UFC 297 Predictions: Bleacher Report Main Card Staff Picks | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

Haris Kruskic: Whenever we make our predictions, I'll often bring up "passing of the torch" fights. There's no better example than Neil Magny vs. Mike Malott.

Malott has looked incredible since entering the UFC in 2022. It's no wonder the UFC brass decided to throw the Canadian on the featured fight of a pay-per-view in Toronto. He's electric.

Meanwhile, Magny has been thrown to the wolves over the last couple years, losing to Shavkat Rakhmonov, Gilbert Burns and Ian Machado Garry. There's still clearly gas in the veteran's tank, but 31 UFC fights is a lot of wear and tear to take. It just feels like the wheels are going to start falling off sooner than later. If that's the case, Malott is not someone you want to be fighting.

Prediction: Malott by submission, Rd. 2

Tom Taylor: Neil Magny has become the guy to beat for anybody looking to crack the welterweight Top 15.

Just like Rakhmonov and Garry before him, surging Canadian finisher Malott will now have his chance against the experienced veteran.

I'd pick Malott to win this fight anywhere on earth, but in Toronto, where he will have the support of what's sure to be a passionate Canadian crowd, it's even harder to see him messing this up. The 32-year-old thumps Magny on the feet to set up a stoppage on the mat, and assert himself as the most promising Canadian contender since Rory MacDonald.

Prediction: Malott by submission, Rd. 1