MMA Preview – Roman Kopylov vs Josh Fremd at UFC Fight Night 227
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ROMAN KOPYLOV VS JOSH FREMD FACTS
When is UFC Noche? Sunday 17th September, 2023 - 01:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC Noche? T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, Nevada (US)
Where can I get tickets for UFC Noche? Click here to buy tickets for UFC Fight Night
What channel is UFC Noche on? TNT Sports 1
Where can I stream UFC Noche? TNT Sports subscribers can stream the fight online via the TNT Sports website and Discovery+
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
ROMAN KOPYLOV VS JOSH FREMD LOWDOWN
Roman Kopylov (11-2) originally filled in for Chris Curtis to fight Anthony Hernandez who injured his rib sparring with Ian Garry. Hernandez then pulled out suffering an injury himself. Kopylov does not seem to care who he fights and why should he when he has knocked out his last three opponents. He collected the scalps of Alessio Di Chirico (2022), Punahele Soriano (2023) and Claudio Ribeiro which was only seven weeks ago.
Josh Fremd (11-4) also steps up and replaces Hernandez. He has also bounced back after losing his first two UFC fights. He actually met Hernandez (2022) on debut losing a unanimous decision and then he fell into Tresean Gore’s (2022) guillotine. However, he pulled out his own guillotine to hand Sedriques Dumas (2023) his first loss. He then met Jamie Pickett five months later earning a unanimous decision.
ROMAN KOPYLOV VS JOSH FREMD PREDICTION
It is clear where Kopylov’s strengths and weaknesses lie after losing his first two UFC fights to grapplers and responding with three knockouts over fellow strikers. He is an elite kickboxer and takes on Fremd who has not had much time to prepare.
However, Fremd can wrestle. If he can close this distance without getting clipped, he can take the Russian down. He is understandably the heavy underdog, but he is worth a punt considering Kopylov’s poor takedown defence.
That said, his takedowns are not good enough to avoid the artillery for three rounds. Kopylov’s striking is on a different level and he will punish Fremd whenever there is space. The American needs to make this ugly, but we expect his chin to get sniped by the assassin.
Prediction: Kopylov via KO/TKO
