Santiago Ponzinibbio vs Carlston Harris Prediction: Both fighters have equal chances

The welterweight division in UFC presents an intriguing match-up between Santiago Ponzinibbio and Carlston Harris. Interestingly, it will be held at the prestigious octagon arena in UFC Apex, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. The weight class for this fight is 170 lbs (77.1 kg) with the bout-billing as the Co-Main Event (fight 13 of 14).  Both fighters are coming from a loss in their last fight. Fans can catch up with the event live on ESPN +.

Santiago Ponzinibbio - seeking redemption

Santiago Ponzinibbio is coming into this bout from a loss to Muslim Salikhov on July 13, 2024, in the UFC. The co-main event bout ended in a split decision in the UFC Fight Night. Before that, he fought in the high-demand main event bout against Kevin Holland and lost in the third round via a left hook technical knockout. The Argentine Diggers joined the UFC promotion in 2013 and recorded 11 wins and seven losses. Most of these wins were from knockouts (16). The 38-year-old fighter gave an award-winning performance at UFC 282 against Alex Morono and won via an overhand right technical knockout. He repeated the same in his bout against Neil Magny and Gunnar Nelson, winning all via punches knockout. His bout against Miguel Baeza earned him the Fight of the Night award as he won via unanimous decision. Even his loss to Lorenz Larkin in 2015 won the UFC Fight Night 70 Fight of the Night. Other victories he has recorded were against Sean Strickland (via unanimous decision), Wendell Oliveira (via punches TKO), Cleiton Duarte (via unanimous decision), Henrique Inseto, Yuri Fraga, Deivid dos Santos, Lucas Nascimento, Sebastian de Oliveira, and William Dias. 

Carlston Harris - hoping to turn events

Carlston Harris is currently ranked as the 39th current best MMA welterweight fighter. He boasts of a professional record of 19 wins and 6 losses. Since turning pro in 2012, he has fought across four promotions, such as Shooto Brasil, Xtreme Fighting Championship, BRAVE Combat Federation, and Ultimate Fighting Championship. Across all promotions, he has recorded at least two wins with a balance of knockout and decision victories. In 2017, he went for the vacant BCF Vacant Welterweight Championship against Carl Booth via unanimous decision. The year before, he challenged Julio Cesar Andrade for the WOCS Welterweight Championship and lost via split decision. He won the vacant tournament championship against Michel Pereira via unanimous decision at the XFC International 12. Other fighters he has won against are Paulo César (via submission), Ariel Jaeger, Cleiton Prisco (via unanimous decision), Aldo Ocampos (via technical knockout), Thiago Vieira (via punches TKO), and Claudio Rocha (via KO/TKO). He failed to defend his BCF Welterweight Championship against Jarrah Hussein Al-Silawi, losing via strikes TKO.

Expert Betting Tips

Santiago Ponzinibbio obviously has a more pronounced fighting experience. 10 wins more than Carlston with a fight ratio of 37:25 is no joke. Yes, anything can happen in the UFC that is much accepted. Both fighters are of the same height with little difference in reach. They also have more time to recover from all forms of wear and tear they must have suffered in their previous bout. Santiago is currently facing a struggling consistency in the last five fights, winning only once. A win two years ago isn't a solid face for him. His losses were via split decision, which also means he put on a great show; it just wasn't in favor with the judges. Carlston, on the other hand, has faced two recent losses via knockout. This shows that the fight will be tight end. I still believe that Santiago has a slight edge in this bout and should eventually win.