UFC 323 expert picks and best bets -- Can Merab Dvalishvili or Alexandre Pantoja be stopped - ESPN

ESPN's No. 3 pound-for-pound fighter, Merab Dvalishvili (21-4), will defend his bantamweight title for the fourth time this year at UFC 323 in Las Vegas on Saturday (10 p.m. ET on ESPN PPV; prelims beginning at 6 p.m. on ESPN+). The nine-year UFC veteran from the country of Georgia is taking on former champion Petr Yan (19-5) in a rematch of their 2023 fight that Dvalishvili won by unanimous decision. If Dvalishvili gets his hand raised for the 15th consecutive time on Saturday, he'll become the first UFC fighter to win four title fights in a calendar year.

Another longtime titleholder and top-10 pound-for-pound competitor, Alexandre Pantoja (30-5), puts his men's flyweight belt on the line in the co-main event against upstart 24-year-old Joshua Van (15-2). Like Dvalishvili, Van is making his fourth appearance this year. If Van can figure out how to slow down Pantoja — something five challengers before him have not done during the Brazilian's two-and-a-half-year reign — he would become the second-youngest UFC champion ever and first born after 2000.

In all, the final UFC pay-per-view card of the year plays host to seven fighters ranked by ESPN and three ranked-vs.-ranked matchups.

ESPN MMA analysts and commentators provide their title fight predictions, and ESPN betting expert Ian Parker adds insight on the value bets available on the card.

How do you go against Merab right now? I think he rinses and repeats what he's been doing to everybody. His ability to keep fighters confused and guessing on the feet will win him this fight. Yan will be guessing all night. It won't look as easy as it did in the first fight, but Dvalishvili will win four out of five rounds. — Din Thomas

Merab is hot, and I think he beats Yan again.