UFC 310 is about to go down from the T-Cellular Area in Las Vegas on Saturday. And the cardboard is stacked.
Flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja is about to defend his belt in opposition to a UFC debutant: RIZIN standout Kai Asakura. The co-main occasion will see undefeated welterweights Shavkat Rakhmanov combat Ian Machado Garry in a possible title eliminator the place the winner would combat champion Belal Muhammad subsequent.
The remainder of the principle card is rounded out by a heavyweight showdown between Cyril Gane and Alexander Volkov with main repercussions; featherweight grapplers Bryce Mitchell and Kron Gracie; and featherweights Nade Landwehr and Doo Ho Choi.
The UFC 310 preliminary card is simply as stacked. A litany of former champions, title challengers and contenders will jockey for place within the high 15 of their respective weight lessons.
Anthony Smith vs. Dominick Reyes
Former gentle heavyweight title challengers Smith and Reyes will sq. off to headline the UFC 310 prelims. Each males fought Jon Jones, with Reyes arguably beating the sunshine heavyweight GOAT. Reyes snapped a four-fight skid with a knockout win over Dustin Jacoby and can look to remain heading in the right direction in opposition to Smith. Reyes carries a variety of energy and has strong wrestling, making him a tough opponent to floor.
Smith, since his loss to Jones, has turned away prospects not but able to compete within the higher echelon of sunshine heavyweight. Smith has fought a who’s who over his 57-fight skilled profession, beating the likes of Alexander Gustafsson, Volkan Oezdemir, Mauricio Rua, Rashad Evans, Vitor Petrino, Ryan Spann twice, and others.
Whereas Reyes solely has 17 skilled fights in comparison with Smith’s 57, Reyes carries expertise in opponents’ title worth into the match-up, that means followers are getting two seasoned combatants.
The combat additionally carries gentle heavyweight high 15 implications, as Reyes is ranked No. 12 and Smith is ranked No. 13.
Vicente Luque vs. Themba Gorimbo
Gorimbo will get the most important alternative of his younger profession when he meets perennial contender Luque, who’s ranked No. 14 at welterweight. Gorimbo, who misplaced his UFC debut to AJ Fletcher, has gained 4 straight UFC fights to arrange a ranked match-up. He most lately defeated Niko Worth. Now, he will get a harmful finisher in Luque.
Luque is 15-6 within the UFC with wins over the likes of present welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, former promotional champions Tyron Woodley and Rafael dos Anjos, in addition to Worth, Jalin Turner, Mike Perry, and Randy Brown.
Gorimbo has been a pleasing story within the UFC, and now he’ll get the hardest check of his profession but. The oddsmakers favor him as a 2-1 favourite, however Luque carries an enormous power of schedule benefit. Gorimbo can show he’s the actual deal and bust into the rankings if he can topple the damaging veteran.
Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
Followers will likely be handled to a battle of top-10 featherweights on the UFC 310 prelims.
Sterling, the previous bantamweight champion, is ranked No. 9. He might ascend to the highest 5 with a win over No. 5-ranked Evloev. Sterling moved up a weight class after shedding his title to Sean O’Malley. He was then avenged by good friend and teammate Merab Dvalishvili, the present bantamweight champion.
Sterling has crushed a who’s who at bantamweight, together with Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw and Cory Sandhagen. “Aljo” then dominated Calvin Kattar in his featherweight debut, exhibiting he is able to be fast-tracked to the featherweight title. Whereas he could solely be a win or two away from realizing that title shot, he has to get by Evloev first.
Evloev is an ideal 18-0 in his skilled profession and 8-0 within the UFC. His wins have come over the likes of Arnold Allen, Diego Lopes and Dan Ige. Lopes has surged since his loss to Evloev, however Evloev might earn a title eliminator match if he beats Sterling – maybe a rematch between Lopes and Evloev?
Whereas there are a lot of inquiries to be answered so far as title rivalry goes, this combat might reply lots of them. Aside from the heavy implications, it may very well be a very enjoyable combat if it hits the bottom, as each males are stand-out grapplers.
Randy Brown vs. Bryan Battle
Brown and Battle will conflict in a gathering of two males close to the highest 15 of the welterweight division. The winner might – and will – rating a ranked opponent subsequent.
Battle has gained three straight bouts exterior of a no-contest, scoring finishes over Kevin Jousset, AJ Fletcher and Gabe Inexperienced. Brown has gained three in a row, securing victories over Elizeu Zaleski, Muslim Salikhov, and Wellington Turman.
Each males have energy, although Battle is the extra prolific finisher. Brown has fought and defeated stiffer competitors, nonetheless. Brown will likely be a wonderful gauge to see if Battle is prepared for the elite of the welterweight division, whereas a win over the surging battle would show Brown has made the required changes to diffuse harmful foes.
This will likely be an thrilling scrap, and the winner undoubtedly deserves a push ahead in a crowded weight class.
Chris Weidman vs. Eryk Anders
Let’s do that once more. Weidman and Anders have been listed as a UFC 309 preliminary card combat to observe, however Anders’ medical problem compelled a cancellation on the day of the occasion. The combat was rebooked for UFC 310 as an alternative.
Weidman, a former middleweight champion, is about to combat Anders within the penultimate prelim. Weidman fought a who’s who of middleweights in his surge to the title, defeating Anderson Silva twice, in addition to Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort. Regardless of success in opposition to the likes of Luke Rockhold, who he misplaced his strap to, in addition to Yoel Romero and Ronaldo Souza, Weidman got here up brief. He has since managed wins over the likes of Kelvin Gastelum and Omari Akhmedov earlier than snapping his leg in opposition to Uriah Corridor. The resilient Weidman pushed by a tough restoration and is set to make one ultimate run.
He defeated Bruno Silva in a technical unanimous choice in his most earlier bout. Now, he attracts Anders, a robust middleweight who was a former linebacker for Alabama.
A win over Weidman would undoubtedly be the most important of Anders’s profession. Whereas Weidman isn’t presently ranked at 185 kilos, the winner of this combat might get a possibility at a top-15 foe.
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