UFC Fight Night 249 (Jan. 11)

At the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, the UFC makes its highly-anticipated return after an almost one-month hiatus at UFC Fight Night 249. We will give you all our UFC on ESPN 63 betting predictions and staff picks below.

UFC Fight Night 249 Main Event

In the UFC Fight Night 249 main event, Amanda Ribas looks to settle the score between her and Mackenzie Dern after soundly defeating her American more than five years ago. Plagued with a severe degree of inconsistent results over the past several years, Dern now finds herself nearing the strawweight top five. Having been unable to make it past the division’s more seasoned fighters like Amanda Lemos and Jéssica Andrade, a win this Saturday is all the more necessary for Dern to keep herself in the top contender picture.

In something of a precarious position herself in her fighting career, Ribas is in dire need of a victory, with the last time she got her hand raised coming at UFC Vegas 82 against Luana Pinheiro in 2023. In her sole trip to the cage in 2024, the Brazilian took on former two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas, at flyweight, and was taken out of the win column by unanimous decision.

In the second to last match of the night, Santiago Ponzinibbio meets welterweight bruiser Carlston Harris. In the midst of a two-fight losing streak, Ponzinibbio has a lot of climbing to do if he wants to regain his place as a force in the weight class. Now 38-years old, the “Argentine Dagger” will tangle with one of the more reputable stoppage specialists outside the rankings.

In his four UFC wins, Harris has earned two submissions and one TKO, making him a top and entertaining prospect to watch. Losing his last contest to the hard-punching Khaos Williams in the first round, “Moçambique” has the chance to start 2025 on a high note by snuffing out another welterweight standout.

More Bouts On the Main Card

For the rest of the bouts on the main card, César Almeida takes on Abdul Razak Alhassan. Fan-favorite Chris Curtis locks horns with Russian sensation Roman Kopylov. Christian Rodriguez
attempts to claim another undefeated fighter’s zero versus Austin Bashi, and Punahele Soriano makes his sophomore welterweight showing against Uroš Medić.

UFC Fight Night 249 Betting Predictions and Staff Picks

MMASucka staff picks are composed of four of the world’s leading mixed martial arts organizations: the
Ultimate Fighting Championship
(UFC), the
Professional Fighters League
(PFL) with
Bellator MMA
,
ONE Championship
(ONE FC), and
Dana White’s Contender Series
(DWCS).

UFC picks will include main card fights ranging from four to six matchups per event.
PFL and Bellator MMA see picks from main cards for pay-per-views and from tournament fights in the Regular Season, Playoffs, and Finals.
ONE FC and DWCS picks will feature all MMA fights from the event with a minimum of three matchups.

The individual who picks the most victorious fighters by the end of 2025 will have a choice between receiving a custom-made championship belt from
ProAmBelts
or a detailed chain from
Championship Chains
.
Staff picks in 2023 were won by Ben Jamieson with a record of 300-148.

Find our UFC Fight Night 249 picks and fight odds below.