Prediction: Michel Pereira via TKO
Pereira’s speed, movement, and power are just on another level here. The guy’s a physical problem — he’s explosive, he covers distance like a cat on a trampoline, and when he lands, it’s not just a touch, it’s fight-altering. Daukaus, since getting cut from the UFC, has leaned a lot heavier into his grappling, but the pace he fights at isn’t the type that’s going to drown Pereira. He doesn’t have the chain-wrestling or suffocating top control that forces someone like Pereira to burn through the gas tank early. And here’s the kicker — when Daukaus does get into those grinding grappling exchanges, he slows down. By Round 2 or 3, those entries from Daukaus start coming slower, the chin gets a little higher, and Pereira’s fast-twitch explosions start landing cleaner. You mix that with Pereira’s ability to dictate the range and make you miss by inches, and Daukaus is going to be walking into punishment. Unless Daukaus magically turns into a cardio wrestling machine overnight, Pereira’s athleticism and fight IQ should be more than enough to pick him apart and probably put him away.