UFC Vegas 34 Prelims: Ramiz Brahimaj vs Sasha Palatnikov – Prediction and Analysis

UFC Vegas 34: Cannonier vs Gastelum will take place this Saturday. Apart from the main event, there are other fights that can make a wonderful watch for the audience. In the prelims card, an exciting welterweight battle between Ramiz Brahimaj and Sasha Palatnikov will take place.

Brahimaj will enter the battle against Sasha on the back of a loss against Max Griffin via TKO at UFC on ESPN 17: Santos vs Teixeira. He has been hot and cold in his last few matches with 3 losses in his last 5 fights. His career record stands at 8 wins and 3 losses. All those 8 wins have come via submissions.

Meanwhile, Palatnikov will enter his third battle in the promotion. His last outing against Impa Kasanganay ended in a submission loss at UFC on ABC 2: Vettori vs Holland. Prior to that, he had picked up a TKO win over Louis Cosce at UFC 255: Figueiredo vs Perez.

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His overall career record stands at 6 wins and 3 losses. Out of those 6 wins, 3 have come via KO/TKO and 3 via decisions.

Ramiz Brahimaj vs Sasha Palatnikov- analysis

If we compare their physical stats, Brahimaj stands at 5’10” in height and has a reach of 72″. Meanwhile, Sasha measures 6’2″ in height and has a similar reach of 72″.

Brahimaj lands 3.73 significant strikes per minute with an accuracy of 36%. He absorbs 6.14 significant strikes with a defense rate of 55%. Meanwhile, Palatnikov lands 7.58 significant strikes with an accuracy of 52%. He absorbs 6.15 significant strikes with a defense rate of 52%. He also has an average takedown of 0.82 per 15 minutes.

Palatnikov proved much more durable than anyone could have expected against Cosce. He also did a good job for himself in the first round of the Kasanganay fight. But Brahimaj would definitely create problems for him. He is well versed on the feet and could trouble Palatnikov on the canvas.

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If Brahimaj opts to not wrestle, Palatnikov could sense a win here, as he could handle him on the feet. It will be interesting to see if Brahimaj starts the canvas grind or Palatnikov brings his feared top control into play. But in the end, Brahimaj’s game seems to be more stable than Palatnikov’s.

Final Prediction: Brahimaj via second-round submission