Blaydes Vs Lewis: Fight By Fight Preview

Bantamweight contenders looking to build on recent victories finally clash on Saturday evening as Ketlen Vieira faces off with Yana Kunitskaya in the co-main event.

Initially scheduled to meet last August, Vieira was forced out of the original pairing and landed in the Octagon with Sijara Eubanks at the end of September instead, where she earned a unanimous decision victory. After suffering the first loss of her career at the end of 2019, this was a solid bounce-back effort for the talented Brazilian, and another similar effort her could have her right back in the thick of the chase in the 135-pound weight class.

VIEW THEIR ATHLETE PROFILES: Ketlen Vieira | Yana Kunitskaya

Kunitskaya stayed on the card when her bout with Vieira was scuttled in August, registering a unanimous decision win over Julija Stoliarenko. It was a tepid affair, but a victory nonetheless for the former Invicta FC standout and UFC featherweight title challenger, who enters Saturday’s contest with a 3-1 record in the Octagon since her short-notice championship fight debut.

Which of these women will begin their 2021 campaign with a second straight victory and who will be forced to regroup out of the gates? Tune in Saturday night to find out.

Regional champions making their first foray into the Octagon collide in this one as Rafael Alves squares off with Pat Sabatini.

A member of last year’s graduating class from the Contender Series, Alves claimed the interim Titan FC lightweight title in his last appearance before venturing to Las Vegas last summer and earning a contract with a second-round submission win. The MMA Masters representative is unbeaten in his last five outings, having finished the last four, and seems to be finally putting all the pieces together after battling inconsistency through the first several years of his career.

View The Entire UFC Fight Night: Blaydes Vs Lewis Event

Sabatini arrives as a late replacement for recent TUF winner Mike Trizano for a UFC opportunity many feel is overdue. The two-time CFFC featherweight kingpin has won back-to-back contests inside the distance and five of his last six overall, with his lone setback coming as a result of an arm injury.

This is an intriguing clash between slightly older newcomers with more experience than most first-time UFC starters, so it will be interesting to see if Alves or Sabatini (or both) can make the kind of impression that expedites their ascent up the featherweight ranks.

Emerging prospects with identical 9-2 records and each coming off impressive performances in their respective debuts collide as Contender Series grad Phillip Hawes squares off with Nassourdine Imavov in a compelling middleweight clash.

The 31-year-old Hawes made good on his second appearance on the Contender Series last summer, collecting a contract with a first-round stoppage win over Khadzi Bestaev to push his winning streak to four. Seven weeks later, the former prospect announced his presence as one to watch in the UFC middleweight ranks with an 18-second knockout win over Jacob Malkoun in his promotional debut.

View Their Fighter Profiles: Phillip Hawes | Nassourdine Imavov

Imavov was scheduled to appear on the last season of the Contender Series, but was forced to withdraw from his bout against Gregory Rodrigues. He was replaced by Jordan Williams, who blasted his way through the Brazilian to earn a contract, and then ventured to Abu Dhabi to face — you guessed it — Imavov in their joint debuts. The 24-year-old “Russian Sniper” rallied from a slow start to out-work Williams and earn a clean sweep of the scorecards.

Middleweight has been undergoing major renovations for the last couple years and while that work continues, there are opportunities for upstarts like Hawes and Imavov to quickly work their way up the divisional ranks. Another strong performance from either man will further elevate their profile and set them up for another step up in competition later this year.

Featherweights coming off impressive efforts in their lone UFC appearances of 2020 meet this weekend as Jared Gordon faces off with Danny Chavez.

After a series of lightweight appearances where he had mixed results, “Flash” returned to the featherweight division last year and looked outstanding, outhustling Chris Fishgold at every turn to earn a unanimous decision win to cap an emotional and challenging venture to Fight Island. Now the Sanford MMA representative looks to turn that victory into the start of a winning streak as he looks for his third win in as many starts in the UFC’s 145-pound weight class this weekend.

Chavez returned following 18 months on the sidelines last July, registering a first-round stoppage win over Dylan Cala on the regional circuit, and then looked sharp in picking apart TJ Brown in his rookie appearance inside the Octagon at UFC 252. The 33-year-old MMA Masters representative is short on overall experience, but looked like an intriguing addition to the weight class with his victory over Brown, and could expedite his climb up the rankings with a second straight win on Saturday.

Featherweight is one of the most deep and competitive divisions in the UFC, so neither Gordon nor Chavez can afford to take a step back as they try to climb into the Top 15 in 2021. This should be a spirited affair from the start and is a definite Fight of the Night contender.

Drakkar Klose and Luis Pena look to start building some momentum in the loaded lightweight division as they kick off their 2021 campaigns against one another on Saturday night.

