Anthony Pettis vs. Clay Collard predictions

The PFL kicks off the next round of the 2021 Grand Prix with $ 1 million at stake. Recently released from the UFC contract, Anthony Pettis, who once instills fear in the organization's featherweight and lightweight divisions, will have his debut fight with Clay Collard, who the day before decided to return from professional boxing to MMA. Their confrontation will be the first stage of the competition, and the winner will have to go through 2 more battles to get to the main prize.


The lightweight duel will be the main event of the tournament and will be held at the Ocean Casino Resort. Remarkably, both fighters will be making their PFL debuts, and each of them had previous experience of playing in the UFC. Only now Clay decided to devote himself to the ring and big gloves for a while.

• Expert Predictions Analysis on Anthony Pettis vs. Clay Collard
  • Anthony Pettis
  • Clay Collard
• ODDs
• "Comparative analysis
• Game Totals Prediction

Our Expert Predictions & Analysis on Anthony Pettis vs. Clay Collard

Anthony Pettis

Showtime is one of the brightest representatives of taekwondo in MMA. His filigree striking technique is complemented by a good level of parterre, because one of Anthony's favorite disciplines is BJJ. In terms of wrestling and control on the ground, he may not be the best, but you rarely find a basic drummer who has such an impressive number of victories by submissions over those who consider themselves grapplers and jitters.

Pettis started from small-town leagues, becoming a champion in one of them (GFS), then he was signed to the WEC, where he took the belt from Benson Henderson, and in 2013, the fighter became the king of the UFC lightweight division. At one time, he defeated Jeremy Stevens, Donald Cerrone, Charles Oliveira and Stephen Thompson. And now, with over 30 cage fights under his belt, the American decided to restart his career by moving to another promotion.

Creative drummer

Anthony is so good at this component that a kick is even named after him - "Showtime kick". He works great with his legs, uses different techniques and combinations, and also boxes competently. With age, his reaction and speed have diminished, but the ex-champion is still able to compete with many serious opponents.

Master of Submissions and Choke

Exactly 29% of his victories, Pettis got by various tricks. What can we say, even if Michael Chiesa and Charles Oliveira, famous for their partners, could not fight him back in their own element. Anthony himself, lost by submissions only twice in his entire career.

Age takes its toll

"Showtime" is good exactly until the moment when they start to put pressure on it. Previously, he coped with this at the expense of "hold" and endurance, but in current conditions, the further the fight goes, where he fails to control the distance and work as the first number, the more he loses ground.

Fighter's current form and readiness

Pettis will enter this fight after two good victories in the UFC. Yes, Anthony is not what he used to be, but still you shouldn't write off the veteran. He will definitely be motivated as the PFL management has high hopes for him. And a million at stake is a good incentive to win, in and of itself.

Clay Collard

In his school years, the athlete was engaged in wrestling and boxing, achieved good results there, and by the age of 18 he decided to go to MMA. Playing in little-known Utah leagues, Collard took the Showdown Fights title and moved to the UFC with a 13-4 record. The only one he managed to defeat in 4 appearances under the auspices of this promotion was Alex White, in the rest of the fights he was defeated, moreover, even Max Holloway took part in this.

Since 2017, Collard began to combine boxing with MMA, two years later he devoted himself entirely to the ring, scored a 9-4-3 record there and decided to return. I chose PFL for my debut, because only there you can hit a big jackpot without being popular in the media space. Note that Clay is very good in standing, given that more than half of his fights in mixed martial arts, he ended up with knockouts.

Good boxer

Boxing is an element in which Collard is doing well. He never knew how to beautifully work with his feet, however, his arms are enough for him to lay opponents on the canvas. What is noteworthy, the fighter himself was only once in a technical knockout, which Max Holloway organized for him.

Middling wrestler

Despite the base in the fight, Clay cannot be called a serious parteris. He lost by submissions three times in his career, moreover, by far not the most skilled opponents, and he himself only occasionally resorted to this method of victories.

Fighter's current form and readiness

Collard fought his last MMA fight in 2019. After that, he plunged headlong into boxing, but it is not worth comparing the preparation for performances in the ring and in the cage. Before moving to boxing, the athlete had 4 victories in the last 5 fights, but the level of opposition there was far from ideal.

ODDs from download 1xbet

Experts consider Clay Collard to be a serious underdog, giving him an average of 4.06, while Pettis is a serious favorite with 1.18 odds. Download 1xbet to your device and choose your favorite!

Comparative analysis

Let's start with the fact that we have fighters of completely different caliber. Clay Collard is the most ordinary middle peasant who practically did not encounter top opposition on his way, and also did not stand out from the rest with any serious achievements. Anthony Pettis, in turn, despite his age, is still considered a top lightweight, able to compete with rating guys. Add to this the fact that Anthony is more versatile, because in addition to the percussion technique, he is also good on the ground floor, but Collard is one-sided in this regard.

In anthropometry, Clay wins, especially in the span of the arms - here he has an advantage of 5 cm, and given that he has boxed a lot lately, this aspect will play into his hands. However, Pettis knows how to keep opponents at a distance through kicks, so everything will depend on who is faster to find his rhythm. And, of course, one cannot fail to mention the experience of the guys in general. In this regard, of course, the former UFC champion is far ahead.

Totals Prediction on Anthony Pettis vs. Clay Collard

There is no reason to doubt that Anthony Pettis will emerge victorious from this fight. If he fails to gain an advantage in the standing position, the ground will be the solution to all problems for Showtime. Clay is able to create a lot of trouble for him in exchanges, but Anthony neutralizes this with low kicks and work on the body. And besides, here we are talking about a duel of an elite athlete against the middle peasant, so I don't see through what technical tools Collard can win. The main thing is that Pettis perceives him as a serious opponent and does not relax.

Prediction: Anthony Pettis wins.