Fight By Fight Preview | UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs Holland

Top 10 mainstay Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson and Kevin Holland face off in Saturday’s main event pairing, as each of the welterweights aims to end the year on a positive note.

Thompson returns for the first time since last December, when he dropped a unanimous decision to Belal Muhammad on the final fight card of the year. The 39-year-old veteran is in a bit of a strange place in his career at the moment, having dropped consecutive decisions, but also being less than two years removed from a Performance of the Night-winning effort against Geoff Neal.

FREE FIGHTS: Stephen Thompson vs Vicente Luque | Kevin Holland vs Joaquin Buckley

The popular and ever-active Holland makes the quick turnaround after dropping his impromptu matchup against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279 in September, looking to get things moving in the right direction once again. Holland has historically struggled in these spots — matchups against established, tenured competitors — and needs to clear this hurdle if he has hopes of making a push towards the Top 10 in 2023.

Will “Wonderboy” get back into the win column and show he’s still got something left in the tank or will “Trailblazer” hand him a third straight loss while collecting the most high-profile victory of his career?

Bryan Barberena vs Rafael Dos Anjos

Welterweights occupy the penultimate spot on this weekend’s fight card, as well, as Bryan Barberena looks to extend his winning streak to four when he takes on two-division standout Rafael Dos Anjos.

After dropping his first fight following life-saving abdominal surgery in late 2020, “Bam Bam” has collected consecutive victories over Darian Weeks, Matt Brown, and Robbie Lawler to emerge as an intriguing “late bloomer” in the 170-pound weight class. Last time out, the Gym-O representative went toe-to-toe with the former champion Lawler, becoming just the third person to stop him with strikes.

READ: The 10 Best UFC Fights Happening In December

Dos Anjos has been splitting his time between lightweight and welterweight as of late, including a catchweight battle against Renato Moicano in the middle of the two divisions. The Brazilian veteran is coming off a fifth-round stoppage loss to Rafael Fiziev but remains a tough test for anyone looking to slide past him in the rankings, regardless of whether that’s at ’55 or 170 pounds.

This one is going to answer a number of questions about each man. A win over Dos Anjos still carries weight and could propel Barberena into the rankings at welterweight, while the former lightweight champ from Brazil can show, like Thompson in the main event, that he’s still got plenty of offer and remains in the Top 15 mix no matter where he competes.

Matheus Nicolau vs Matt Schnell

Ascending flyweights with Top 5 aspirations, Matheus Nicolau and Matt Schnell meet in this main card pairing that is guaranteed to be an entertaining affair.

Nicolau is one of the more unsung standouts on the UFC roster at the moment — a 29-year-old Brazilian from the famed Nova Uniao camp with an 18-3-1 record overall, a 6-1 mark inside the Octagon and 11 wins in his last dozen appearances. Last time out against David Dvorak, the sixth-ranked Nicolau dialed up the offense a little more, hurting the Czech striker on the feet and cruising to a unanimous decision win.

READ: Best UFC Fights From Florida

I don’t know if Schnell has any actual allergies, but he sure does seem to be allergic to being in boring fights. The 32-year-old Louisiana native turned in an insane performance of the year in July against Sumudaerji, fighting through plenty of adversity before managing to battle back and secure the second-round technical submission victory in one of the craziest fights I’ve ever seen.

While the Brazilian has been a little too patient and selective at times, he’s not likely to have that option on Saturday, as Schnell is a marauder that will close the distance and force him to engage, which means we should get another electric affair.

Tai Tuivasa vs Sergei Pavlovich

Tai Tuivasa and Sergei Pavlovich square off in a clash of Top 5 heavyweights looking to cement their positions in the division heading into the new year.

Tuivasa had his five-fight winning streak snapped last time out, yet he still likely gained ground in the division, as he went shot-for-shot with Ciryl Gane in Paris before ultimately landing on the wrong side of a third-round stoppage. The West Sydney representative has looked outstanding since returning from his one-year sabbatical following the first three losses of his career, and an expedient return to the win column here would keep him in line for another marquee matchup in the first half of 2023.

WATCH: Free Fight | Tai Tuivasa vs Augusto Sakai

Over the last three years, Pavlovich has gone from intriguing prospect to potential title threat, posting four straight stoppage victories, including two this year. In March, the sculpted, athletic Russian ventured to London and stopped Shamil Abdurakhimov before following that up with a 55-second win over Derrick Lewis at UFC 277 in Dallas.

There is a great deal of uncertainty at the very top of the heavyweight division at the moment, but just beyond that, fighters like Gane and Curtis Blaydes are entrenched in their places just outside the title conversation at the moment. The winner of this one will stand alongside those two, while the vanquished fighter isn’t likely to be too far behind either.

