Prediction: Pat Sabatini inside the distance
Joanderson Brito is an aggressive power striker with solid grappling, but his success in that area has come against fighters who either lack strong takedown defense or don’t possess high-level ground skills. That won’t be the case here. Sabatini is one of the best wrestlers in the division, seamlessly blending his takedowns with high-level jiu-jitsu, and he has the cardio to keep a relentless pace that most fighters simply can’t match.
Brito’s pressure-heavy style works well when he can back opponents up and force wild exchanges, but he lacks straight, disciplined strikes, often throwing looping hooks and overhands. That’s a major issue against someone like Sabatini, who will time those wide shots and turn them into easy takedown entries. Once Sabatini gets in on the hips, it’s only a matter of time before Brito is on his back. And unlike the opponents Brito has bullied in the past, Sabatini doesn’t just hold position—he’s constantly working, forcing opponents to react until they eventually break under the pressure.
The biggest issue for Brito is his gas tank. He carries a lot of muscle and fights with an explosive burst style, which means he slows down significantly as the fight goes on. Meanwhile, Sabatini has the conditioning to maintain a high grappling pace from bell to bell. That’s where this fight likely breaks open—after a round or two of fighting off takedowns, scrambling, and defending from bad positions, Brito’s output will drop. Once that happens, Sabatini will go from controlling him to actively hunting the finish. Whether it’s through ground-and-pound or a submission, the deeper this fight goes, the more inevitable a Sabatini stoppage becomes. Expect him to drag Brito into deep waters and drown him with nonstop grappling pressure.