FIGHT WEEK FRIDAY PICKS • SEPTEMBER 18, 2026
The record took another hit last weekend, but we are still comfortably above .500.
Fight Week correctly picked Ryan Garcia, Jai Opetaia, Jean Silva and David Martinez, while Andres Cortes, Brandon Moreno, Alexa Grasso and Curtis Blaydes handed us four losses.
That made last week 4–4 and moved the overall record to:
Fight Week 2026 Prediction Record: 17–13
Now we turn the page.
Saturday brings two major fight cards on the West Coast. Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz defends his interim WBC super lightweight title against Nestor Bravo in San Diego, while UFC 331 takes over Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles with Joshua Van and Alexandre Pantoja running it back for the flyweight championship.
Here are this week’s Fight Week Picks.
BOXING — PITBULL CRUZ VS. BRAVO
Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz vs. Nestor Bravo
Fight Week Pick: Isaac Cruz
Method: TKO
Confidence: 8/10
On paper, Nestor Bravo has some significant physical advantages.
Bravo stands 5-foot-9 with a 70-inch reach, while Cruz is just 5-foot-4 with a 63½-inch reach. Bravo also enters with an impressive 24-1 record and 17 knockouts. Cruz is 28-3-2 with 18 stoppages.
Those numbers tell only part of the story.
Cruz has built his career around eliminating space.
He doesn’t need to win from the outside because he rarely stays there for long. The Mexican pressure fighter is at his best when he can get his head off the center line, attack the body and force opponents backward until there is nowhere left to go.
Bravo’s length gives him a path to victory. If he can establish the jab, tie Cruz up when he gets inside and avoid extended exchanges, he can make this uncomfortable.
That’s a difficult game plan to maintain for 12 rounds.
Eventually, Cruz’s pressure should begin closing the distance more consistently.
The Pick: Bravo has early success from range, but Cruz gradually turns the fight into a phone-booth battle and forces a stoppage in the second half.
Jesus Ramos Jr. vs. Meiirim Nursultanov
Fight Week Pick: Jesus Ramos Jr.
Method: Decision
Confidence: 7/10
This may be the most intriguing boxing matchup of the weekend.
Ramos enters at 24-1 with 19 knockouts, while Nursultanov brings a perfect 20-0 record with 11 knockouts into the interim WBC middleweight title fight.
Nursultanov is also the naturally bigger middleweight. He stands six feet tall compared with 5-foot-10 for Ramos.
But Ramos has been operating against stronger professional opposition.
He owns a victory over Shane Mosley Jr. and has developed into a powerful southpaw who can attack effectively upstairs and to the body.
Nursultanov’s undefeated record deserves respect. He has the size and technical ability to make Ramos work for every round.
The concern is activity.
Ramos has been fighting meaningful opponents while Nursultanov has had a lengthy period of inactivity entering the biggest opportunity of his career.
That could show late.
The Pick: Nursultanov makes this competitive early, but Ramos increases his output as the fight progresses and wins a clear but hard-earned decision.
Daniel Blancas vs. Sergio Jimenez
Fight Week Pick: Daniel Blancas
Method: TKO
Confidence: 7/10
This is a dangerous fight for an undefeated prospect.
Blancas enters at 15-0 with seven knockouts, while Jimenez is 17-1-1 with 15 stoppage victories.
That knockout percentage immediately gets your attention.
Jimenez can punch.
But Blancas will have substantial physical advantages. He stands 6-foot-3 with a listed 75-inch reach, while Jimenez is 5-foot-11. Blancas is also 26 years old compared with 39 for Jimenez.
The key is patience.
Blancas cannot become careless simply because he is younger and longer. Jimenez’s best chance is getting him into an exchange and landing something big.
If Blancas keeps the jab working and forces Jimenez to repeatedly cross distance, opportunities should eventually appear.
The Pick: Jimenez remains dangerous early, but Blancas’ size and youth begin taking over before he forces a late stoppage.
Marco Verde vs. Guillermo Hernandez
Fight Week Pick: Marco Verde
Method: Decision
Confidence: 8/10
Marco Verde continues his rapid transition from elite amateur to professional contender.
The 2024 Olympic silver medalist is already 6-0 with three knockouts and now faces fellow unbeaten Guillermo Hernandez, who enters at 7-0 with four knockouts.
This is exactly the kind of matchup Verde needs.
Rather than another opponent designed simply to extend his record, Hernandez brings an undefeated record and enough confidence to make Verde solve problems.
Verde’s amateur pedigree should be the difference.
His southpaw stance, footwork and ability to control distance give him multiple ways to win rounds without taking unnecessary risks.
The Pick: Hernandez makes Verde work, but the Olympic silver medalist controls the geography of the fight and wins a convincing decision.
UFC 331 — VAN VS. PANTOJA 2
Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja II
Fight Week Pick: Alexandre Pantoja
Method: Submission
Confidence: 6/10
Here comes our risky pick of the week.
Joshua Van is the champion.
Alexandre Pantoja wants his belt back.
