Thiago Moises and Christos Giagos face off on Saturday in a lightweight showdown in the main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Thiago Moises comes into this fight with a 15-6 record overall but he has lost two fights in a row. Moises last five-game against Joel Alvarez in November of 2021 and he was dominated in that fight. Moises was outstruck 44-11 and that led to the unanimous decision loss. Moises is averaging 2.52 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 4.17 significant strikes per minute. He is averaging 1.0 takedowns every 15 minutes and he is successful on 35 percent of his takedown attempts. He also stops 60 percent of his opponent's takedown attempts.
On the other side of this matchup is Christos Giagos who sits with a 19-9 record overall and he has won two of his last three fights. Giagos last fight came against Arman Tsarukyan in September of 2021 and he really struggled in that fight. Giagos was outstruck 22-1 and two minutes into the fight he was knocked out. Two fights ago against Sean Soriano in May of 2021 he won the fight by submission. Giagos is averaging 2.88 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 2.93 significant strikes per minute. Giagos wants to get the fight to the ground and he is averaging 3.31 takedowns every 15 minutes and he is successful on 41 percent of his takedown attempts. He also stops 52 percent of his opponent's takedown attempts. He also averages 0.5 submission attempts every 15 minutes.
Moises has some losses in the UFC, but he has fought some strong fighters heading into this one. Moises has improved his striking, and I think he has an advantage in this fight with his hands. Giagos at times hasn’t stayed very busy inside the ring, and I don’t expect him to be very aggressive in this fight. Moises is going to control the fight and will secure the victory. Back Moises to win by decision.
AUTHOR: Shane Mickle
Mitch's Take...
