21-1-1 Current champ and 12-3 ex-champ run it back for the Light Heavyweight Championship in the Main Event of the evening.
Alex Pereira gets his opportunity to take back the belt, having lost to Magomed in a 5-round unanimous decision back in March. Since his loss to Adesanya back in April 2023, Periera put on an impressive 5-fight win streak in the Light Heavyweight division before falling short in what was a relatively lethargic performance. Equally impressive was Ankalaev’s display against Pereira in what is now a 12-fight win streak for the Russian mixed martial artist, with 11 by KO/TKO and 10 by decision.
There were claims that Periera was sick/injured in the last matchup, and it wouldn’t be unlike Pereira to do the unthinkable and go on to another impressive run. However, at 38 years of age, how much is left in the tank? A very strong, stoic, and locked-in nightmare of a champion blocks his path in this match-up. If Alex is back to his best and utilises his lethal leg kicks, or lands a heavy hook, he could reclaim the belt, but has the torch been passed for good?
20-4 current Champion Merab Dvalishvili vs 18- 5 Cory Sandhagen.
Merab “The Machine “is on a 13-fight win streak over an impressive bantamweight roster. Merab’s conditioning and cardio are unmatched, combined with his elite wrestling he is quite the unstoppable force at the minute. Every time doubt has been thrown his way, he has absolutely rag-dolled his opponents. That is not to say Cory Sandhagen doesn’t pose any threats.
Merab had an impressive third-round submission over Sean O’Malley on the back of an equally important 5 round decision over Umar Nurmagomedov. He now looks to defend his title for a third time against Cory, who, in my opinion, is less of a threat than the aforementioned. If Merab is able to defend his belt for a third time, he will equal the bantamweight record.
This does not mean Cory is incapable of an upset, with an impressive win over Davison Figueredo and 44% of his wins coming from KO/TKO, with his only loss by submission coming from Aljamain Sterling, Merab’s teammate and friend.
Merab time and time again has proven why he is the best in this division and will be relentless in this match-up. Unrelenting pressure, unrelenting takedowns. I can see Cory really struggling to match Merab’s pace, ending up on the floor more than once, especially in later rounds where Merab’s cardio excels.
Both fighters enter the Octagon on the back of a win against ex-Light Heavyweight Champion Jamal Hill. Jiri with a third-round KO/TKO and Khalil Rountree winning by unanimous decision, with both fighters losing to Alex Pereira by KO/TKO in their fights back in 2024.
Khalil has 9 KO/TKO (64%) wins from his 14 victories, while Jiri has 27 wins by KO/TKO (87%) from his 31 professional victories.
This suggests that we are due for some big hits in this matchup with a fast-moving counter-attacking Jiri and a calculated Khalil, a case can be made for both fighters, with Khalil sitting at $2.50 in what feels like a relatively even 3-round matchup. I’m happy to back the methodical and calculated Khalil.
19- 5, 40-year-old Josh Emmet comes up against “the Moroccan Devil” Youssef Zalal 17-5. Zalal is on a 7-fight win streak, with 53% of his wins coming from submission. Josh emmet has 10 wins in the UFC over a 10-year period but enters the Octagon on the back of a loss to Lerone Murphy. He went the distance, most impressively, against current 17-0 Light Heavyweight Champion Ilia Topuria in a 5-round fight. He has won against the likes of Bryce Mitchell, Dan Ige, and Calvin Kattar, with 54% of his wins coming from Decision, and boasts big, powerful shots but low output.
With Josh Emmet sitting as a gatekeeper of the top 8, Yousef will be looking to climb the ranks who currently sits inside the top 10 at 9th.
Youseff will want to keep the momentum going and continue his ascension with a win over Emmet being essential.
28-6-1 Abusupyian has 14 wins by KO/ TKO, Joe Pyfer (14-3) has 9 wins by KO/TKO.
Abus Magomedov, with more experience showcasing the good, the bad, and the ugly of his skillset, whereas powerful Joe Pyfer is the young up and comer, even though they both have 6 fights in the UFC to their name.
For both fighters, two of their last 3 wins have come via decision.