10 Things I Like at UFC 275

Diving into what draws me to Saturday's pay-per-view offering in Singapore

Saturday’s UFC 275 pay-per-view in Singapore feels like a good potential measuring stick for where peoples’ expectations are when it comes to these types of events.

We learned in recent weeks that ranked lightweights without big North American followings are “big enough names” to headline Fight Night events, and last weekend’s battle between Top 10 heavyweights with established ceilings felt like another “I get it, but I wish it were better” moment, both in terms of the main event, and the card as a whole.

This weekend’s lineup is strong at the top with two championship bouts and a terrific rematch, but from there on, it comes down to how much you like and are interested in the remaining names and pairings on the card, and my Spidey Sense tells me that very few people are as excited about the rest of the fights (or even some of the main fights) as I am, and not just because I’m a lunatic that is oddly excited by some of these matchups.

I’ll be curious to see what the final couple days of build-up bring and what folks have to say afterwards, but for now, just know that I think this is actually a quality offering with plenty worth getting excited about as we head towards Saturday.

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Genuine Championship Uncertainty

There is something different about a championship fight where you truly don’t know how things are going to play out, as is the case with Saturday’s light heavyweight title bout between Glover Teixeira and Jiri Prochazka.

While everyone has their ideas about how the UFC 275 main event will go — which is generally Prochazka early, Teixeira late — I don’t know the last time that I’ve anticipated the opening moments of a fight as much as this because it honestly feels like the first two or three minutes could tell us everything we need to know about the contest. But at the same time, would anyone be surprised if Prochazka dominated the first and had Teixeira on the ropes, only for the champion to survive and rally?

Even just trying to figure out Prochazka is a more interesting adventure than we get in most championship pairings, where the challengers generally have more than two UFC appearances under their belt and have been forced to show more than their ability to thrive in favourable circumstances.

It was so affirming and enjoyable to hear Eric Nicksick, Sayif Saud, and Tyson Chartier talk about the uncertainty of this fight and how it all comes down to how Prochazka answers those lingering questions about his game and his make-up because, as you know from reading my work here, those are things I care about most and write about on a weekly basis. Not only are three of the top coaches in the game looking at this the same way, but we’re also going to get those answers… maybe.

I love it. I can’t wait.

Valentina Shevchenko is Fighting

This one works on a couple different levels.

First, whenever the most dominant athletes in the sport are competing, I’m tuning in every time, regardless of the opponent because watching someone that is so elite at their craft perform is always fascinating and enjoyable to me.

Second, I adore Shevchenko’s style and her repertoire in particular, as she has myriad ways to beat you and always seems to find a way to surprise me, even if I go into the fight expecting her to dominate. Three of her last four victories, including each of last year’s triumphs, were brilliant demolitions of quality challengers that further highlighted how she’s on a completely different level than everyone else, and I’ll be here for it, each and every time.

Lastly, dominant champions are fascinating to me because I think there are degrees to which fans in general want to see the same athlete rule a division for a prolonged period of time, and Shevchenko feels like someone that has found the right balance to make it work.

She’s popular, but not a mega-star. She posts on IG, but isn’t a trash talker. She’s unchallenged, but wins in ways that mostly keep you engaged. And while I think she’s getting closer to the point where folks could turn on her simply because she’s too good and too dominant, there is also the bantamweight option that provides a refresh or a reprieve and keeps you locked in.

Plus, she has her own “touchdown dance” and too few people have quality, signature celebrations in this sport.

A Surely Enjoyable Sequel

Zhang Weili and Joanna Jędrzejczyk are poised to face off for a second time on Saturday, two years and a couple months after pairing off in the greatest fight between female combatants in UFC history and one of the best UFC fights of all time, period.

Running back fights of that magnitude and import is always a little difficult because even though everyone understands getting an exact replica or close facsimile of the first fight is asking a lot and highly unlikely, that’s just naturally where our minds go, which often leads to being slightly disappointed even if the rematch is still really quite good.

I’ve been trying for the last couple weeks to come up with the right Hollywood analogy here because that's where we get the most sequels, but I think the better way to frame it, rather than through one specific film, is like this: Saturday’s fight is automatically going to be different because it’s three rounds, not five, and both fighters are older, in different places in their careers.

That said, it is still likely to be a thoroughly enjoyable, competitive scrap between a pair of former titleholders looking to show they have plenty left in the tank.

Manel Kape’s “Prove It” Moment

I love a good “Okay — Show Me” situation and that’s exactly what Kape has gotten himself into this weekend in his clash with Rogerio Bontorin.

Despite a 2-2 record in the UFC where he dropped his first two bouts against ranked opponents and then starched unranked foes, Kape has continued to talk about himself and try to position himself as an elite contender in the flyweight division. When Kai Kara-France defeated Askar Askarov earlier this year, “Star Boy” suggested the New Zealander fight him next, while Alexandre Pantoja, whom he faced in an “equal-to-equal” fight in his debut, be the next to challenge for the title.

