UFC Fight Night 43 staff picks: Headliners Te Huna, Marquardt split down middle

The main event for the UFC’s debut in New Zealand has MMAjunkie’s writers and radio hosts split down the middle.

Home country fan favorite James Te Huna (16-7 MMA, 5-3 UFC) also is more than a 2-to-1 betting favorite over Nate Marquardt (32-13-2 MMA, 10-6 UFC). But our staff has cast four picks with each fighter.

Marquardt is moving back up to middleweight after four fights at welterweight, while Te Huna is dropping down from light heavyweight for the first time.

In the co-main event, two staffers believe Australia’s Soa Palelei (21-3 MMA, 3-1 UFC) will pull off a mild upset over Jared Rosholt (10-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) in a heavyweight bout. The same is true for Hatsu Hioki (27-7-2 MMA, 3-3 UFC) in his featherweight bout against Charles Oliveira (17-4 MMA, 5-4 UFC). Two pickers believe the Japanese fighter will upset the Brazilian, nearly a 2-to-1 favorite.

The lone unanimous pick on the main card is Robert Whittaker (11-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC). All eight staff members believe the Aussie will top Mike Rhodes (6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC). At more than 3-to-1, Whittaker is the heaviest favorite on the card.

UFC Fight Night 43 takes place Saturday at Vector Arena in Auckland, New Zealand. The entire card streams on UFC Fight Pass.

Check out the full picks above.

Additionally, leave your main-card picks below. As usual, MMAjunkie reader “IAMMA” is organizing the MMAjunkie Member Picks, where “Shut_The_Fitch_Up” continues to be our leader.

For more on UFC Fight Night 43, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.