UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Aldana: Predictions & Analysis
UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Aldana lands on Saturday, October 3, 2020 in Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates with 11 bouts on the card. The card is headlined by a championship fight. Below is our fight-by-fight breakdown, combining Elo ratings, rolling statistical trends, style matchup data, and betting market context into a pick for every bout.
Quick Picks
| Matchup | Pick | Confidence | Prob |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holly Holm vs Irene AldanaWomen's Bantamweight | Irene Aldana | Lean | 58% |
| Carlos Felipe vs Yorgan De CastroHeavyweight | Carlos Felipe | Lean | 61% |
| Germaine de Randamie vs Julianna PenaWomen's Bantamweight | Germaine de Randamie | Lean | 55% |
| Kyler Phillips vs Cameron ElseBantamweight | Kyler Phillips | Strong | 82% |
| Dusko Todorovic vs Dequan TownsendMiddleweight | Dusko Todorovic | Confident | 66% |
| Carlos Condit vs Court McGeeWelterweight | Carlos Condit | Lean | 60% |
| Charles Jourdain vs Josh CulibaoFeatherweight | Charles Jourdain | Lean | 64% |
| Nassourdine Imavov vs Jordan WilliamsMiddleweight | Nassourdine Imavov | Toss-up | 53% |
| Loma Lookboonmee vs Jinh Yu FreyWomen's Strawweight | Loma Lookboonmee | Confident | 73% |
| Casey Kenney vs AlatengheiliBantamweight | Casey Kenney | Lean | 56% |
| Luigi Vendramini vs Jessin AyariLightweight | Luigi Vendramini | Toss-up | 52% |
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Holly Holm vs Irene Aldana
The Women's Bantamweight championship matchup features Holly Holm (8-7) taking on Irene Aldana (8-6).
Aldana is rated at 1411 — 186 points above Holm's 1225. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.
Both fighters land in our "All-Rounder" archetype — fighters comfortable everywhere, able to strike or grapple depending on what the opponent gives them. When mirror matchups like this happen, the edge usually goes to whoever can impose their preferred pace and range.
A few statistical edges stand out. Aldana throws significantly more leather — a 4.2 sig. strike per minute gap. Holm is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.8 more per 15 minutes. Aldana has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Irene Aldana over Holly Holm. The model gives Aldana a slight nod at 58% — this could easily go either way.
Carlos Felipe vs Yorgan De Castro
The Heavyweight matchup features Carlos Felipe (3-2) taking on Yorgan De Castro (1-3).
Felipe is rated at 1132 — 418 points above Castro's 714. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents. Felipe rides a 3-fight win streak into this one.
A few statistical edges stand out. Felipe throws significantly more leather — a 1.3 sig. strike per minute gap. Castro is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.0 more per 15 minutes. Castro has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Carlos Felipe over Yorgan De Castro. The model gives Felipe a slight nod at 61% — this could easily go either way.
Germaine de Randamie vs Julianna Pena
The Women's Bantamweight matchup features Germaine de Randamie (7-3) taking on Julianna Pena (8-4). Randamie is the bigger frame at 5'9" with a 2-inch reach advantage.
The Elo gap here is razor-thin — Randamie at 1428, Pena at 1453. On paper, this is as close to a coin flip as it gets.
The style clash matters here: Randamie is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear, while Pena looks to close distance and put the fight on the mat. In our database, wrestlers own a 58% win rate against all-rounders, giving Pena the stylistic edge.
A few statistical edges stand out. Randamie throws significantly more leather — a 0.0 sig. strike per minute gap. Pena is far more active with takedowns, averaging 2.3 more per 15 minutes. Randamie has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Germaine de Randamie over Julianna Pena. The model gives Randamie a slight nod at 55% — this could easily go either way.
Kyler Phillips vs Cameron Else
The Bantamweight matchup features Kyler Phillips (6-3) taking on Cameron Else (0-2).
Phillips is rated at 1346 — 739 points above Else's 607. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.
A few statistical edges stand out. Phillips throws significantly more leather — a 5.9 sig. strike per minute gap. Phillips is far more active with takedowns, averaging 2.0 more per 15 minutes. Else has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Kyler Phillips over Cameron Else. The model is firm on this one: Phillips at 82%.
Dusko Todorovic vs Dequan Townsend
The Middleweight matchup features Dusko Todorovic (4-6) taking on Dequan Townsend (0-4). Townsend is the bigger frame at 6'3" with a 5-inch reach advantage.
Todorovic is rated at 851 — 224 points above Townsend's 627. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.
A few statistical edges stand out. Townsend throws significantly more leather — a 1.1 sig. strike per minute gap. Townsend is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.0 more per 15 minutes. Todorovic has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Dusko Todorovic over Dequan Townsend. We're leaning Todorovic here at 66%, a solid but not overwhelming edge.
