Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos prediction, pick, start time for UFC on ESPN 69
Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos prediction, pick, start time for UFC on ESPN 69
Cody Garbrandt and Raoni Barcelos meet Saturday on the main card of UFC on ESPN 69 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 3-2
UFC main cards, 2025: 52-43-1
Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos UFC on ESPN 69 preview
Garbrandt (14-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC) will look to bounce back from a submission loss to Deiveson Figueiredo last April at UFC 300. That result ended the momentum of back-to-back wins over Trevin Jones and Brian Kelleher. Since dropping the bantamweight title in 2017, Garbrandt has gone 3-5. ... Barcelos (19-5 MMA, 8-4 UFC) has put together back-to-back wins for the first time since 2019-20. He enters on the heels of a unanimous decision win over Payton Talbott, a fight in which he defied massive odds at the betting window. Prior to that upset, he submitted Christian Quinonez. Now, he'll get a heat check against a former champion.
Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos UFC on ESPN 69 expert pick, prediction
Serving as a solid matchup at 135 pounds is a showdown between two experienced fighters, Cody Garbrandt and Raoni Barcelos.
Despite steadily morphing into an amalgamation of Ryan Gosling's character in "The Place Beyond The Pines" and Waingro from "Heat," Garbrandt claims to be healthy and doing well ahead of this contest with Barcelos.
However, all joking aside, it can be hard to know exactly where Garbrandt is given his extensive list of health issues, ranging from vertigo to back problems (not to mention his concussion history that dates back to his amateur competitions).
Still, power is the last thing to go, and Barcelos, 38, is not beyond being sparked out at this point in his career. But with Barcelos being the fighter who has clearly done more wrestling and jiu-jitsu maintenance over recent years, I suspect that the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt could be one takedown away from exposing Garbrandt on the floor and changing the complexion of this fight.
Even though a knockout in either direction wouldn't shock me, I'll officially pick Barcelos by submission in Round 2.
Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos UFC on ESPN 69 odds
The oddsmakers and the public favor the Brazilian fighter, listing Barcelos -205 and Garbrandt +164 via FanDuel.
Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos UFC on ESPN 69 start time, how to watch
Garbrandt and Barcelos are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 11:10 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts on ESPN and ESPN+.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
UFC on ESPN 69 bonuses: Phil Rowe's comeback snubbed in Atlanta
UFC on ESPN 69 bonuses: Phil Rowe's comeback snubbed in Atlanta Show Caption Hide Caption UFC on ESPN 69: Jose Ochoa post-fight interview UFC on ESPN 69 winner Jose Ochoa talks to MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight after his KO victory over Cody Durden in Atlanta. The UFC handed out four bonuses after Saturday's card in Atlanta, but left a comeback upset with its cheese out in the wind. After UFC on ESPN 69, four fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Atlanta. Check out the winners below – which do not include Phil Rowe's TKO comeback against Ange Loosa on the prelims. At one point during the fight, the live odds were 21-1 against Rowe to win. He finished Loosa in the third round, only to be left absent a bonus. Performance of the Night: Jose Ochoa Jose Ochoa (8-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) went into the second round with Cody Durden (17-8-1 MMA, 6-6-1 UFC), but wasn't interested in staying there long. After a rough loss in his promotional debut, he got his first UFC win just 11 seconds into the middle frame. Performance of the Night: Malcolm Wellmaker Malcolm Wellmaker (10-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) continued to send shockwaves across the bantamweight division when he took out Kris Moutinho (14-7 MMA, 0-3 UFC) with one punch in the first round. It should be noted that Wellmaker did pretty much exactly what he was expected to do. He was the biggest betting favorite of the entire year in the UFC at as much as 20-1. Fight of the Night: Kamaru Usman vs. Joaquin Buckley Kamaru Usman (21-4 MMA, 16-3 UFC) used a wrestling-heavy attack to outwork Joaquin Buckley (21-7 MMA, 11-5 UFC) for a unanimous decision in the main event. Usman spent more than half the 25-minute fight on top in control on the canvas and grinded out a win to snap a three-fight skid. The ex-welterweight champion snapped Buckley's six-fight winning streak.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Midnight Mania! ‘I Didn't Want To Suffer Anymore'
Welcome to Midnight Mania! Let's start things off by looking back at the three biggest stories from earlier today: Francis Ngannou's coach walked back his comments about a potential return to UFC. It looks like it's Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall or nothing in the UFC's limited heavyweight division. Daniel Cormier confused fight fans by giving an inaccurate update on Ben Askren's ongoing health issues. Askren is back in his home state of Wisconsin, but is still in the hospital. We're hoping his condition continues to improve. Cody Garbrandt claims that sober Sean O'Malley looked worse at UFC 316 than when he was smoking weed. 'Suga' did put up a dud in his rematch with Merab Dvalishvili. Maybe quitting everything at once was a shock to O'Malley's system. Insomnia It makes sense why Ilia Topuria would make the jump to 155 pounds. Big stakes on the line for this weekend's main event at UFC Atlanta. Advertisement Kayla Harrison wants all the smoke from Amanda Nunes. Does anyone even listen anymore? This will never get old (we love you Max). Babe Ruth? I don't know about that one. Does 'Rampage' need his own reality show? Is Dakota Ditcheva the best striker in women's MMA today? Is Charles Oliveira delusional or is Topuria's power more suited for featherweight? This has to be Fight of the Night, right? Yikes. How we liking this DBX 2 fight poster? Slips, rips, and KO clips Practice makes perfect! Get Jesus in the Octagon right now. Random Land Make this make sense... Worst pitch in recent memory? Sleep well, Maniacs! More MMA madness will be on the way. Advertisement More from
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Fighters react to Kamaru Usman's rebound win vs. Joaquin Buckley at UFC on ESPN 69
Kamaru Usman ended a nearly four-year winless drought Saturday against Joaquin Buckley in the UFC on ESPN 69 main event. Former long-time welterweight champion Usman (21-4 MMA, 16-3 UFC) snapped a three-fight winless skid with a unanimous decision victory over the red-hot Buckley (22-7 MMA, 11-5 UFC) in the headlining bout at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Advertisement Check below for the top X (formerly Twitter) reactions to Usman beating Buckley at UFC on ESPN 69. This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC Atlanta: Fighters react to Kamaru Usman's win over Joaquin Buckley
