Predictions! UFC Vegas 52 ‘Prelims’ Preview – Pt. 2

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is bringing more “Prelims” fights to ESPN+ this weekend (Sat., April 23, 2022) when UFC Vegas 52: “Lemos vs. Andrade” returns to UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. MMAmania.com’s Patrick Stumberg continues the UFC Vegas 52 “Prelims” party with the second (and final) installment of a two-part undercard preview series below.

Women’s Strawweight bruiser, Amanda Lemos, puts her five-fight win streak on the line this Saturday (April 23, 2022) when she takes on former champion, Jessica Andrade, inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC Vegas 52’s co-feature pits ageless veteran Clay Guida against fast-rising Claudio Puelles, while Maycee Barber returns to action in a Flyweight clash with The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) veteran, Montana De La Rosa.

Three UFC Vegas 52 “Prelims” undercard bouts remain to preview and predict (check out the first four here), expertly prepared for your viewing pleasure below:

170 lbs.: Louis Cosce vs. Preston Parsons

Louis Cosce (7-1) joined brother Orion in the Octagon by smashing Victor Reyna in 72 seconds on Contender Series. He looked poised for another quick finish in his “Fight of the Night” Octagon debut, but ran out of steam and suffered a technical knockout loss to Sasha Palatnikov.

Saturday’s fight ends a 17-month layoff for “The Monster.”

Preston Parsons (9-3) put a submission loss to Valdir Araujo behind him to rattle off a four-fight win streak, then stepped up on short notice to fight Daniel Rodriguez in his Octagon debut. The momentum wasn’t to last, as “Pressure” succumbed to “D-Rod’s” power late in the first round.

All of his professional wins have come by submission, eight of them in the first round.

The real question here is how much weight I give potential. Between his physicality, wrestling background and punching power, Cosce looks like he should be, well, a “Monster.” Indeed, my first instinct is to brush off that loss to Palatnikov as the product of overeagerness. At the same time, it’s hard to overlook the fact that he couldn’t consistently out-wrestle Palatnikov, who got manhandled and submitted his next two times out. He didn’t show much stand up beyond aggressive brawling, either, while Parsons was holding his own against Rodriguez before taking damage to his eye.

I think I have to go with Parsons. Unless Cosce’s improved massively since that debacle, I don’t trust his grappling or technical striking to hold up against the more battle-tested “Pressure.” In the end, Parsons survives a rough start to drag down Cosce and tap him out.

Prediction: Parsons via second round submission

190 lbs.: Jordan Wright vs. Marc-Andre Barriault

Though Jordan Wright (12-2) fell short on Contender Series, he made the most of a late-notice UFC debut, stopping Ike Villanueva in just 91 seconds. He’s 1-2 since, most recently falling to Brazilian knockout artist Bruno Silva in Dec. 2021.

“Beverly Hills Ninja” has ended 11 of 12 victories inside of one round.

After starting his UFC career 0-3 (1 NC), Marc-Andre Barriault (13-5) finally secured his first Octagon win streak with victories over Abu Azaitar and Dalcha Lungiambula. This set up a bout with Contender Series graduate, Chidi Njokuani, who handed “Power Bar” the first stoppage loss of his career.

He steps in for Roman Kopylov on less than two weeks’ notice.

This is really a question of whether that Njokuani loss broke Barriault’s chin for good. If he just got clipped by a perfect shot, it’s his fight to lose, as Wright is far too fragile to hold up in a protracted slugfest. If that durability’s gone, however, it’s easy to picture “Power Bar” crumpling from Wright’s usual blitz.

I’ll be an optimist. He’ll have more trouble with Wright than the much more technically adept Kopylov would have, but he’ll still manage to weather the storm and club Wright into submission late in the first frame.

Prediction: Barriault via first round technical knockout

170 lbs.: Dwight Grant vs. Sergey Khandozhko

After graduating from Contender Series in 2018, Dwight Grant (11-4) enjoyed a 3-2 Octagon start, most notably leveling Carlo Pedersoli to earn “Performance of the Night.” Then came Francisco Trinaldo, who narrowly edged Grant out in the fourth split decision of “The Body Snatcher’s” UFC tenure.

He boasts a two-inch reach advantage over “Honda.”

ACB veteran Sergey Khandozhko (27-6-1) started his UFC career off right with a decision over then-unbeaten Rostem Akman. He then welcomed Rustam Khabilov to the Welterweight division after a long run at 155 pounds, ultimately losing a unanimous decision.

Injury, COVID and other issues made this his first fight since 2019.

Grant’s fights are always an absolute pain to pick. All those split decisions aren’t a coincidence — he combines lethargic output with huge, overdramatic swings that rarely connect, often resulting in staring matches. Khandozhko also hasn’t fought in almost 30 months, adding an extra layer of uncertainty.

I suppose if there’s one thing I can trust Khandozhko to do, it’s be aggressive. He landed more significant strikes in the Akman fight than Grant has ever managed in a 15-minute stretch. He’s also a full eight years younger than Grant, and though he’s had issues with his defensive wrestling before, Grant only rarely leans on takedowns. In short, he out-works “The Body Snatcher” to secure a narrow decision win.

Prediction: Khandozhko via split decision

Eh, it’s UFC Vegas 52 or paying $70 for Fury vs. Whyte if you want to get your combat sports fix. See you Saturday, Maniacs.

Current UFC “Prelims” Prediction Record for 2022: 56-26

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Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 52 fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance (also on ESPN+) at 9 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 52: “Lemos vs. Andrade” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.