ 2 pm PT on the streaming platform with the prelims before moving onto main card action at 8 pm ET/ 5 pm PT.

MMA Sucka Public Service Announcement: Daylight Savings Time ends Sunday morning at 2 am local time. Set your clocks back one hour before going to bed on Saturday night.

Flyweights Duke it Out in UFC Edmonton Main Event

All told, absent of any postponed or cancelled fights, the final version of UFC Edmonton features a full 14-fight card. Highlighting the night’s activities is a contest between top contenders in the UFC flyweight division.

No. 2 contender and former UFC Flyweight Champion Brandon Moreno (21-8-2 MMA, 9-5-2 UFC) locks horns with No. 3 contender Amir Albazi (17-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC.) As with all UFC main events, the UFC Edmonton main event is an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close the show.

Flyweight fireworks coming this weekend! 💥

Our #UFCEdmonton headliners squared off ahead of Saturday night! 🇨🇦

[ Watch LIVE on @ESPNPlus | 8pmET/5pmPT ] pic.twitter.com/kt2CTvW9Ms

— UFC (@ufc) October 31, 2024

UFC Edmonton Main Event Fighter Comparison and Betting Odds

Heading into the UFC Edmonton main event on Saturday night, Brandon Moreno is the taller contestant at 5-foot-7, compared to Amir Albazi’s 5-foot-5 frame. Moreno owns a two-inch reach advantage (70 inches to 68 inches) over Albazi, with the fighters holding identical 38-inch leg reaches.

Currently, the oddsmakers have Brandon Moreno installed as a -173 favorite on the money line, with Amir Albazi countering as a +148 underdog. If you plan on betting on this or any other fight happening in MMA or combat sports this weekend, please wager responsibly.

Moreno Back After Eight-Month Layoff

Brandon Moreno enters the UFC Edmonton main event this weekend having posted a record of 2-3 in his last five fights. At present, he’s on a two-fight losing streak.

Last time out, he dropped a split decision to Brandon Royval (17-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) during the Feb. 24 UFC Mexico City main event. Wednesday afternoon, Moreno met with the press to discuss the time he spent away from the Octagon.

“I think it’s very easy, man, like I’m a competitor,” Moreno began. “When I decided to take a little break off of competition, everything was fine in that moment, but after that, three weeks after, I’m starting to think ‘Damn, I want to fight. I want to fight, I want to fight,’ but then my wife, my family helped me a lot with that, like ‘Hey, you have to take a break. You have to take it seriously. You have to rest. You have to be with your family, with your daughters and make more nice moments with them first’”.

Moreno later said he made the right call in taking time away from the cage. Given that he’s been out of action for eight months, how much ring rust does he have?

For the answer, watch the UFC Edmonton main event.

Albazi Returns After Medical Issues

In the other corner, Amir Albazi has gone 5-0 in his last five fights. An alumnus of both Bellator MMA and Brave CF, he’s won six in a row dating back to November of 2019.

Back in June of 2023, he scored a split decision victory over Kai Kara-France (25-11, 1 NC MMA, 8-4 UFC) during UFC Fight Night: Kara-France vs. Albazi inside the UFC Apex in Enterprise, NV.  Initially, this fight with Brandon Moreno was supposed to have happened already.

Moreno and Albazi were booked to fight in Mexico City on Feb. 24, but the contest was scrapped ahead of fight night after the latter underwent neck surgery. Albazi used his media availability to discuss his hardships after undergoing a heart procedure.

“I kept training for the fight against Brandon Moreno in Mexico City, and then my left arm literally stopped,” Albazi recalled. “I couldn’t lift my arm up, I couldn’t jab, I couldn’t do anything, but I still kept training. After I got my first MRI, the first doctor said ‘You shouldn’t be fighting anymore. Find a 9:00-to-5:00 [job].’”

With Albazi now having received a clean bill of health, can he get back in the win column on Saturday night?

Analysis, Film Study, and Prediction

Stylistically, the UFC Edmonton main event looks to favor Brandon Moreno, a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, compared to Amir Albazi’s status as a purple belt in BJJ.

Moreno Fierce on the Ground

Statistically speaking, Brandon Moreno has scored 11 of his 21 career victories by way of submission. Thus, it stands to reason that he could send the UFC Edmonton main event to the ground as soon as possible.

One need look no further than his UFC 263 fight against Deiveson Figuereido in Glendale, AZ from 2021. During the third round of a scheduled five, as this was a championship contest, Moreno dropped Figuereido and attempted a triangle choke, before jettisoning to ground and pound to soften him up for a successful rear-naked choke.

All Brandon Moreno has to do is drop Amir Albazi a single time in the UFC Edmonton main event. If he takes Albazi down, he’s golden.

Albazi Has Fists of Fury

In the other corner, Amir Albazi can punch his way to a win on Saturday, like he did in 2022 versus Alessandro Costa. During the third and final round, he took Costa down about a minute into the period and established top control before Costa rose to his feet.

From there, Albazi stalked Costa, hunting for the knockout punch, connecting on a vicious right hand to drop him on the canvas. A quick flurry of ground and pound ended the contest.

So long as Amir Albazi can unload a nasty punch, this fight will be his.

Final Thoughts

The stretch run of the UFC’s 2024 schedule begins with UFC Edmonton on Saturday night. Expect fireworks in the main event.

Prediction: Brandon Moreno by Third-Round Submission.