{"id":346611,"date":"2026-06-06T15:51:33","date_gmt":"2026-06-06T10:21:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=346611"},"modified":"2026-06-06T15:51:34","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T10:21:34","slug":"junior-tafa-vs-iwo-baraniewski-prediction-odds-pick-for-ufc-vegas-118","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/06\/junior-tafa-vs-iwo-baraniewski-prediction-odds-pick-for-ufc-vegas-118\/","title":{"rendered":"Junior Tafa vs. Iwo Baraniewski prediction, odds, pick for UFC Vegas 118"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gambling will not be offered on this website in any form.<\/p>\n

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The UFC Vegas 118: Muhammad vs. Bonfim Important Card is finally here as we bring you a prediction and pick for this opening bout within the Light Heavyweight (205) Division. Australia’s knockout artist\u00a0Junior Tafa\u00a0<\/strong>will face Poland’s rising Iwo Baraniewski\u00a0<\/strong>in a can’t-miss matchup. Check our UFC odds series for the Tafa-Baraniewski prediction and pick.<\/p>\n

Junior Tafa (7-5)\u00a0<\/strong>has gone 3-5 since joining the UFC in 2023. Following back-to-back losses against Tuco Tokkos and Billy Elekana via submission, Tafa returned back to his bread and butter with a knockout win over Kevin Christian his last outing. He’ll look for one more highlight finish because the long underdog on this one. Tafa stands 6-foot-3 with a 75-inch reach.<\/p>\n

Iwo Baraniewski (8-0)\u00a0<\/strong>is ideal through his first two UFC bouts, putting away Ibo Aslan and Austen Lane via knockout in the primary round of every bout. He’s quickly grown right into a fan-favorite together with his no-frills knockout style, now having the chance to place away a fellow knockout artist within the division to lift his stock. Baraniewski stands six feet tall with a 73.5-inch reach.<\/p>\n

UFC Vegas 118 Odds, courtesy of DraftKings<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

UFC Vegas 118 Odds: Junior Tafa-Iwo Baraniewski Odds<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Junior Tafa: +300<\/p>\n

Iwo Baraniewski: -380<\/p>\n

Over 1.5 rounds: +240<\/p>\n

Under 1.5 rounds: -330<\/p>\n

Why Junior Tafa <\/strong>Will Win<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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  • Last Fight: (W) Kevin Christian \u2013 TKO (mounted elbows, R1)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Last 5: 2-3<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Finishes: 7 KO\/TKO<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    After falling to back-to-back submissions after hitting the mat, Junior Tafa flipped the script and got here up together with his own dominant performance on the bottom together with his win over Kevin Christian. Capable of stuff the takedown and reverse positions, Tafa was almost inconceivable to shake once he found mount against his opponent, throwing hellacious ground-and-pound en path to the win. It’ll take an identical aggression and killer instinct if Tafa desires to emerge victorious because the betting underdog against a quick rising prospect.<\/p>\n

    Tafa will all the time have his one-punch knockout ability within the back pocket, but this fight should see him improve his feints and work on getting opponents to bite on his looks so he can effectively counter. Opponents are already hesitant given the knockout threat, so it might only profit Tafa to throw some mixed looks in and move his head off the middle line. Do not be surprised if he plays possum and hopes Baraniewski rushes in for the finish only to be countered by a large uppercut.<\/p>\n

    While Tafa’s previous couple of fights have not gone his way, he’s been out of his element facing willing grapplers and having to defend himself on the bottom. On the feet, Tafa stands a likelihood in any fight irrespective of the chances, so he should try to keep Baraniewski standing by any means vital to permit himself a puncher’s likelihood on the knockout swing.<\/p>\n

    Why Iwo Baraniewski <\/strong>Will Win<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    • Last Fight: (W) Austen Lane \u2013 TKO (left hook, R1)<\/span><\/li>\n
    • Last 5: 5-0<\/span><\/li>\n
    • Finishes: 6 KO\/TKO, 2 SUB<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Iwo Baraniewski is quickly becoming a fan-favorite, delivering with performance bonus knockouts in his first two UFC appearances. All three of his UFC appearances, including his Contender Series audition, have ended contained in the first round as Baraniewski’s knockout power is undeniable. He’s most dangerous within the opening moments of the fight and he doesn’t waste any time stepping in and throwing his punches full-force. Expect nothing less from him come Saturday as he’ll attempt to walk through Tafa like he has all his opponents.<\/p>\n

      Hailing from Poland, Baraniewski fights with a no-frills style where he walks down his opponent and immediately starts opening up his boxing combos behind a really strong defense. He’s finished all eight of his pro wins, six by knockout and two by submission, proving he’s well-rounded in every single place but fully intend on ending the fight early. That variety of attitude will definitely get him far with the UFC and he should proceed stacking wins consequently.<\/p>\n

      During this fight, Baraniewski should look to stay defensive through the opening minutes, but my guess is that it won’t take him long to completely open up his striking and start heat-seeking for Tafa’s chin. If at any point Baraniewski is capable of land flush within the opening round, expect him to quickly follow up with ground strikes en path to notching one other win and remaining undefeated.<\/p>\n

      Final Junior Tafa-Iwo Baraniewski <\/strong>Prediction & Pick<\/strong><\/h2>\n

      This fight must be fun for so long as it lasts and given the betting odds, we must always see a fast finish from either side on this one. Junior Tafa has all the time been known for his knockout power, but he’s lost a step over his last three fights and is trying to get his momentum back with an upset win on this one.<\/p>\n

      Nevertheless, Iwo Baraniewski looks like the true deal and the UFC must be excited that they’ve an exiciting light heavyweight prospect on their hands. I do not see Baraniewski being too affected by Tafa as he should walk through his opponent and earn the knockout win. Let’s roll with the betting favorite to get it done in the primary round.<\/p>\n

      Final Junior Tafa-Iwo Baraniewski <\/strong>Prediction & Pick: Iwo Baraniewski (-380); UNDER 1.5 Rounds (-330)<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

      The UFC Vegas 118: Muhammad vs. Bonfim Important Card is finally here as we bring you a prediction and pick for this opening bout within the Light Heavyweight (205) Division. Australia’s knockout artist Junior Tafa will face Poland’s rising Iwo Baraniewski in a can’t-miss matchup. Check our UFC odds series for the Tafa-Baraniewski prediction and pick.<\/p>\n

      <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Gambling will not be offered on this website in any form. The UFC Vegas 118: Muhammad vs. Bonfim Important Card is finally here as we bring you a prediction and pick for this opening bout within the Light Heavyweight (205) Division. Australia’s knockout artist\u00a0Junior Tafa\u00a0will face Poland’s rising Iwo Baraniewski\u00a0in a can’t-miss matchup. Check our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":346612,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21048],"tags":[43273,43272,2243,5711,5909,3595,24273,3928,2070],"class_list":["post-346611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mma","tag-baraniewski","tag-iwo","tag-junior","tag-odds","tag-pick","tag-prediction","tag-tafa","tag-ufc","tag-vegas"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=346611"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":346614,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346611\/revisions\/346614"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/346612"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=346611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=346611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=346611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}