UFC Fight Night: Jacare vs Mousasi: Predictions & Analysis

Friday, September 5, 2014·Ledyard, Connecticut, USA
Published February 27, 2026
Predictions are for entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial advice. Please gamble responsibly.

UFC Fight Night: Jacare vs Mousasi lands on Friday, September 5, 2014 in Ledyard, Connecticut, USA with 9 bouts on the card. 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

MatchupPickConfidenceProb
Jacare Souza vs Gegard MousasiMiddleweightJacare SouzaLean59%
Ben Rothwell vs Alistair OvereemHeavyweightBen RothwellToss-up53%
Matt Mitrione vs Derrick LewisHeavyweightDerrick LewisLean56%
Joe Lauzon vs Michael ChiesaLightweightMichael ChiesaLean58%
John Moraga vs Justin ScogginsFlyweightJustin ScogginsLean57%
Al Iaquinta vs Rodrigo DammLightweightAl IaquintaConfident71%
Rafael Natal vs Chris CamozziMiddleweightRafael NatalConfident65%
Chris Beal vs Tateki MatsudaBantamweightChris BealConfident67%
Chas Skelly vs Sean SorianoFeatherweightSean SorianoToss-up53%

Fight-by-Fight Breakdown

59%
Jacare Souza
Souza
9-6
Elo 1187
All-Rounder
VS
Mousasi
8-3
Elo 1761
All-Rounder

The Middleweight matchup features Jacare Souza (9-6) taking on Gegard Mousasi (8-3). Mousasi will look to use a 4-inch reach edge to control distance.

Mousasi is rated at 1761 — 574 points above Souza's 1187. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents. Mousasi has won 4 straight.

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. Mousasi throws significantly more leather — a 0.6 sig. strike per minute gap. Souza is far more active with takedowns, averaging 2.1 more per 15 minutes. Mousasi has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Jacare Souza over Gegard Mousasi. The model gives Souza a slight nod at 59% — this could easily go either way.

53%
Ben Rothwell
Rothwell
9-7
Elo 1080
All-Rounder
VS
Overeem
12-7
Elo 1412
Striker

The Heavyweight matchup features Ben Rothwell (9-7) taking on Alistair Overeem (12-7).

Overeem is rated at 1412 — 333 points above Rothwell's 1080. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.

Stylistically this is Rothwell's all-rounder game against Overeem's striker approach. Rothwell is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear, while Overeem brings a versatile approach. Historically these archetypes are dead-even when they collide.

A few statistical edges stand out. Overeem throws significantly more leather — a 2.6 sig. strike per minute gap. Rothwell is far more active with takedowns, averaging 1.7 more per 15 minutes. Overeem has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Ben Rothwell over Alistair Overeem. This is essentially a pick'em. The model nudges toward Rothwell at 53%, but there's almost nothing separating these two.

56%
Derrick Lewis
Mitrione
9-4
Elo 1200
Striker
VS
Lewis
20-10
Elo 1366
Striker

The Heavyweight matchup features Matt Mitrione (9-4) taking on Derrick Lewis (20-10). Mitrione will look to use a 3-inch reach edge to control distance.

Lewis is rated at 1366 — 166 points above Mitrione's 1200. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.

Both fighters land in our "Striker" archetype — fighters with a well-rounded skill set. 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. Lewis throws significantly more leather — a 0.9 sig. strike per minute gap. Lewis is far more active with takedowns, averaging 3.8 more per 15 minutes. Mitrione has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Derrick Lewis over Matt Mitrione. The model gives Lewis a slight nod at 56% — this could easily go either way.

58%
Michael Chiesa
Lauzon
14-12
Elo 1036
All-Rounder
VS
Chiesa
13-7
Elo 1490
Wrestler

The Lightweight matchup features Joe Lauzon (14-12) taking on Michael Chiesa (13-7). Chiesa is the bigger frame at 6'1" with a 4-inch reach advantage.

Chiesa is rated at 1490 — 455 points above Lauzon's 1036. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.

Both fighters land in our "Wrestler" archetype — fighters who win by dictating where the fight takes place, grinding out control time and wearing opponents down. 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. Lauzon throws significantly more leather — a 1.0 sig. strike per minute gap. Chiesa is far more active with takedowns, averaging 1.2 more per 15 minutes. Chiesa has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Michael Chiesa over Joe Lauzon. The model gives Chiesa a slight nod at 58% — this could easily go either way.

