UFC Atlanta: Din Thomas, Anthony Smith make Kamaru Usman vs. Joaquin Buckley picks - ESPN

The UFC heads to Atlanta on Saturday for a UFC Fight Night (10 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+; prelims at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+) headlined by a pair of top-10 welterweights in ESPN's divisional rankings. Former champion Kamaru Usman (20-4) will be back in action for the first time in a year and a half against Joaquin Buckley (21-6), who enters the weekend on a six-fight winning streak that includes four early finishes.

Another former champion, Rose Namajunas (14-7), will be in action in the co-main event against Miranda Maverick (17-5), who is in the midst of her own four-fight win streak.

The PFL World Tournament is also back this week (Thursday at 10 p.m. on ESPN/ESPN+; prelims at 7 p.m. on ESPN+) with semifinal bouts in the welterweight and featherweight divisions. Prospect Thad Jean (9-0) and former Bellator champion Jason Jackson (19-5) meet in the welterweight main event, while 2023 PFL featherweight champion Jesus Pinedo (24-6-1) takes on the man he beat for the title, Gabriel Braga (16-2), in the rubber match of their three-fight series.

Brett Okamoto spoke to former UFC fighters Din Thomas and Anthony Smith to get their UFC main event predictions. ESPN betting expert Ian Parker adds insight and analysis on the fight night for Atlanta and intriguing bets from the PFL semifinals.

Usman will have a tough time early with Buckley's speed and athleticism, but once they settle into the fight, I think the veteran savviness of Kamaru will take over. And this is not real technical analysis, X's and O's, but [consider] how long Kamaru spent on the side. How many fights did he not take? How many opportunities did he pass on before he chose this fight? There's a reason he likes this matchup. There's something he sees that the rest of us