Tyrell Fortune and Rizvan Kuniev meet on the UFC Fight Night 282 main card Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
- Last event’s results: 3-2
- UFC main cards, 2026: 75-41-1
Tyrell Fortune vs. Rizvan Kuniev UFC Fight Night 282 preview
Fortune (18-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) enters his second fight under the UFC banner. His debut was a successful one, winning a unanimous decision over Marcin Tybura in March.
Kuniev (14-3-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) looks for his second win in the promotion after facing staunch opposition right out of the gate. His debut was a split decision loss against Curtis Blaydes, but he rebounded in his sophomore appearance with a unanimous decision against Jailton Almeida.
Tyrell Fortune vs. Rizvan Kuniev UFC Fight Night 282 expert pick, prediction
Death, taxes and the UFC matchmakers force-feeding us big guys on Fight Night main cards.
To be fair to Mick Maynard and Sean Shelby, this is actually a somewhat sensible matchup given both men’s grappling backgrounds and overall body of work.
Fortune, who is an accoladed All-American wrestler, has primarily plied his trade over in Bellator before a successful UFC debut earlier this year.
Although Kuniev doesn’t have the same level of wrestling accolades, the Russian has proven more than capable when it comes to defending takedowns and digging out decision wins when he needs to.
For that reason, I suspect that Kuniev can outlast the American in this spot. The official pick is Kuniev by unanimous decision.
Tyrell Fortune vs. Rizvan Kuniev UFC Fight Night 282 odds
The oddsmakers and the public favor the Russian fighter, listing Kuniev -340 and Fortune +260 via FanDuel.
Tyrell Fortune vs. Rizvan Kuniev UFC Fight Night 282 start time, how to watch
Fortune and Kuniev are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 12:40 p.m. ET. The fight streams live on Paramount+.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Tyrell Fortune vs. Rizvan Kuniev prediction, pick for UFC Fight Night 282
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