*Jiří Procházka lands a thudding left hook on Jamahal Hill. Credit: MMA Mania.*

The UFC heads to the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, this Saturday with an outstanding night of fights. From top to bottom, this entire event has been filled with top-tier matchups and exciting fighters all looking to score a highlight-reel victory on the biggest stage in the sport of MMA. In the co-main event, two powerful Light Heavyweight strikers will go to war inside the Octagon when Paulo Costa faces off against Azamat Murzakanov. In the main event, we’ll see two top-five Light Heavyweights square off for the vacant title when the always-dangerous Jiří Procházka takes on streaking contender Carlos Ulberg. Let’s take a look at the fights on the main card.

Cub Swanson vs. Nate Landwehr

*Cub Swanson blasts Billy Quarantillo with a stiff right hand. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Featherweight Bout

Cub Swanson: 30-14-0, 14 KO/TKO, 4 Sub.

Nate Landwehr: 18-7-0, 9 KO/TKO, 2 Sub.

Swanson has won two of his last five fights and has UFC victories over #3 ranked Lightweight Charles Oliveira (37-11-0), Dustin Poirier (30-10-0), and Billy Quarantillo (18-7-0). Training at Bloodline Combat, he is a UFC mainstay who’s been supplying fans with incredible fights for over two decades. He’s an excellent striker known for throwing powerful, looping hooks, devastating leg kicks, and constant forward motion. Swanson has a diverse arsenal of attacks and excellent footwork, remaining elusive throughout the fight. He is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and a solid wrestler, often mixing in grappling with his striking. Although capable on the ground, he’s most comfortable on his feet and is more often defending takedowns than pursuing them. Swanson holds the record for the most post-fight bonuses in Featherweight history (11) and always puts on a show.

*Nate Landwehr stuns David Onama with a right hook. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Landwehr has won three of his last five bouts, holding UFC victories over David Onama (14-3-0), Ludovit Klein (24-5-1), and Darren Elkins (29-12-0). He’s a true scrapper who always comes forward and engages in the fight wherever it goes. He’s always willing to eat a shot to land one, regularly walking through punches to close the distance. Landwehr fights behind his jab, constantly looking for opportunities to crash into the pocket and land combinations. He is willing to mix it up, averaging about one takedown landed and one submission attempted per fifteen minutes. He pushes a heavy pace and is at his best in a dogfight, controlling the center and forcing his opponent to the outside. Landwehr has earned five performance bonuses in his last seven UFC appearances and always leaves everything inside the cage.

#10 Dominick Reyes vs. #12 Johnny Walker

*Dominick Reyes lands a powerful straight left hand on the chin of Anthony Smith. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Light Heavyweight Bout

Dominick Reyes: 15-5-0, 10 KO/TKO, 2 Sub.

Johnny Walker: 22-9-0, 17 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.

Reyes has won three of his last five outings and holds UFC victories over #9 ranked Light Heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir (21-8-0), #13 ranked Light Heavyweight Nikita Krylov (31-11-0), and #14 ranked Light Heavyweight Dustin Jacoby (22-9-1). He is a devastating striker with one-shot knockout power who’s always in pursuit of a finish. There’s power in everything he throws, both punches and kicks, and he pushes a heavy pace from the opening bell. Reyes uses his size well, constantly coming forward to batter his opponent with long, straight punches and kicks. He has excellent takedown defense, having defended 82% of takedowns attempted on him in the UFC, and he won’t accept bottom position on the mat. Training at Joe Stevenson’s Cobra Kai, he’s accurate and picks his shots well, often extending combinations when he sees openings to land. Reyes can secure a finish without much volume, holding six finish victories in the UFC in which he landed 20 or fewer significant strikes.

*Johnny Walker cracks Zhang Mingyang with a right hand in the clinch. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Walker has won two of his last five fights with one No Contest and has UFC victories over #4 ranked Light Heavyweight Khalil Rountree Jr. (15-7-0), #15 ranked Light Heavyweight Zhang Mingyang (19-7-0), and Ryan Spann (23-11-0). He is a lengthy, unorthodox striker with an outstanding kicking game. He’s in perpetual motion and will often float along the outside, looking to control the pace and distance. Although not as wild as when he first entered the UFC, he still possesses an arsenal of flashy attacks and can produce a highlight-reel knockout at any time. He’s a massive 6’6”, typically possessing a height and reach advantage, and uses it well, constantly blasting his opponents with strikes from range. Training at Xtreme Couture, Walker won’t typically take it to the mat but will land devastating ground and pound if he finds himself in top position. In his thirty professional fights, Walker has only gone the distance four times in his professional, always leaving everything inside the cage.

