UFC 323 predictions: Who’s picking new champs to close the year?

The UFC has the final pay-per-view of the calendar year – and the last one in the ESPN broadcast era before the 2026 move to Paramount. Two titles are on the line at the top of the card.

UFC 323 (pay-per-view, ESPN2/FX/Disney+, ESPN+) takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

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Get pick results from our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers, as well as additional analysis, below.

Jan Blachowicz vs. Bogdan Guskov

• Records: Blachowicz (29-11-1 MMA, 12-8-1 UFC), Guskov (18-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC)

• Division: Light heavyweight

• Rankings: Blachowicz No. 8, Guskov No. 9

• Odds (as of 12.06.25): Blachowicz -130, Guskov +105

• Junkie pick results: Blachowicz 8, Guskov 3

Henry Cejudo vs. Payton Talbott

• Records: Cejudo (16-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC), Talbott (10-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC)

• Odds (as of 12.06.25): Cejudo +220, Talbott -280

• Junkie pick results: Cejudo 8,  Talbott 3

Brandon Moreno vs. Tatsuro Taira

• Records: Moreno (23-8-2 MMA, 11-4-2 UFC), Taira (17-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC)

• Rankings: Moreno No. 2, Taira No. 6

• Odds (as of 12.06.25): Moreno +105, Taira -130

• Junkie pick results: Moreno 10, Taira 1

Alexandre Pantoja vs. Joshua Van

• Records: Pantoja (30-5 MMA, 14-3 UFC), Van (15-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC)

• Rankings: Pantoja No. 1, No. 4 pound-for-pound; Van No. 3

• Odds (as of 12.06.25): Pantoja -250, Van +200

• Junkie pick results: Pantoja 9, Van 2

Merab Dvalishvili vs. Petr Yan

• Records: Dvalishvili (21-4 MMA, 14-2 UFC), Yan (19-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC)

• Rankings: Dvalishvili No. 1, No. 3 pound-for-pound;

• Odds (as of 12.06.25): Dvalishvili -480, Yan +350

• Junkie pick results: Dvalishvili 11, Yan 0

Individual staff member picks, main card

Readers 166-99: Dvalishvili 88, Pantoja 76, Moreno 69, Talbott 64, Blachowicz 55

• Ken Hathaway 172-93: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Nolan King 168-97: Dvalishvili, Van, Moreno, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Mike Bohn 165-100: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Taira, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Farah Hannoun164-101: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Abbey Subhan 163-102: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Danny Segura 160-105: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Simon Samano 160-105: Dvalishvili, Van, Moreno, Talbott, Blachowicz

• Matt Erickson 160-105: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Talbott, Guskov

• Brian Garcia 157-108: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Cejudo, Blachowicz

• Matthew Wells 155-110: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Talbott, Guskov

• George Garcia 144-121: Dvalishvili, Pantoja, Moreno, Cejudo, Guskov

Preliminary card picks

Although they don’t count toward the standings, MMA Junkie staff members still pick the fights on the prelims. Here are the results:

• Grant Dawson vs. Manuel Torres: Torres 6, Dawson 5

• Chris Duncan vs. Terrance McKinney: Duncan 10, McKinney 1

• Maycee Barber vs. Karine Silva: Barber 7, Silva 4

• Nazim Sadykhov vs. Fares Ziam: Sadykhov 7, Ziam 4

• Brunno Ferreira vs. Marvin Vettori: Vettori 7, Ferreira 4

• Edson Barboza vs. Jalin Turner: Turner 7, Barboza 4

• Ibo Aslan vs. Iwo Baraniewski: Baraniewski 8,  Aslan. 3

• Mansur Abdul-Malik vs. Antonio Trocoli: Abdul-Malik 11, Trocoli 0

• Muhammad Naimov vs. Mairon Santos: Santos 8, Naimov 3

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 323 predictions: Who’s picking new champs to close the year?