As I said yesterday, I appreciate the bravado and self-belief, but now it’s time to back up it all up and I’m itching to see if Kape can do it. This is a favourable matchup against a fighter on a four-fight run without a victory, so if he doesn’t show he’s a legitimate title threat here, it’s going to take some work to convince me that Kape could get there at all.

Della’s Sophomore Showing

Between Tuesday and Wednesday (and some UFC website thoughts as well), I’ve already said all of what I really need to say about Jack Della Maddalena, so I’ll simply add this:

I just want to see him compete again; that's it. He looked so good on DWCS and dominant in his debut that I’m just excited to see him out there again and to get to enjoy his handiwork once more.

A Fun Featherweight Contest

There aren’t enough people that are appreciative of or excited by a perfectly cromulent fight like the featherweight prelim finale between SeungWoo Choi and Josh Culibao.

Are either of them contenders? No.

Are they going to get there at some point? Probably not.

Is this going to be an entertaining, enjoyable fight? In all likelihood, yes.

Choi has been a consistently fun action fighter since arriving in the UFC, and while Culibao has been less consistent, this matchup profiles similarly to his bout agaisnt Charles Jourdain and that was hella fun, so I’d be a little surprised if this doesn’t send us to the main card on the upswing.

Big Fight for Brendan Allen

It feels real strange to call what is arguably the lowest profile fight of Allen’s UFC tenure a must-win or the biggest fight of his career, but I honestly feel like how things play out between he and Jacob Malkoun on Saturday is going to be extremely instructional and informative as it pertains to his current place in the middleweight division, and what his future may hold.

Allen has some good wins — he submitted Kevin Holland and smashed Tom Breese, he out-worked Kyle Daukaus ad beat up Puna Soriano — but unfortunately for him, his two losses — stoppage defeats at the hands of Sean Strickland and Chris Curtis — stand out the most, and leave him heading into this one as a hard puzzle piece to figure out where it fits in the 185-pound weight class.

It’s not a question of talent or skill with Allen; it’s focus and Fight IQ, with a little bit of “he’s not great at taking a shot” mixed in there for good measure. He’s one of these fighters that hasn’t quite figured out how to best deploy his skills and approach fights, so he ends up facing guys on their terms, trying to prove he can beat them at their own game, and it’s gone horribly awry a couple of times.

Skill-for-skill, talent-for-talent, he’s a better fighter than Malkoun, who has thus far been largely a positional wrestler and nothing else, but at least the Australian knows who he is inside the Octagon and doesn’t try to be anything else. As such, I think this is a potential trap fight for Allen and one that will tell us a lot about what the future holds for the 26-year-old Louisiana native.

I Want to Know More About Mahershate

Fights are about questions and answers, and collecting data, and making reads for me, and so when the opportunity presents itself to get another look at someone that impressed on Dana White’s Contender Series comes up, I’m eager to take it.

Such is the case with Mahershate this weekend, as the 22-year-old Chinese lightweight makes his promotional debut opposite Steve Garcia.

I liked what I saw from him on DWCS last fall and the crop of young, experienced, but still untested Chinese athletes making their way to the UFC over the last couple years have intrigued me, and this matchup feels like a great chance to make an early assessment of where he fits in the division and the heights he could reach in the next couple years.

An Intriguing Clash for Fialho, A Big Opportunity for Matthews

The welterweight fight between Andre Fialho and Jake Matthews is easily the top preliminary card pairing of the evening, and represents an interesting challenge for each man.

For Fialho, it’s a chance to earn a third win in as many months and take another step forward in the 170-pound weight class. After finishing Miguel Baeza and then taking a step back to face Cameron VanCamp, this is a step all the way up passed Baeza to someone with a stronger track record in the division and a different skill set than anyone he’s faced in the UFC thus far. It’s a reasonable risk with reasonable rewards and I get why Fialho was game to jump right back in here.

For Matthews, it’s an opportunity to get back into the win column after more than a year away by interrupting one of the cooler stories of the year thus far. Even though he’s been on the UFC roster for eight years now, he’s still just 27, and brings a different skill set to the table than anyone Fialho has faced to date, which ups the intrigue surrounding how this one plays out for me.

Silly Strawweight Curiosity

We all need a bit of fun in our lives, and as I mentioned yesterday, the strawweight bout between Liang Na and Silvana Gomez Juarez is that for me this weekend.

On paper, I understand why Gomez Juarez is the favourite, and she could very well navigate this matchup without issue, but I can’t help but be intrigued by the fact that she’s lost her two UFC appearances by armbar, Liang won her last two fights by armbar, and has won more fights by armbar than any other method over the course of her career.

This could very well be a “loser leaves town” match and the winner is unlikely to make any real waves in the 115-pound weight class, yet this weekend, I will be locked in and ready to see if Liang goes hunting for Gomez Juarez’s arm right out of the chute and if “La Malvada” can avoid getting tapped for a third straight fight.