UFC 258: Kelvin Gastelum vs. Ian Heinisch Picks and Predictions

Kelvin Gastelum and Ian Heinisch face off on Saturday in the main card of UFC 258 in a middleweight bout in the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. 

Kelvin Gastelum comes into this fight with a 16-6 record overall, but he has lost three fights in a row. Gastelum’s last fight came against Jack Hermansson and he got caught in a bad position in that fight and just over a minute into the fight he lost by a heel hook. Gastelum comes into this fight averaging 3.72 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 3.00 significant strikes per minute. Gastelum is averaging 0.87 takedowns every 15 minutes and he is successful on 37 percent of his attempts. Gastelum is also averaging 0.1 submission attempts every 15 minutes. Gastelum needs to get out to a fast start and try to deliver some damage early, or this fight could be over early. 

Ian “The Hurricane” Heinisch comes into this fight with a 14-3 record overall but he has lost two of his last three fights. In Heinisch’s last fight against Gerald Meerschaert, in June of 2020, it was early in the first round that he was able to finish the fight by knockout. Heinisch is averaging 3.62 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 2.85 significant strikes per minute. Heinisch is also averaging 1.16 successful takedowns every 15 minutes but he is only successful on 19 percent of his takedown attempts. Heinisch is also averaging 0.5 submission attempts every 15 minutes. Since coming into the UFC, Heinisch has won two fights by knockout and two fights have gone to decision.