Omari Akhmedov and Tom Breese are fighting at UFC Fight Island 7 on Saturday, January 16, 2021 on ESPN+.

In this middleweight (185lb) bout, we have #13 ranked middleweight Omari “Wolverine” Akhmedov vs. Tom Breese. Breese is a southpaw fighter and is entering this bout as a -155 favorite. He has a professional MMA record of 12-2-0. His current record in the UFC is 5-2-0. Breese is fighting out of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. He won his last bout against K.B. Bhullar in February 2020. Breese has 5 wins by KO/TKO (42%), 6 submissions (50%), and 1 decision (8%). When Breese has previously fought top level talent such as Brendan Allen or Sean Strickland, he has lost. 

Akhmedov is an orthodox fighter and is entering this fight as a +125 underdog. He is fighting out of Makhachkala, Dagestan, Russia. His professional MMA record is 20-5-1. His current record in the UFC is 8-4-1. In Akhmedov’s last bout, he lost to Chris Weidman via decision. However, he was on a three fight win streak before this loss. Akhmedov has 7 wins via KO/TKO (35%), 5 submissions (25%), and 8 decisions (40%).  Akhmedov has faced and won against many top level fighters including Ian Heinisch, Zak Cummings, and Tim Boetsch. He also has a draw against the #5 ranked middleweight Marvin Vettori. 

As a fight fan, you should be excited about watching this middleweight fight. Breese has recently become one of my favorite fighters to watch. In 3 out of 4 of Breese’s last wins, he has received the performance of the night bonus. Aside from him being one of the most dangerous fighters, he is also beginning to be a fan favorite. Breese has suffered from anxiety throughout his career and he has been vocal about these struggles. When Breese is mentally prepared, his performance has been remarkable. However, when he isn’t mentally prepared, he has not performed up to his standards. The difficulty in this fight is Breese will be facing a well-rounded fighter. 

Akhmedov has proven that he is a high level mixed martial artist. One of his many strengths is his wrestling. In my opinion, he is overall the more well-rounded fighter in this bout. However, Akhmedeov did lose his last fight to Chris Weidman. Weidman is a high-level wrestler and he outclassed Akhmedov on the ground. In previous fights, Akhmedov has been vocal about his struggles adjusting to the time difference when traveling to the United States for his previous fights, but this fight is in Abu Dhabi, which will make the commute easier for Akhmedov. Even though I’m a huge Breese Fan, I’m going to pick the underdog Akhmedov to win. 

I pick Omari Akhmedov +125