Their first meeting lasted only 26 seconds, ending after Pantoja suffered an arm injury. Van has since strengthened his championship credentials by defeating Tatsuro Taira in his first title defense.
That makes the rematch fascinating because we still haven’t really seen these two fight each other.
Van’s pace and boxing are serious problems. He is young, improving rapidly and increasingly comfortable fighting five rounds.
But Pantoja has spent years thriving in chaotic fights against elite flyweights.
More importantly, his grappling gives him a route to victory that doesn’t require matching Van punch-for-punch for 25 minutes.
Pantoja needs to force scrambles, attack the back and make Van defend submissions rather than allowing the champion to establish a boxing rhythm.
This is close.
The Pick: Van has success standing, but Pantoja eventually creates a scramble, takes the back and finds a submission to regain the flyweight title.
Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy
Fight Week Pick: Arman Tsarukyan
Method: Submission
Confidence: 8/10
Mauricio Ruffy is dangerous enough to knock almost anyone out.
That’s what makes this matchup interesting.
Ruffy brings explosive striking, length and legitimate finishing power into the biggest fight of his career. But previous fights have also raised questions about how he handles sustained high-level wrestling pressure.
There may not be a worse opponent for that weakness than Arman Tsarukyan.
Tsarukyan can strike when necessary, but Fight Week expects him to approach this fight intelligently rather than testing Ruffy’s biggest strength.
Close distance.
Force the clinch.
Put Ruffy on his back.
Make him repeatedly stand up.
Five rounds gives Tsarukyan even more time to impose that game plan.
The Pick: Ruffy is extremely dangerous early, but Tsarukyan survives the striking threat, takes control with his wrestling and eventually finds a submission.
Patricio Pitbull vs. Dooho Choi
Fight Week Pick: Dooho Choi
Method: TKO
Confidence: 7/10
Two fighters who know exactly what a firefight looks like.
Patricio Pitbull enters with an incredible 37-9 record, including 12 knockout victories and 12 submissions. The former Bellator champion remains one of the most accomplished fighters of his generation.
But he is now 39.
His UFC run has also been uneven. Pitbull has gone the distance in his first three UFC appearances and enters Saturday looking to prove he can still compete with the division’s most dangerous strikers.
Choi is exactly that kind of opponent.
“The Korean Superboy” is willing to exchange, and that always creates risk. Pitbull has enough power and experience to punish one mistake.
But at this stage, Choi’s pace and offensive pressure may be difficult for Pitbull to match.
The Pick: Pitbull has success early, but Choi gradually forces longer exchanges and eventually lands enough damage to earn a stoppage.
Gable Steveson vs. Sean Sharaf
Fight Week Pick: Gable Steveson
Method: TKO
Confidence: 9/10
The Gable Steveson experiment continues.
And so far, it has been destructive.
The Olympic wrestling gold medalist enters at 4-0 with four finishes, all by knockout or TKO. His professional fights have yet to reach a decision.
Sharaf is also a finisher.
He enters at 4-2, and all four of his professional victories have come by knockout.
That makes the opening minutes interesting.
But Steveson’s wrestling gives him an enormous safety net.
If the striking becomes uncomfortable, he has the ability to change levels and put Sharaf in positions where very few heavyweights will be able to compete with him.
The question remains how Steveson responds when someone survives the early storm.
Fight Week doesn’t think we get that answer Saturday.
The Pick: Steveson uses the takedown threat to open his striking and scores another early stoppage.
Fight Week Pick of the Week
Arman Tsarukyan over Mauricio Ruffy by Submission
Ruffy’s knockout power makes this dangerous.
But stylistically, this looks like a matchup Tsarukyan should be able to control.
Ruffy wants space.
Tsarukyan wants contact.
Ruffy wants extended striking exchanges.
Tsarukyan can turn every exchange into a wrestling sequence.
Over five rounds, that becomes increasingly difficult to overcome.
Fight Week Pick: Arman Tsarukyan by Submission — Confidence 8/10
Fight Week Picks — At a Glance
Isaac Cruz over Nestor Bravo — TKO — 8/10
Jesus Ramos Jr. over Meiirim Nursultanov — Decision — 7/10
Daniel Blancas over Sergio Jimenez — TKO — 7/10
Marco Verde over Guillermo Hernandez — Decision — 8/10
Alexandre Pantoja over Joshua Van — Submission — 6/10
Arman Tsarukyan over Mauricio Ruffy — Submission — 8/10
Dooho Choi over Patricio Pitbull — TKO — 7/10
Gable Steveson over Sean Sharaf — TKO — 9/10
Eight fights.
Eight picks.
And we’re taking a real swing in the UFC 331 main event.
Fight Week 2026 Prediction Record: 17–13
By Saturday night, we’ll either be talking about Alexandre Pantoja reclaiming his championship — or wondering why we picked against one of the fastest-rising young champions in the sport.
That’s why we make the picks before they fight.
Check back with Fight Week throughout the weekend for results, reaction and post-fight analysis.
