UFC Edmonton: Moreno vs. Albazi Fight Card, Predictions, & Odds

An all-important flyweight fight will be witnessed inside Rogers Place in Edmonton, Canada, on Nov. 2, as No. 2-ranked contender Brandon Moreno takes on the No. 3-ranked challenger Amir Albazi in the main event of the card.

As the former two-time UFC flyweight champion, Moreno heads into the match as the betting favorite with -175 UFC odds. Meanwhile, despite his undefeated record in the promotion, Albazi will be the +145 betting underdog.

Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi Odds

• Bradon Moreno: -175
• Amir Albazi: +145

Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi: Prediction

Moreno’s wealth of experience and better striking should get the better out of Albazi in this matchup. Plus, his grappling skills are at par with that of the Iraqi athlete, which means he can get a unanimous decision nod from the judges.

The tale of the tape is almost identical, but Moreno will have a 2-inch height and 2-inch reach advantage over Albazi. This advantage of the Mexican fighter will be crucial, especially when they are exchanging strikes on their feet.

Stylistically, both have a solid jiu-jitsu base, but Moreno has better striking skills than Albazi, which means he’s more than happy to stand and bang at the middle of the octagon. Aside from his solid striking, Moreno has strong grappling skills that make him a well-rounded athlete.

On the other hand, Albazi is a more dominant grappling fighter who dominates most of his opponents by taking them down. When he secures the takedown, he has two routes to victory: he maneuvers his way into a submission technique and uses his vicious ground-and-pound strikes to secure a TKO finish.

But, I believe that Moreno’s complete MMA skills could steer him into a dominant unanimous decision win because he can frustrate Albazi with his takedown defense and pepper him with several striking combinations, particularly his boxing.

Canada, WE ARE HERE 🍁

It's #UFCEdmonton fight week!

[ LIVE on @ESPNPlus | SAT | 8pmET/5pmPT ] pic.twitter.com/KYeHMJt7z2

— UFC (@ufc) October 28, 2024

Brandon Moreno Recent Fight Results

Moreno was a former two-time UFC flyweight champion after he defeated Deiveson Figueiredo via third-round submission in June 2021 at UFC 263. He surrendered that belt to Figueiredo in their third meeting in January 2022 at UFC 270.

But during their fourth meeting in January 2023, he recaptured the coveted belt by stopping him in the third round of the championship showdown. But his reign was ended by Alexandre Pantoja in July 2023 at UFC 290, where he sustained a split-decision defeat.

His most recent outing was another split-decision loss at Brandon Royval’s hands in their February rematch to receive his eighth professional career setback. He now looks to return to the win column against Albazi and maintain his place at the upper echelon of the weight class.

Amir Albazi Recent Fight Results

Albazi had an outstanding record of 12 wins and one loss when he joined the UFC in 2020. He was also a former UCMMA and FightStar champion. Albazi submitted Malcolm Gordon in his promotional debut in July 2020 in the opening round of their match.

Then, he added more victories to his tally when he defeated Zhalgas Zhumagulov in January 2021, Francisco Figueiredo in August 2022, and Alessandro Costa in December 2022. His most recent win was a split decision over Kai Kara-France in June.

Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi: Tale of the Tape