Jack Hermansson vs Roman Dolidze

Former Invicta FC strawweight champions clash on the prelims, as Angela Hill faces off with Emily Ducote.

Hill, who won and successfully defended the belt during a four-fight run between her two UFC stints, has gone 8-10 since returning to the promotion at the start of 2017, establishing herself as a tough out and Top 15 mainstay whose record would look quite different if a couple close decisions had gone her way. She snapped a three-fight slide in August with a veteran effort against Loopy Godinez, and will look to replicate that showing here.

WATCH: Bantamweight Breakdown With Marlon Vera

Ducote won the belt by defeating UFC alum Danielle Taylor and successfully defended it once before getting called up to the Octagon. She debuted in July, earning a unanimous decision win over former title challenger — and Hill’s podcast partner — Jessica Penne to extend her winning streak to four and instantly grab a spot in the Top 15.

Can Hill avenge her training partner’s defeat and collect a second straight win over an ascending talent or will Ducote close out her 2022 campaign by taking out the other half of the Two Straws podcast?

Clay Guida vs Scott Holtzman

Tracy Cortez and Amanda Ribas cross paths in an outstanding and intriguing battle in the flyweight division early on Saturday’s preliminary card.

Cortez dropped the first fight of her professional career and hasn’t lost since, rattling off nine straight victories, including four-in-a-row inside the Octagon. Another member of the Fight Ready team, the DWCS grad is a solid wrestler who continues to make strides with her striking, and is more than capable of making another leap in her development as she continues to gain experience.

Ribas held her own in a split decision loss to Katlyn Chookagian earlier this year, and seems to have decided to stick around flyweight for the time being. A Top 15 fighter at strawweight, the ebullient Brazilian represents a step up in competition for Cortez and will look to show that this weekend.

Flyweight is ultra-competitive and brimming with talent at the moment, and the winner of this one should feature prominently in how things play out in the lower half of the rankings in 2023.

Natan Levy vs Genaro Valdez

Natan Levy and Genaro Valdez collide here in a bout between lightweight DWCS grads looking to avoid leaving Florida with a second career loss.

Levy dropped his promotional debut to Rafa Garcia last November, but got back into the win column six months later with a hard-fought win over Mike Breeden. Raised in Israel and now based in Las Vegas, the 31-year-old prefers to strike and should have a willing dance partner this weekend.

Valdez pushed his record to 10-0 while collecting his UFC contract with a win over Patrik White on Season 5 of the Contender Series. He debuted three months later at UFC 270, landing on the wrong side of the results in a three-minute slobberknocker with Matt Frevola, and will look to get back to being the one doing the finishing here.

Marcelo Rojo vs Francis Marshall

Veteran Marcelo Rojo returns to featherweight and welcomes recent DWCS graduate Francis Marshall to the UFC for the first time on Saturday.

The 34-year-old Argentinian Rojo looks to snap a two-fight slide and collect his first UFC victory after suffering consecutive stoppage losses to Charles Jourdain and Kyler Phillips in his first two Octagon appearances. He moved to Glory MMA & Fitness alongside his long-time training partner Brandon Moreno earlier this year, and will have a significant experience advantage in this one.

A protege of former UFC competitor Kurt Pellegrino, Marshall pushed his record to 6-0 with a dominant win over Connor Matthews this summer at the UFC APEX. The 23-year-old has stepped into the cage 11 times between his amateur and pro careers and has had his hand raised each and every time; we’ll see if that continues here.

This is a more reasonable assignment for the veteran Rojo and a good initial test for the Marshall. Rojo has a penchant for taking part in entertaining fights, so it will be interesting to see if he can draw the debutant into a brawl this weekend.

Yazmin Jauregui vs Istela Nunes

Strawweights open the show this weekend in Orlando, as Yazmin Jauregui faces off with Istela Nunes in the first of Saturday’s 15 contests.

The 23-year-old Jauregui maintained her unbeaten record through her promotional debut in August, collecting a unanimous decision win over fellow newcomer Iasmin Lucindo in San Diego. A jiu jitsu player who has six finishes, but no submissions, the Entram Gym representative looked like an outstanding addition to the 115-pound weight class in her first foray into the Octagon and will aim to build on that here.

Nunes has struggled to find success through her first two UFC appearances, suffering a submission loss to fellow Brazilian Ariane Carnelossi in her debut before dropping a majority decision to Sam Hughes earlier this year. The 30-year-old trains with an excellent crew at American Top Team and will look to parlay that preparation and her edge in experience into a victory this weekend.