Carlos Condit vs Court McGee
The Welterweight matchup features Carlos Condit (9-10) taking on Court McGee (11-13). There's a 3-inch height gap favoring Condit.
Condit is rated at 1300 — 188 points above McGee's 1111. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.
Stylistically this is Condit's knockout artist game against McGee's all-rounder approach. Condit is patient on the feet, timing counters and loading up when he sees openings, while McGee is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear. Historically these archetypes are dead-even when they collide.
A few statistical edges stand out. McGee throws significantly more leather — a 0.4 sig. strike per minute gap. McGee is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.3 more per 15 minutes. McGee has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Carlos Condit over Court McGee. The model gives Condit a slight nod at 60% — this could easily go either way.
Charles Jourdain vs Josh Culibao
The Featherweight matchup features Charles Jourdain (8-7-1) taking on Josh Culibao (3-4-1). Culibao will look to use a 4-inch reach edge to control distance.
Jourdain is rated at 1344 — 308 points above Culibao's 1036. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.
The style clash matters here: Jourdain looks to close distance and put the fight on the mat, while Culibao is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear. In our database, wrestlers own a 58% win rate against all-rounders, giving Jourdain the stylistic edge.
A few statistical edges stand out. Jourdain throws significantly more leather — a 3.1 sig. strike per minute gap. Culibao is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.0 more per 15 minutes. Jourdain has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Charles Jourdain over Josh Culibao. The model gives Jourdain a slight nod at 64% — this could easily go either way.
Nassourdine Imavov vs Jordan Williams
The Middleweight matchup features Nassourdine Imavov (9-2) taking on Jordan Williams (0-3).
Imavov is rated at 2007 — 1298 points above Williams's 709. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents. Imavov rides a 4-fight win streak into this one.
A few statistical edges stand out. Williams throws significantly more leather — a 0.0 sig. strike per minute gap. Williams is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.0 more per 15 minutes. Williams has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Nassourdine Imavov over Jordan Williams. This is essentially a pick'em. The model nudges toward Imavov at 53%, but there's almost nothing separating these two.
Loma Lookboonmee vs Jinh Yu Frey
The Women's Strawweight matchup features Loma Lookboonmee (7-3) taking on Jinh Yu Frey (2-6). Frey is the bigger frame at 5'3" with a 4-inch reach advantage.
Lookboonmee is rated at 1097 — 371 points above Frey's 726. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents. Lookboonmee rides a 4-fight win streak into this one.
Both fighters land in our "All-Rounder" archetype — fighters comfortable everywhere, able to strike or grapple depending on what the opponent gives them. When mirror matchups like this happen, the edge usually goes to whoever can impose their preferred pace and range.
A few statistical edges stand out. Lookboonmee throws significantly more leather — a 3.0 sig. strike per minute gap. Lookboonmee is far more active with takedowns, averaging 1.0 more per 15 minutes. Lookboonmee has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Loma Lookboonmee over Jinh Yu Frey. We're leaning Lookboonmee here at 73%, a solid but not overwhelming edge.
Casey Kenney vs Alatengheili
The Bantamweight matchup features Casey Kenney (5-3) taking on Alatengheili (5-3-1). Kenney is the bigger frame at 5'7" with a 2-inch reach advantage.
Kenney is rated at 1331 — 163 points above Alatengheili's 1168. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.
Stylistically this is Kenney's all-rounder game against Alatengheili's striker approach. Kenney is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear, while Alatengheili brings a versatile approach. Historically these archetypes are dead-even when they collide.
A few statistical edges stand out. Kenney throws significantly more leather — a 0.4 sig. strike per minute gap. Alatengheili is far more active with takedowns, averaging 2.3 more per 15 minutes. Kenney has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Casey Kenney over Alatengheili. The model gives Kenney a slight nod at 56% — this could easily go either way.
Luigi Vendramini vs Jessin Ayari
The Lightweight matchup features Luigi Vendramini (1-3) taking on Jessin Ayari (1-3). There's a 4-inch height gap favoring Ayari.
Vendramini carries a modest Elo edge (795 to 753), the kind of gap that reflects a slightly better run of form rather than a talent chasm.
A few statistical edges stand out. Ayari throws significantly more leather — a 3.0 sig. strike per minute gap. Ayari is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.0 more per 15 minutes. Ayari has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.
The Pick: Luigi Vendramini over Jessin Ayari. This is essentially a pick'em. The model nudges toward Vendramini at 52%, but there's almost nothing separating these two.
Methodology
Predictions are generated by our ensemble model combining LightGBM (65%) and CatBoost (35%), trained on every UFC fight since 1994. The model uses 23 features including Elo ratings, rolling 5-fight statistical averages, style matchup history, physical attributes, and market odds when available.
On our held-out test set (402 fights from January-September 2023), the model achieves 63.4% accuracy with a log-loss of 0.626. High-confidence picks (>75% probability) hit at 82.7%. For full model transparency, visit our Model page.