57%
Justin Scoggins
Moraga
8-5
Elo 1166
Wrestler
VS
Scoggins
4-4
Elo 861
Striker

The Flyweight matchup features John Moraga (8-5) taking on Justin Scoggins (4-4).

Moraga is rated at 1166 — 305 points above Scoggins's 861. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents. Moraga rides a 3-fight win streak into this one.

Stylistically this is Moraga's all-rounder game against Scoggins's striker approach. Moraga is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear, while Scoggins brings a versatile approach. Historically these archetypes are dead-even when they collide.

A few statistical edges stand out. Scoggins throws significantly more leather — a 1.0 sig. strike per minute gap. Scoggins is far more active with takedowns, averaging 4.9 more per 15 minutes. Scoggins has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Justin Scoggins over John Moraga. The model gives Scoggins a slight nod at 57% — this could easily go either way.

71%
Al Iaquinta
Iaquinta
9-5
Elo 1195
Striker
VS
Damm
3-3
Elo 858
All-Rounder

The Lightweight matchup features Al Iaquinta (9-5) taking on Rodrigo Damm (3-3). There's a 3-inch height gap favoring Iaquinta.

Iaquinta is rated at 1195 — 337 points above Damm's 858. 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. Iaquinta throws significantly more leather — a 0.5 sig. strike per minute gap. Iaquinta is far more active with takedowns, averaging 1.2 more per 15 minutes. Iaquinta has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Al Iaquinta over Rodrigo Damm. We're leaning Iaquinta here at 71%, a solid but not overwhelming edge.

65%
Rafael Natal
Natal
9-6-1
Elo 931
Wrestler
VS
Camozzi
9-9
Elo 986
All-Rounder

The Middleweight matchup features Rafael Natal (9-6-1) taking on Chris Camozzi (9-9).

Camozzi carries a modest Elo edge (986 to 931), the kind of gap that reflects a slightly better run of form rather than a talent chasm.

The style clash matters here: Natal looks to close distance and put the fight on the mat, while Camozzi is comfortable adjusting on the fly, mixing strikes and grappling as openings appear. In our database, wrestlers own a 59% win rate against all-rounders, giving Natal the stylistic edge.

A few statistical edges stand out. Camozzi throws significantly more leather — a 1.4 sig. strike per minute gap. Natal is far more active with takedowns, averaging 1.4 more per 15 minutes. Natal has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Rafael Natal over Chris Camozzi. We're leaning Natal here at 65%, a solid but not overwhelming edge.

Chris Beal vs Tateki Matsuda

Bantamweight
67%
Chris Beal
Beal
2-2
Elo 811
VS
Matsuda
0-1
Elo 873

The Bantamweight matchup features Chris Beal (2-2) taking on Tateki Matsuda (0-1).

Matsuda carries a modest Elo edge (873 to 811), the kind of gap that reflects a slightly better run of form rather than a talent chasm.

A few statistical edges stand out. Beal throws significantly more leather — a 2.8 sig. strike per minute gap. Matsuda is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.0 more per 15 minutes. Matsuda has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Chris Beal over Tateki Matsuda. We're leaning Beal here at 67%, a solid but not overwhelming edge.

Chas Skelly vs Sean Soriano

Featherweight
53%
Sean Soriano
Skelly
7-3
Elo 1251
Wrestler
VS
Soriano
0-4
Elo 694

The Featherweight matchup features Chas Skelly (7-3) taking on Sean Soriano (0-4). Skelly is the bigger frame at 5'11" with a 2-inch reach advantage.

Skelly is rated at 1251 — 558 points above Soriano's 694. Gaps this large usually mean one fighter has been consistently beating better opponents.

A few statistical edges stand out. Soriano throws significantly more leather — a 2.1 sig. strike per minute gap. Skelly is far more active with takedowns, averaging 0.8 more per 15 minutes. Skelly has tighter striking defense, making opponents miss more often.

The Pick: Sean Soriano over Chas Skelly. This is essentially a pick'em. The model nudges toward Soriano at 53%, 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.

UFC Fight Night: Jacare vs Mousasi Predictions & Analysis | Haymaker