UFC Fight Night 265 Staff Picks

The UFC is in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar for the first time in its history this week with a pair of lightweight contenders at the top of the line.

UFC Fight Night 265 (ESPN+) takes place Saturday at ABHA Arena in Doha.

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

Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Tagir Ulanbekov

  • Records: Horiguchi (34-5 MMA, 7-1 UFC), Ulanbekov (17-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC)
  • Division: Flyweight
  • Rankings: Ulanbekov No. 10
  • Odds (as of 11.21.25): Horiguchi +170, Ulanbekov -215
  • Junkie pick results: Horiguchi 10, Ulanbekov 1

Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Shamil Gaziev

  • Records: Cortes-Acosta (15-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC), Gaziev (14-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC)
  • Division: Heavyweight
  • Rankings: Cortes-Acosta No. 7
  • Odds (as of 11.21.25): Cortes-Acosta -145, Gaziev +120
  • Junkie pick results: Cortes-Acosta 8, Gaziev 3

Jack Hermansson vs. Myktybek Orolbai

  • Records: Hermansson (24-9 MMA, 11-7 UFC), Orolbai (14-2-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC)
  • Division: Welterweight
  • Rankings: None
  • Odds (as of 11.21.25): Hermansson +200, Orolbai -250
  • Junkie pick results: Orolbai 9, Hermansson 2

Alonzo Menifield vs. Volkan Oezdemir

  • Records: Menifield (17-5-1 MMA, 10-5-1 UFC), Oezdemir (20-8 MMA, 8-7 UFC)
  • Division: Light heavyweight
  • Rankings: Oezdemir No. 13, Menifield honorable mention
  • Odds (as of 11.21.25): Menifield +185, Oezdemir -235
  • Junkie pick results: Oezdemir 7, Menifield 4

Ian Machado Garry vs. Belal Muhammad

  • Records: Garry (16-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC), Muhammad (24-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC)
  • Division: Welterweight
  • Rankings: Muhammad No. 2, No. 11 pound-for-pound; Garry No. 6
  • Odds (as of 11.21.25): Garry -265, Muhammad +210
  • Junkie pick results: Garry 7, Muhammad 4

Arman Tsarukyan vs. Dan Hooker

  • Records: Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC), Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC)
  • Division: Lightweight
  • Rankings: Tsarukyan No. 3, No. 15 pound-for-pound; Hooker No. 10
  • Odds (as of 11.21.25): Tsarukyan -600, Hooker +420
  • Junkie pick results: Tsarukyan 10, Hooker 1

Individual staff member picks, main card

Readers 160-99: Tsarukyan (78%), Garry (69%), Oezdemir (72%), Orolbai (71%), Cortes-Acosta (72%), Horiguchi (51%)

  • Ken Hathaway 166-93: Tsarukyan, Garry, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi
  • Nolan King 162-97: Tsarukyan, Garry, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi
  • Mike Bohn 162-97: Tsarukyan, Muhammad, Menifield, Hermansson, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi
  • Farah Hannoun 160-99: Tsarukyan, Muhammad, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Gaziev, Horiguchi
  • Abbey Subhan 158-101: Tsarukyan, Garry, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Gaziev, Horiguchi
  • Matt Erickson 157-102: Tsarukyan, Garry, Menifield, Hermansson, Cortes-Acosta, Ulanbekov
  • Simon Samano 155-104: Tsarukyan, Garry, Menifield, Orolbai, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi
  • Danny Segura 154-105: Tsarukyan, Garry, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi
  • Brian Garcia 153-106: Tsarukyan, Muhammad, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Gaziev, Horiguchi
  • Matthew Wells 150-109: Tsarukyan, Garry, Menifield, Orolbai, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi
  • George Garcia 140-119: Hooker, Muhammad, Oezdemir, Orolbai, Cortes-Acosta, Horiguchi

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:

  • Bogdan Grad vs. Luke Riley: Riley 11, Grad 0
  • Nicolas Dalby vs. Saygid Izagakhmaev: Izagakhmaev 10, Dalby 1
  • Asu Almabayev vs. Alex Perez: Almabayev 11, Perez 0
  • Rafael Cerqueira vs. Abdulrakhman Yakhyaev: Yakhyaev 11, Cerqueira 0
  • Bekzat Almakhan vs. Aleksandre Topuria: Topuria 11, Almakhan 0
  • Ryan Loder vs. Ismail Naurdiev: Naurdiev 11, Loder 0
  • Nurullo Aliev vs. Shem Rock: Aliev 11, Rock 0
  • Marek Bujlo vs. Denzel Freeman: Freeman 6, Bujlo 5

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC Qatar predictions: Is anyone picking a Hooker upset of Tsarukyan?

Reporting by Matt Erickson, MMA Junkie / MMA Junkie

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