UFC Winnipeg predictions: Who will emerge as the top welterweight contender?

Prior to Saturday's UFC on FOX 26 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, theScore's Themistoklis Alexis makes his picks for the evening's main-card bouts.

Welterweight

Robbie Lawler (10-3 UFC, 28-11)
vs.
Rafael dos Anjos (16-7 UFC, 27-9)

Dos Anjos' resurgence at 170 pounds ends with Lawler.

The former lightweight champ most recently picked up a W over towering welterweight Neil Magny with his grappling, but he'll be in for a short night if he can't get Lawler to the mat. A purebred banger, the 35-year-old Lawler won't waste any time taking the fight to dos Anjos, and even if the Brazilian can weather the early storm, expect the former welterweight king to enter "Beast Mode" - as he did with regularity in his championship bouts - and put him away in the later rounds.

THE PICK: Lawler

Featherweight

Ricardo Lamas (9-3 UFC, 18-5)
vs.
Josh Emmett (3-1 UFC, 12-1)

Lamas' luck has been far from enviable of late, and he'll be taking it out on Emmett come fight night.

The perennial contender has seen three straight fights undergo late opponent changes, the kind of run that gets veterans of his ilk labeled gatekeepers through no fault of their own. If he aims to be taken seriously as a contender, he'll need a statement victory at a tough, yet beatable Emmett's expense. Look for Lamas to leave this one out of the judges' hands, let his hands fly early, and put Emmett on his hind parts before pounding him out for a TKO.

THE PICK: Lamas

Welterweight

Santiago Ponzinibbio (7-2 UFC, 25-3)
vs.
Mike Perry (4-1 UFC, 11-1)

The prolific Perry has impressed over his quartet of victories in the Octagon, but Ponzinibbio is no Jake Ellenberger, nor a converted lightweight like Perry's latest foe Alex Reyes.

The Argentine has mounted five straight wins over far stiffer competition than that of Saturday's dance partner, but he'd be wise to go the Alan Jouban route and pick Perry apart through three rounds as opposed to forcing a finish. As the more technically proficient striker, Ponzinibbio should keep Perry on the end of his reach and subject him to a death by a thousand one-twos to make it six in a row.

THE PICK: Ponzinibbio

Light Heavyweight

Glover Teixeira (9-4 UFC, 26-6)
vs.
Misha Cirkunov (4-1 UFC, 13-3)

In what should prove a tale of two chins, the younger, fresher fighter will get his hand raised.

Teixeira and Cirkunov are coming off nasty KO losses, and while both are capable of finishing both on the feet and the ground, the former's waning threshold for punishment will rear its ugly head before long. Look for Cirkunov to stage a repeat of last year's performance against Nikita Krylov and drop an all too seasoned Teixeira to the canvas before slapping on a fight-ending submission.

THE PICK: Cirkunov