Preview: UFC Fight Night 174 ‘Lewis vs. Oleynik’ Main Card

COCONUT BOMBS @Coconut_Bombz ends it with devastating shots in R2! #UFC250 pic.twitter.com/8TCd2TYVHi

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) June 7, 2020

Middleweights

Darren Stewart (11-5) vs. Maki Pitolo (13-5)

ODDS: Stewart (-185), Pitolo (+160)

It has been a strange run for Stewart, though hopefully “The Dentist” can keep piecing things together. Stewart came into the UFC as an undersized light heavyweight prospect who ran over his opponents, but after quickly hitting a wall with that approach, he cut down to middleweight. Things did not get much better at first. Stewart had his moments but would tend to careen off the rails as soon as a fight turned against him, resulting in some sudden losses. However, over his last few fights, Stewart has fought with a newfound patience. It has not resulted in much excitement, but he has been able to do enough to get by against limited foes who either run out of ideas or tire themselves out. Stewart got outwrestled in his last fight against Bartosz Fabinski, but that was a one-off bout in Cage Warriors Fighting Championship during the pandemic, so he technically rides a winning streak into this fight. Pitolo is a pretty one-dimensional fighter, but when he gets his combination striking going, it is a thing of beauty, with the Hawaiian living up to his “Coconut Bombz” nickname. Pitolo’s UFC debut showed his warts, though, as he gassed in an unsuccessful attempt to knock out Callan Potter down at welterweight. Things went better back up at 185 pounds for his sophomore effort—a second-round finish of Charles Byrd—and he will look to try the same trick here. Stewart might be the smarter pick, as Pitolo is the type of limited knockout artist that the Brit has been able to survive and outlast. However, if Stewart is going to let Pitolo have the initiative at the start of this fight, the Hawaiian might be too dangerous to come back against. The pick is Pitolo via first-round knockout.

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