Picking & Grinning: UFC Fight Night ‘Brunson vs. Machida’

Derek Brunson intends to bolster his resume at the expense of a former Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder.

The Jackson-Wink MMA export will take on Lyoto Machida in the UFC Fight Night 119 main event on Saturday at Geraldo Jose de Almeida Gymnasium in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Meanwhile, American Top Team’s Colby Covington locks horns with 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist Demian Maia in the welterweight co-headliner at 170 pounds. The rest of the six-fight main card features a lightweight tilt slotting Francisco Trinaldo opposite Jim Miller, a middleweight affair pitting Thiago Santos against Jack Hermansson and a pair of bantamweight battles, as Pedro Munhoz squares off with Rob Font and John Lineker collides with Marlon Vera.

Ahead of UFC Fight Night “Brunson vs. Machida,” Sherdog.com staff members and contributors swallowed their pride and put their reputations on the line with bold predictions:

THE LINEUP

185: Derek Brunson vs. Lyoto Machida
170: Colby Covington vs. Demian Maia
135: Pedro Munhoz vs. Rob Font
155: Francisco Trinaldo vs. Jim Miller
185: Thiago Santos vs. Jack Hermansson
135: John Lineker vs. Marlon Vera
170: Vicente Luque vs. Niko Price
185: Antonio Carlos Jr. vs. Jack Marshman
155: Hacran Dias vs. Jared Gordon
170: Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos vs. Max Griffin
125: Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Jarred Brooks
265: Christian Colombo vs. Marcelo Golm

THE STANDINGS

Jordan Breen: 227-106
Tristen Critchfield: 224-109
Brian Knapp: 217-116
Todd Martin: 212-121
Mike Fridley: 207-126
Eric Stinton: 207-126

THE PICKS

Jordan Breen: Brunson, Covington, Font, Trinaldo, Santos, Lineker, Luque, Carlos Jr., Gordon, dos Santos, Brooks, Golm

Tristen Critchfield: Brunson, Covington, Font, Trinaldo, Hermansson, Lineker, Price, Carlos Jr., Dias, dos Santos, Brooks, Golm

Brian Knapp: Brunson, Covington, Font, Trinaldo, Santos, Lineker, Price, Carlos Jr., Gordon, dos Santos, Brooks, Golm

Todd Martin: Brunson, Covington, Font, Trinaldos, Santos, Lineker, Price, Carlos Jr., Gordon, dos Santos, Brooks, Golm

Mike Fridley: Brunson, Maia, Font, Trinaldo, Santos, Lineker, Price, Carlos Jr., Gordon, dos Santos, Brooks, Golm

Eric Stinton: Brunson, Maia, Munhoz, Miller, Santos, Lineker, Price, Carlos Jr., Gordon, Griffin, Figueiredo, Golm