After a week off, the world’s leading MMA organization returns for a 12-week stretch of events starting this Saturday. Here are the best fights from UFC Fight Night 207’s undercard.
-425 Movsar Evloev (15-0: 3 KOs, 4 SUBs) vs. +300 Dan Ige (15-5: 4 KOs, 5 SUBs)
Hawaii’s Dan Ige is hoping to break his recent trend of tough decision losses. Though his losses have come to formidable competition, Ige seemed trigger-shy when it came to letting his fundamentally sound boxing fly. Aside from not letting his hands go - which can simply be a mental block that he hopes to fix - Ige was exposed on the ground when he faced two-time title challenger Chan Sung Jung, who is not nearly the grappling athlete that Movsar Evloev is. The Russian is another sambo fighter making the successful transition into MMA. Evloev, a seasoned wrestler, brings a suffocating pressure and high work rate into his fights. I like the ground specialist to exhaust Ige’s weakness for three dominant rounds.
Selection: Evloev wins via Decision
-220 Michael Trizano (9-2: 2 KOs, 2 SUBs) vs. +180 Lucas Almeida (12-1: 8 KOs, 4 SUBs)
Two gangly featherweights square off as Trizano tries to get back in the win column and Almeida hopes to make a great first impression in his UFC debut. Trizano comes from a karate background, but like his opponent, he doesn’t mind a phone booth fight. Trizano will have the edge in defensive grappling, but I expect something of a barnburner here between two fearless warriors. I got the Brazilian landing a few more bombs than his counterpart to get his hand raised as he will march forward no matter what is being thrown at him. Trizano’s instincts will be tested as Almeida easily lures his opponents into the slugfest that suits him well.
Selection: Almeida wins via (bloody) Decision
-125 Felice Herrig (14-9: 1 KO, 4 SUBs) vs. +104 Karolina Kowalkiewicz (12-7: 1 KOs, 2 SUBs)
This battle of strawweight vets is a pivotal fight for both women’s career trajectory. Kowalkiewicz has fought for a title before and has fought high on a pay-per-view card, but the Polish fighter has fallen off a cliff, losing 5-straight fights with her last win being a little over four years ago, ironically, to Felice Herrig. In that fight many moons ago, Kowalkiewicz used her crisp boxing and strong clinch work to secure the win. In that same time, Herrig has lost three straight with long stretches of inactivity. I like Herrig to have an ounce more of confidence than Kowalkiewicz combined with the inner fire of winning the rematch. That motivation should serve Herrig as the diving board that lands her back in the win column. I expect a similar fight from the first go ‘round, but with the shoes on the other feet; peppered boxing mixed with bullying clinch-work against the fence.
Selection: Herrig wins via Decision
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-500 Damon Jackson (20-4-1: 3 KOs, 15 SUBs) vs. +380 Daniel Argueta (7-0: 2 KOs, 4 SUBs)
This fight is a tough call as Dan Argueta, an Ultimate Fighter reality show alum, is a stocky wrestler with a plus gas tank. In his UFC debut, Argueta will be facing Damon Jackson, who’s trying to string together three straight wins for the first time since 2018. Jackson has a chaotic scrambling style when it comes to his grappling approach. His experience combined with his relentless pace and thirst for the finish will make this fight a very entertaining match up of styles. I got the veteran, Jackson, to do heavy damage with elbows and knees when they’re in the clinch and also long jabs and calf kicks when they’re at distance. The accumulated damage will force Argueta to shoot for a takedown that will eventually lead to Jackson snatching a neck or a limb for the submission.
Selection: Jackson wins via Submission
-600 Erin Blanchfield (8-1: 2 KOs, 1 SUB) vs. +425 JJ Aldrich (11-4: 2 KOs)
JJ Aldrich, a UFC vet, will be facing New Jersey’s rising prospect, Erin Blanchfield. A potentially elite grappler in MMA, Blanchfield has seen little to zero resistance when her fights hit the mat. While Aldrich rubs elbows with high-level martial artists on a regular basis including former UFC champion Rose Namajunas, it will be a tall task to combat Blanchfield’s natural gifts on the ground. Aldrich hasn’t lost via submission since 2015, but Blanchfield will show why she’s a different kind of animal en route to a dominant decision win.
Selection: Blanchfield wins via Decision
