UFC Rotterdam predictions: Towering heavyweights take Holland

Prior to UFC Fight Night 115 in Rotterdam, Netherlands on Saturday, theScore's Themistoklis Alexis makes his picks for the evening's notewrothy bouts.

Heavyweight

Alexander Volkov (2-0 UFC, 28-6)
vs.
Stefan Struve (12-6 UFC, 28-8)

In a literal battle of giants, it's Struve's versatility that will get his hand raised in front of his fellow countrymen.

As the more technically proficient striker, Volkov will aim to keep this one standing, but Struve's edge in length leaves the Russian little choice but to rely on a mixed bag of kicks as opposed to his mitts to score points. Whether the Dutchman can time one of Volkov's kicks for a takedown or exploit his reach advantage to tag his suspect chin, it's only a matter of time before the submission artist gets his fellow behemoth to the mat and puts the screws to him with those tree-trunk-sized limbs for a tapout.

THE PICK: Struve

Middleweight

Siyar Bahadurzada (2-2 UFC, 22-6-1)
vs.
Rob Wilkinson (0-0 UFC, 11-0)

Wilkinson has only seen the scorecards once as a pro. Bahadurzada will see to it he doesn't make it there again.

The 33-year-old Bahadurzada has fought just twice in the past four years, but appeared immune to ring rust when he dispatched Brandon Thatch in his return from a 27-month layoff at UFC 196.

With 10 stoppages in 11 pro victories, Wilkinson will likely keep Bahadurzada on the back foot early in pursuit of his 11th, but the Aghan native's experience and versatility will win him back the reins for one of his winging shots to find the newcomer's chin.

Bahadurzada by KO.

THE PICK: Bahadurzada

Women's Bantamweight

Marion Reneau (3-2-1 UFC, 7-3-1)
vs.
Talita Bernardo (0-0 UFC, 5-1)

Reneau was training to fight a kickboxer in Germaine de Randamie up until a few days ago. Now she faces a lesser known property in jiu-jitsu specialist Talita Bernardo.

Tasked with a relative enigma on short notice, Reneau might find Bernardo a tough nut to crack early on, but she remains a threat wherever the fight goes and has shared the cage with far stiffer competition. Should the UFC vet go the prudent route and keep from flirting with Bernardo's ground game, expect her to resort to the clinch and soften the Brazilian up against the cage before dragging her to the canvas to finish her off by TKO.

THE PICK: Reneau

Welterweight

Leon Edwards (5-2 UFC, 13-3)
vs.
Bryan Barbarena (4-2 UFC, 13-4)

Barbarena has earned a reputation as a "prospect killer" of sorts in his UFC stint, but Edwards is no Sage Northcutt.

The 26-year-old Edwards is still rounding out his game seven fights into his promotional run, but he heads to Rotterdam with the blueprint to beat Barbarena, who's claimed nine of 13 scalps by knockout. If "Rocky" wants to get his hand raised, he'll avoid standing and banging with Barbarena from the pocket and sprinkle in some takedowns as he did in victories over similarly deadly strikers in Albert Tumenov and Vicente Luque for a sweep of the scorecards.

THE PICK: Edwards

Preliminary Bout

Lightweight

Rustam Khabilov (7-2 UFC, 21-3)
vs.
Desmond Green (1-0 UFC, 20-5)

Given their shared grappling backgrounds, Khabilov and Green could very well end up staging three rounds of good, not great, kickboxing.

Khabilov isn't averse to throwing hands to secure a takedown - even against wrestlers of his opponent's ilk, and while Green's D-I pedigree and successful UFC debut against Josh Emmett are nothing to sneeze at, the sambo man has a way of dictating where the action takes place. Look for Khabilov to trade leather with a fellow decision-machine in Green to set up his shots - maybe a suplex or two - en route to yet another win on points.

THE PICK: Khabilov

Related: Everything you need to know about Zabit Magomedsharipov before his UFC debut