This article is part of our UFC Picks series.
The UFC is lined up for a record number of title fights to go down in the first quarter of 2021, starting with a welterweight championship clash between a pair of fighters and former teammates riding a combined 22-fight winning streak.
As a reminder, the following selections are purely picks. If you're looking for a fantasy-specific breakdown of these fights, we have you covered across the board with the following columns:
Multi-Site Preview: https://www.rotowire.com/mma/article.php?id=55266
DraftKings Preview: https://www.rotowire.com/mma/article.php?id=55244
Fanduel Preview: https://www.rotowire.com/mma/article.php?id=55270
Also, don't forget to tune into Fight IQ live Friday at 8:00 p.m. EST on the RotoWire Youtube Channel, where Chris, Joe and Shaun will break down the card from top to bottom, featuring a more in-depth look at the selections below.
| MATCHUP | WEIGHT CLASS | JON | JAKE | CHRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kamaru Usman (-280) vs. Gilbert Burns (+240) | Welterweight | Usman | Usman | Usman |
| Maycee Barber (+125) vs. Alexa Grasso (-145) | Women's Flyweight | Grasso | ||
| Kelvin Gastelum (-210) vs. Ian Heinisch (+175) | Middleweight | Gastelum | Gastelum | Gastelum |
| Maki Pitolo (+150) vs. Julian Marquez (-170) | Middleweight | Marquez | Marquez | Marquez |
| UFC 258 RECORD | 3-1 | 4-0 | 3-1 | |
| 2021 RECORD | 4-4 | 6-2 | 3-5 | |
| 2021 PERCENTAGE | .500 | .750 | .375 | |
| 2020 RECORD | 36-18 | 34-20 | 28-26 | |
| 2020 PERCENTAGE | .667 | .630 | .519 | |
| 2019 RECORD | 39-19 | 35-23 | 32-26 | |
| 2019 PERCENTAGE | .672 | .603 | .552 | |
| ALL-TIME | 174-103 | 173-104 | 139-105 | |
| ALL-TIME PERCENTAGE | .628 | .625 | .570 |
MATCHUP | WEIGHT | JOE "SUNTZU" | SHAUN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kamaru Usman (-280) vs. Gilbert Burns (+240) | Welterweight | Usman | Usman |
| Maycee Barber (+125) vs. Alexa Grasso (-145) | Women's Flyweight | Grasso | Grasso |
| Kelvin Gastelum (-210) vs. Ian Heinisch (+175) | Middleweight | Gastelum | Gastelum |
| Maki Pitolo (+150) vs. Julian Marquez (-170) | Middleweight | Marquez | |
| UFC 258 RECORD | 4-0 | 3-1 | |
| 2021 RECORD | 5-3 | 4-4 | |
| 2021 PERCENTAGE | .625 | .500 | |
| 2020 RECORD | 36-18 | 38-16 | |
| 2020 PERCENTAGE | .667 | .704 | |
| 2019 RECORD | 34-24 | 34-24 | |
| 2019 PERCENTAGE | .586 | .586 | |
| ALL-TIME | 102-64 | 106-60 | |
| ALL-TIME PERCENTAGE | .614 | .639 |
MATCHUP | WEIGHT | COLE | AJ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kamaru Usman (-280) vs. Gilbert Burns (+240) | Welterweight | Usman | Usman |
| Maycee Barber (+125) vs. Alexa Grasso (-145) | Women's Flyweight | Grasso | |
| Kelvin Gastelum (-210) vs. Ian Heinisch (+175) | Middleweight | Gastelum | |
| Maki Pitolo (+150) vs. Julian Marquez (-170) | Middleweight | Marquez | |
| UFC 258 RECORD | 2-2 | 3-1 | |
| 2021 RECORD | 2-2 | 3-1 | |
| 2021 PERCENTAGE | .500 | .750 | |
| ALL-TIME | 2-2 | 3-1 | |
| ALL-TIME PERCENTAGE | .500 | .750 |
THE PICKERS
Jon Litterine: RotoWire lead MMA beat writer and scribe for our weekly DrafKings preview. Lead analyst on the RotoWire MMA Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @JonLitterine.
Jake Letarski: RotoWire.com Operations Manager, plus MMA and NCAA Hoops Senior Editor. Host of the RotoWire MMA Podcast and guest on the RotoWire Fantasy Football Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @RotoJake.
Chris Olson: Contributor at RotoWire to "Fight IQ, presented by RotoWire," as well as The MMA Mashup, DFS Baseball, a MMA gambling columnist and fight recaps. Follow him on Twitter at @RealChrisOlson.
Joe "SunTszu": Known more commonly by his Twitter handle @SunTszu, Joe is a Hedge Fund Executive by day and high-volume DFS player by night. He is a 2x "Bracket Challenge" & "Gotham qualifier. You can also find him as one of the original contributors of "Fight IQ, presented by RotoWire," a DFS-centric video breakdown. He is also a co-creator of the "Creating Alpha in DFS" podcast.
@theDFSniper: @theDFSniper is the host and lead instigator of "Fight IQ, presented by RotoWire," a DFS-centric video breakdown. He also appears on the LoudMouth MMA podcast and contributes soccer content to DFS Army.
Cole Shelton: Cole Shelton is a full-time sports writer focusing on MMA. His work has appeared on BJPenn.com, CBC Sports, Sports Betting Dime and Blue Jays Nation. He currently pens the MMA Best Bets column on RotoWire. Follow him on Twitter at @ColeShelton91.
AJ Schullo: AJ is a long-time sports bettor and DFS player, who placed in the top 50 at the DraftKings Sports Betting National Championship in 2019 and qualified for the 2018 MMA Knockout King. He currently pens the FanDuel MMA column for RotoWire. Follow him on Twitter at @AJMMABetting.
