Picking & Grinning: UFC on Fox 22 ‘VanZant vs. Waterson’

Paige VanZant and Michelle Waterson want a more prominent place in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s women’s strawweight pecking order.

Team Alpha Male’s VanZant will face Waterson in the UFC on Fox 22 main event on Saturday at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. Meanwhile, the once-beaten Sage Northcutt confronts the undefeated Mickey Gall in the welterweight co-headliner. The rest of the four-fight main card features a bantamweight clash pitting retiring former World Extreme Cagefighting champion Urijah Faber against Brad Pickett and a welterweight affair matching Alan Jouban with Mike Perry.

Ahead of UFC on Fox 22 “VanZant vs. Waterson,” members of the Sherdog.com staff swallowed their pride and put their reputations on the line with bold predictions:

THE LINEUP

115: Paige VanZant (7-2) vs. Michelle Waterson (13-4)
170: Sage Northcutt (8-1) vs. Mickey Gall (3-0)
135: Urijah Faber (33-10) vs. Brad Pickett (25-12)
170: Alan Jouban (14-4) vs. Mike Perry (9-0)
205: Luis Henrique da Silva (12-0) vs. Paul Craig (8-0)
145: Cole Miller (21-10) vs. Mizuto Hirota (17-7-2)
170: Bryan Barberena (12-3) vs. Colby Covington (10-1)
170: James Moontasri (9-4) vs. Alex Morono (12-3)
155: Josh Emmett (10-0) vs. Scott Holtzman (9-1)
135: Leslie Smith (8-7-1) vs. Irena Aldana (7-2)
135: Eddie Wineland (22-11-1) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (21-10-2)
125: Hector Sandoval (12-3) vs. Fredy Serrano (3-1)
170: Bojan Velickovic (14-3-1) vs. Sultan Aliev (13-2)

STANDINGS

Tristen Critchfield (159-84-4)
Jordan Breen (154-89-4)
Brian Knapp (149-94-4)
Mike Sloan (149-94-4)
Mike Fridley (143-100-4)

THE PICKS

Tristen Critchfield: Waterson, Northcutt, Faber, Jouban, Silva, Hirota, Covington, Moontasri, Holtzman, Aldana, Mizugaki, Sandoval, Velickovic

Jordan Breen: VanZant, Gall, Faber, Perry, Silva, Hirota, Covington, Morono, Emmett, Aldana, Wineland, Serrano, Velickovic

Brian Knapp: VanZant, Gall, Faber, Perry, Silva, Hirota, Covington, Moontasri, Holtzman, Aldana, Mizugaki, Sandoval, Velickovic

Mike Sloan: VanZant, Gall, Faber, Jouban, Silva, Miller, Covington, Morono, Emmett, Aldana, Mizugaki, Sandoval, Velickovic

Mike Fridley: VanZant, Gall, Faber, Perry, Craig, Miller, Covington, Moontasri, Emmett, Aldana, Mizugaki, Serrano, Velickovic