Merab Dvalishvili vs Henry Cejudo Picks and Prediction – 2/18/2024

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Bantamweight contenders Merab "The Machine" Dvalishvili and Henry “Triple C” Cejudo will square off in the Octagon at UFC 298 on Saturday at Honda Center, Anaheim, California. Get ready for everything UFC with our UFC Picks.

Dvalishvili, who is 33 and ranked second in the division, is 16-4-0 overall and 9-2 in the UFC. “The Machine” lost his first two fights with the UFC, but he has now won nine in a row. Eight of those wins went to the judges, with Dvalishvili winning each by unanimous decision. His two UFC losses were by split decision and submission.

Cejudo, who is 37 and ranked third in the division, is 16-3-0 in his career and 10-3 in the UFC. Eight of Cejudo’s UFC bouts have gone the distance with two being split-decision losses. His other UFC loss was a KO by Demetrious Johnson in April 2016. “Triple C” has eight wins by KO/TKO, four in the UFC.

Dvalishvili lands 4.46 significant strikes per minute, while Cejudo lands 3.93. Cejudo is a slightly more efficient striker, landing 47% compared to Dvalishvili’s 41%. Dvalishvili gets hit less, however, taking 2.41 significant strikes per min to Cejudo’s 3.15.

Dvalishvili is a top-notch wrestler, taking his opponents down 6.55 times per 15 minutes. Dvalishvili finishes 36% of his takedown attempts and stops 78%. Cejudo’s takedown success rate is 34%, but he only gets 2.07 takedowns a match. Cejudo wards off 83% of the takedowns attempted against him.