AT A GLANCE
When is UFC Fight Night 153? Saturday 1st June, 2019 - 16:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC Fight Night 153? Ericsson Globe, Stockholm, Sweden
What channel is UFC Fight Night 153 on? BT Sport 3
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night 153? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live and you can take advantage of a free trial with ESPN+ and subscribe now by clicking here!
Are tickets still available for UFC Fight Night 153? http://uk.ufc.com/event-ticket-info?utm_source=ufc&utm_medium=tab&utm_campaign=tickets
THE STATISTICS
THE LOWDOWN
The first of three colossal light heavyweight scraps on the main card features one of the most exciting fighters in the division in Jimi Manuwa and one of the biggest prospects in the division in Aleksandar Rakic.
Manuwa’s performances are breathtaking. He has ungodly one-punch knockout power and regardless of who he is fighting, he hunts the finish in every fight. However, his style has been his undoing in recently. After sending Ovince Saint Preux and Corey Anderson to a different planet with his left hand, he came off second best in brawls against Volkan Oezdemir and Thiago Santos, sandwiching a decision loss to Jan Blachowicz.
Meanwhile, Rakic has been storming up the rankings and after losing his first professional fight, he has strung together 11 impressive wins. He has not fought anywhere near the calibre of opponents Manuwa has fought but he has all the tools and potential to fight at the top. In his three UFC fights, he secured dominant decisions over Francimar Barroso and Justin Ledet before knocking out Devin Clark.
THE PREDICTION
This is another tough fight for Manuwa. He has lost three in a row, a win won’t change his ranking and he is up against an absolute beast but he is still fully expected to put on a show and search for a 16th knockout.
Rakic will encourage his search as he will look to counter, knowing Manuwa’s chin has taken a lot of damage. He has four inches in height over Manuwa but importantly will not have a reach advantage.
Rakic is a strong and athletic specimen but just needs to be patient. He is a decent wrestler but Manuwa has good takedown defence and should keep the fight standing for as long as possible.
It is hard to see this going past the second round and a knockout is the most likely outcome. It could go either way and although Rakic has the speed advantage, Manuwa has the power and experience to find that one shot he needs to get a much-needed win.
Winner: Manuwa via KO/TKO
Striking and grappling stats sourced via FightMetric.
