Fighters Only’s UFC Auckland preview is brought to you by 5Dimes.
After a wait of almost three years, the UFC makes its return to Auckland, New Zealand’s Spark Arena.
In the main event, Kiwi Dan Hooker seeks to defeat Paul Felder and move up the lightweight rankings in a fight which is almost certainly going to be highly entertaining.
The co-main event sees 23-year-old Australian Jimmy Crute take on Polish prospect Michał Oleksiejczuk in a battle of two of the light heavyweight division’s up-and-coming fighters.
But there are fun fights sprinkled throughout this 12-bout card. Loma Lookboonmee will compete against former Invicta FC champion Angela Hill in a women’s strawweight battle just two fights into the card.
The bout between Jake Matthews and Emil Meek, one which will surely provide all manner of fireworks, somehow didn’t make the main card which is indicative of the strength of the fights brought to New Zealand.
As always, along with the preview of some of the key fights at UFC Auckland, Fighters Only will be providing picks for the best bets and 5Dimes will provide the odds.
But before that, make sure you take a look at our free MMA guide, created in partnership with 5Dimes.
UFC Auckland main event: Paul Felder vs. Dan Hooker
It’s 6th versus 7th in the UFC’s lightweight rankings as Philadelphia’s Paul Felder travels to enemy territory to take on Auckland-born Dan Hooker.
Felder has found some good form in the UFC’s ever-competitive lightweight division. That’s made all the more impressive now he’s a regular broadcaster and commentator for the promotion.
“The Irish Dragon” has compiled a record of 5-1 in his last six UFC fights, his sole loss in that time being a close split decision loss to Mike Perry at welterweight.
Aside from that, you have seen Felder face increasing levels of competition since 2017 and he has dealt with that accordingly.
2017 saw Felder go the year unbeaten and earning knockout wins in all three of his fights. First, he scored a TKO win over Alessandro Ricci in the first round before knocking out Stevie Ray with some devastating elbows on the ground – also in the first round. Felder’s elbows came into play once again when he got the TKO victory against Charles Oliveira to round off a successful year.
After the Perry loss, Felder rebounded with a win over the towering James Vick to kick off 2019, leading him to a rematch against Brazil’s Edson Barboza. The Brazilian got the better of Felder first time round, but Philadelphia’s Felder took the split decision win which saw him shoot up to sixth in the rankings.
Like Felder, Hooker is riding a two-fight win streak.
It’s hard to picture the New Zealander ever making the 145-pound limit now, but Hooker began life at the UFC as a featherweight. He traded wins by finish and losses by decision before deciding to go back to lightweight and remain there for good.
It’s done wonders for him. Hooker went on a finishing spree, starting with a crushing knockout win over Ross Pearson, before submitting the highly-touted Marc Diakiese, and knocking out tough veterans Jim Miller and Gilbert Burns.
Hooker hit a roadblock in the form of the aforementioned Barboza, succumbing to a brutal TKO loss, but triumphantly bounced back with a knockout win against James Vick and comfortably beating former title challenger Al Iaquinta in October.
Both men will be as confident as ever in their abilities and each have some nasty weapons at their disposal.
Felder’s tight, technical Muay Thai has provided plenty of problems for submission artists, wrestlers and even strikers. However, Hooker is also a talented striker with a bit more invention in his attack. The Kiwi also has a slick submission game, with seven of his 19 wins coming that way.
Buoyed by a hometown crowd willing him on, I think Hooker has too many tools in his game to be troubled by Felder. However, Felder is as tough as they come and appears to relish fighting the hometown hero. I don’t see him going away easy.
Recommendation: Dan Hooker win by decision – 2 units at +350 @ 5Dimes
UFC Auckland: Jake Matthews vs. Emil Meek
In our other pick of the best bouts at UFC Auckland, Australia’s Jake Matthews takes on Norway’s Emil Meek down on the undercard.
Aged just 25, Matthews has been around the UFC for close to six years already. In that time, he’s faced the likes of Kevin Lee, James Vick and Li Jingliang – the kind of opponents who have provided some real, formative experience for “The Celtic Kid.”
After suffering three losses from his last five fights, Matthews made the decision to move up to welterweight. It’s a move which has paid off, seeing him win four fights from his last five.
Matthews has beat the aforementioned Li Jingliang, Bojan Veličković, Shinsho Anzai and Rostem Akman since moving back up to 170 pounds. His sole loss came to Anthony Rocco Martin.
Emil Meek made a splash in the UFC when he joined the roster in 2016.
Fresh off knocking out the much-feared Rousimar Palhares at Venator FC 3, Meek was signed and took on the returning Jordan Mein in his promotional debut. Despite picking up a rib injury in the middle of the fight, Meek impressed with both his control and attacking burts and comfortably took the unanimous decision win over the experienced fighter.
Since then, he has only been able to compete twice in the Octagon due to a string of injuries. Meek fought current UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman on his second UFC bout, taking him to a decision but ultimately losing on the judges’ scorecards.
Meek took on Poland’s Bartosz Fabiński next. It didn’t go the Norwegian’s way as he lost a unanimous decision and “Valhalla” himself says he didn’t show up to the fight.
He’s had over a year-and-a-half to mull over that last loss and is determined to return to the Octagon with a win over Matthews.
Both men are comfortable in all areas of the fight and have a penchant for finishing their fights inside the distance. Of their combined 33 fights, only eight of them went to a decision.
However, I feel like this is a really well-matched contest. It will be an exciting fight and will go the full 15 minutes.
Recommendation: Fight to go to decision – 2 units at -180 @ 5Dimes
UFC Auckland: Paul Felder vs. Dan Hooker full fight card
Lightweight: Paul Felder vs. Dan Hooker
Light Heavyweight: Jimmy Crute vs. Michał Oleksiejczuk
Women’s Strawweight: Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Yan Xiaonan
Heavyweight: Ben Sosoli vs. Marcos Rogério de Lima
Lightweight: Brad Riddell vs. Magomed Mustafaev
Featherweight: Kevin Aguilar vs. Zubaira Tukhugov
Lightweight: Jalin Turner vs. Joshua Culibao
Welterweight: Jake Matthews vs. Emil Weber Meek
Welterweight: Callan Potter vs. Song Kenan
Flyweight: Kai Kara-France vs. Tyson Nam
Women’s Strawweight: Loma Lookboonmee vs. Angela Hill
Women’s Flyweight: Priscila Cachoeira vs. Shana Dobson
