Santiago Ponzinibbio and Carlston Harris meet Saturday on the UFC Fight Night 249 main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
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Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris UFC Fight Night 249 preview
Ponzinibbio (29-8 MMA, 11-7 UFC) is in need of a win. Since 2021, the Argentina-born welterweight is just 2-5, in what has easily been the roughest stretch of his career. Ponzinibbio enters on a two-fight skid, following a stoppage loss to Kevin Holland in April 2023 and a split decision loss to Muslim Salikhov in July 2024. … Harris (19-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) has the exact opposite record of Ponzinibbio since 2021, having put together a record of 5-2. However, Harris also enters on the heels of a loss, a first-round knockout by the hands of Khaos Williams in May 2024.
Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris UFC Fight Night 249 expert pick, prediction
The co-main event features a welterweight encounter between Ponzinibbio and Harris.
Despite this having all the feels of a crossroads fight at first glance, both men are of similar age and this fight should be competitive from start to finish.
Harris is the more skilled and willing grappler on paper, which should serve him well inside the smaller octagon. That said, Ponzinibbio, even at this advanced stage of his career, has never been easy to take down, much less control.
The “Argentine Dagger” is apparently feeling back to normal for the first time since his life-threatening health scare back in 2019, which is crazy to think about given how he’s competed in subsequent years.
Unless Harris can demonstrate a lights-out ability to ground Ponzinibbio early and often, then I believe that “The Ultimate Fighter” veteran can survive some scares and pull away down the stretch.
This is another fight that has split decision written all over it, but I’ll officially pick Ponzinibbio to get the nod.
Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris UFC Fight Night 249 odds
Despite the oddsmakers opening the Argentinian as a slight underdog, public money has come in and flipped the line, listing Ponzinibbio -138 and Harris +112 via FanDuel.
Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris UFC Fight Night 249 start time, how to watch
As the co-main event, Ponzinibbio and Harris are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 9:10 p.m. ET. The fight will stream on ESPN+.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 249.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Carlston Harris prediction, pick, start time for UFC Fight Night 249
