UFC Fight Night: Cejudo Vs. Dillashaw Main Card Results Predictions

January 19, 2019, will mark the beginning of a new era for the Ultimate Fighting Champion — the ESPN era. The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York will host the 1st UFC event to air on ESPN+. To get this new partnership off to a hot start, the promotion has put together a pay-per-view worthy card.

UFC Fight Night: Cejudo Vs. Dillashaw features the return of one of the sport's most popular stars, "12 Gauge" Paige VanZant.

Former title challengers Glover Teixeira and Joseph Benavidez will also be in action; both men will be looking to cement their status as top contenders in their respective divisions.

The co-main event will feature former NFL star, Greg Hardy. The hard-hitting heavyweight prospect has polished off all 3 of his professional opponents in under a minute.

In the main event, we have 2 current UFC Champions squaring off for the flyweight strap. Following his upset victory over Demetrious Johnson, flyweight champ Henry Cejudo looks to defend his title against the current bantamweight king, TJ Dillashaw. If Dillashaw gets the win, he will become just the 7th fighter in UFC history to hold titles in 2 divisions.

Before this historic event get's underway, let us take a few moments to breakdown the main card and predict which fighters will get their hand raised in Brooklyn.

The main card will begin with a light heavyweight contest between longtime division standout Glover Texeira and a young up-and-comer by the name of Karl Roberson.

Texeira has shared the Octagon with the very best the division has to offer. His list of opponents includes names like Jon Jones, Alexander Gustafsson, and Rampage Jackson. However, the Brazilian has struggled recently and is sporting a 2-3 record over the course of his last 5 fights. At 39 years of age, the former title contender is entering (if not already in) the twilight of his career. That being said, the 2nd-degree jiu-jitsu black belt still has a world-class ground game and plenty of punching power.

Texeira was originally scheduled to face Ion Cutelaba. However, when Cutelaba was forced to withdraw due to injury, Karl Roberson agreed to step in on 10 days notice. After winning a contract on Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series, Roberson has gone 2-1 inside the Octagon. The 28-year-old out of Neptune, New Jersey is a talented kickboxer, who has shown some solid wrestling as well.

Expect Roberson to try and keep the fight standing, where he can use his superior hand speed to wear down the aging veteran. Texeira has struggled recently against elite wrestlers like Corey Anderson, but Roberson doesn't have a strong grappling background. This means, the Brazilian will likely try to get his opponent to the ground and control him with his jiu-jitsu, which seems like a plausible scenario. This is a big step up in competition for Roberson and beating a fighter the caliber of Texeira (even at 39), on 10 days notice, will be a daunting task.

Prediction: Texeira via TKO.