UFC 239 Main Card Preview And Predictions
4. Luke Rockhold (16-4) Vs. Jan Blachowicz (23-8)
UFC 239 will mark the beginning of former middleweight champ Luke Rockhold's transition to the light heavyweight division.
Rockhold is a superb athlete with a world-class jiu-jitsu background, who can also wrestle and strike with the best of them. In recent years he's struggled to stay active, due in large part to injury. In fact, since capturing the title back in December of 2015, Rockhold has only fought three times and is sporting a 1-2 record over that span.
His opponent, Jan Blachowicz, is also a talented jiu-jitsu practitioner, whose striking has come a long way. He's 4-1 in his last five fights, after recently losing a title eliminator bout to Thiago Santos.
This fight is very tough to call given Rockhold's recent spell of inactivity. The upcoming contest will be his first fight since February of 2018. In peak condition, Rockhold is the more athletic, explosive fighter and would seem to have the advantage (albeit slight) almost everywhere. That being said, Blachowicz is used to fighting at light heavyweight, has looked better just about every time out lately, and has been more active in recent years.
If Rockhold is rusty, or on the decline, Blacowicz has a real opportunity to pull off the upset here. However, if the former champ is healthy, he should be able to utilize his wrestling to neutralize the Polish standout.
The Pick: Rockhold via decision.