Matthews is the younger, more durable athlete at this stage and has a more complete MMA game. His slightly higher output, better strike differential, and stronger offensive wrestling/submission threat give him more paths to win over three rounds. Salikhov remains dangerous with counter striking and timing, but his age, declining speed, and tendency to fight in low-volume pockets should allow Matthews to bank rounds with mixed striking and periodic takedowns, provided he avoids big counters.