Klose had his quality three-fight winning streak snapped in his lone appearance of 2020, landing on the wrong side of a slobberknocker against Beneil Dariush. After having the streaking contender stunned at one point in the first, Klose was unable to put Dariush away and paid for it in the second, walking into a left hand that ended his night.

Pena tagged in for former Cage Warriors champ Jai Herbert in the middle of last week, seeking an opportunity to get a first quarter victory much like he did last year. That victory over Steve Garcia came following a frustrating split decision loss to Matt Frevola in his final start of 2019, and was followed up by a similarly disappointing effort against Khama Worthy in June that dropped his record to 4-3 in the UFC.

After landing on the business end of big finishes to wrap up their respective 2020 campaigns, you can be sure that both of these men have been chomping at the bit to get back out there and get back into the win column. Combined with the ultra-competitive nature of the division, it should make for an outstanding matchup with explosive potential inside the Apex this weekend.

Veteran bantamweight Eddie Wineland makes his 15th trip into the Octagon on Saturday to face off with second timer John Castaneda in a battle of competitors looking to start 2021 on a positive note.

Wineland breaks from his three-year pattern of fighting in the spring in hopes of securing the 25th win of his career after landing on the wrong side of the results in his UFC 250 clash with Sean O’Malley last June. The former WEC bantamweight champ is as tough as they come and as experienced a fighter as there is in the division, having previously challenged for the interim title and shared the Octagon with a cross-section of the top contenders and upstarts over the last decade.

Wins over Gustavo Lopez and Chris Beal earned Castaneda a chance to compete on the fourth episode of the Contender Series, but although he won his fight, the “Sexy Mexi” didn’t come away with a contract. Fast-forward three years and the 29-year-old finally got his chance to compete inside the Octagon, giving a good accounting of himself in a short-notice loss to Nathaniel Wood, setting up this sophomore appearance against Wineland.

Will Wineland thwart Casteneda’s attempt to collect his first UFC victory or will the sophomore topple the tenured veteran and get his hand raised on Saturday night?

Featherweights that trained together a time or two back in the day now cross paths inside the Octagon as veteran Chas Skelly finally returns to action against Jamall Emmers.

Sidelined since his September 2019, the 35-year-old Skelly is 18-3, 1 NC overall and has just a single loss in his last five fights. The Sanford MMA product is the kind of hard-nosed, gritty competitor befitting the nickname “The Scrapper,” and after an extended absence, you can be sure Skelly will be primed to get back in there and get his hand raised again this weekend.

Emmers posted four straight victories following his Contender Series loss to Erosa in 2018 to earn a call to the Octagon. He dropped a split decision to late replacement Giga Chikadze in his promotional debut, but rebounded with a solid effort against Vince Cachero in August to earn his first UFC win.

These two have sparred in the past and stayed in touch ever since, which is an interesting little wrinkle to an already intriguing matchup. Featherweight is flush with talent and there is plenty of it on display on this card, so look for each man to do their damnedest to stand out from the crowd on Saturday.

Bantamweights do battle here as Aiemann Zahabi welcomes Drako Rodriguez to the Octagon for the first time.

After beginning his career with seven consecutive victories, including a win in his UFC debut, Zahabi arrives in Las Vegas on a two-fight skid. Last time out, the 33-year-old dropped a unanimous decision to Vince Morales.

A standout on the regional circuit, Rodriguez punches his ticket to the UFC with a first-round submission win over Mana Martinez in August. Now 7-1 as a pro, the 24-year-old is an intriguing new addition to the 135-pound weight class and potentially one to watch long-term heading into next year.

This is a really intriguing pairing, as Zahabi is a polished and technical competitor with a slick ground game, while Rodriguez is a rising star stepping onto the biggest stage in the sport for the first time. Will the bright lights be too much for him or can the Contender Series graduate hand Zahabi a third straight loss?

If fighters ever needed further proof of how pivotal it can be to have a name in mind heading into your post-fight interview, they need to look no further than this heavyweight pairing between Serghei Spivac and Jared Vanderaa.

The 25-year-old Spivac has alternated losses and wins through four UFC starts, heading into Saturday’s contest off a majority decision victory over Carlos Felipe in July. Each of his two career losses have come against veteran heavyweights, and he looked impressive collecting a second-round submission win over Tai Tuivasa at UFC 243, so with a little more seasoning, the emerging Moldovan could develop into a formidable member of the heavyweight class.

Vanderaa lobbied for the opportunity to face “The Polar Bear” following his Contender Series victory at the start of November, and now, after a postponement in December, the Team Quest representative is getting his wish. The 28-year-old newcomer is a mountain of a man who earned championship gold under the EFC banner in South Africa, claiming the title with a stoppage win over UFC veteran Ruan Potts.

Will Spivac make Vanderaa regret his decision to call him out or will the newcomer make the most of his opportunity and secure a quality win in his UFC debut?