Steven Asplund

States the pick with zero qualifiers of any kind, calling it beyond question -- the strongest, least hedged pick on this card.

A good striker who does a few things and does them well: a long jab, body work, an uncommon-for-a-heavyweight front kick, and good volume. He has a tall-man, lean-back defense that is only exploitable by multi-punch combinations, which his opponent rarely throws. His takedown defense is decent and his cardio for a heavyweight is called good, in the sense that he keeps producing output even while fatigued.

volume/cardio favor him the longer it goes; KO route for Petrino explicitly discounted

Good, high-volume striker with a good long jab and front kick who works the body well; his striking defense is not the best, leaning on a tall-man's lean-back that the analyst says could cost him against a hard hitter. His takedown defense has been a problem before -- a factor in his only career loss -- but good cardio means the analyst expects the fight to favor him the longer it goes.

cites size/cardio advantage and Sharaf's known fade pattern to land on Asplund

Credited as a good striker featuring a long jab, with a height/size edge as the bigger man here; he works to the body with uppercuts and mixes in a good front kick at a healthy volume. His height creates occasional 'tall man' defensive lapses, but his durability has kept that from costing him, especially at heavyweight. He is also credited with good cardio for a heavyweight.