#5 Curtis Blaydes vs. Josh Hokit

*Curtis Blaydes rains down ground and pound onto Chris Daukaus. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Heavyweight Bout

Curtis Blaydes: 19-5-0, 13 KO/TKO, 0 Sub.

Josh Hokit: 8-0-0, 5 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.

Blaydes has won three of his last five bouts and has UFC victories over #2 ranked Heavyweight Alexander Volkov (39-11-0), #7 ranked Heavyweight Rizvan Kuniev (13-3-1), and Jairzinho Rozenstruik (15-6-0). A dominant wrestler, he’s constantly looking to take the fight to the mat and control the pace. He’s averaging over five takedowns landed per fifteen minutes in the UFC and secures them quickly, capable of landing shots in the open and along the fence. Blaydes favors power over volume on the feet, throwing straight, tight shots and constantly moving, feinting, and switching stances. He fights behind his jab, remaining technical and composed while throwing every shot with fight-ending power. Training with Elevation Fight Team, he looks to smother his opponent and drag them into deep waters, not necessarily forcing a finish. Blaydes has the UFC Heavyweight records for most takedowns landed (64) and most control time (1:25:36), making grappling inevitable when he’s inside the cage.

*Josh Hokit tags Denzel Freeman with a heavy overhand right. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Hokit is undefeated, with UFC victories coming over Denzel Freeman (7-2-0) and Max Gimenis (6-2-0). He’s a hard-charging wrestler who pushes a heavy pace and loves to taunt his opponents. He will immediately pressure his opponent, fighting behind his jab and throwing every shot with fight-ending intentions. Hokit will regularly sit down on his punches, dipping his head before unloading heavy straights and overhands. Training at Jackson-Wink MMA, he will usually shoot for a takedown early on and is excellent in the clinch, particularly with body-lock takedowns. He’ll focused on pressure and control on the mat, maintaining a dominant position and not allowing his opponent back to their feet as he looks to posture up and land ground and pound. Hokit has not gone to a decision in his professional career and is off to a hot start in the UFC, earning two consecutive Performance of the Night Bonuses and absorbing just 10 significant strikes in three fights between the UFC and the Contender Series.

#6 Azamat Murzakanov vs. #14 (MW) Paulo Costa

*Azamat Murzakanov stuns Aleksandar Rakić* *with a crisp left hand. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Light Heavyweight Bout

Azamat Murzakanov: 16-0-0, 12 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Paulo Costa: 15-4-0, 11 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Murzakanov is undefeated and has UFC victories over #11 ranked Light Heavyweight Aleksandar Rakić (14-6-0), #14 ranked Light Heavyweight Dustin Jacoby (22-9-1), and Alonzo Menifield (17-5-1). He’s a powerful, elusive striker who’s always pursuing a knockout. He’s highly explosive, favoring power to volume and constantly looking to land shots up the middle, especially uppercuts and knees. He has excellent footwork and distance management, regularly blitzing into the pocket to land power shots before quickly returning to range unscathed. Training at K Dojo, he does a great job of varying his shots, constantly attacking from different angles while switching targets between the head and body. He’s most comfortable on his feet but is willing to grapple, possessing solid wrestling and clinch control. Murzakanov has secured nine of his twelve finishes in the first round and is at his most dangerous early on.

*Paulo Costa launches a powerful kick to the head of Roman Kopylov. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Costa has won two of his last five outings, holding UFC victories over Roman Kopylov (14-5-0), Yoel Romero (16-7-0), and Luke Rockhold (16-6-0). He has outstanding punching power and pushes a heavy pace. Although he entered the UFC as a knockout artist, he can also punch with volume, landing, on average, about 112 significant strikes in his last five appearances. Costa has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and solid grappling skills, but rarely goes to the ground and hasn’t attempted a submission in the UFC. Training with Team Borracha, he is at his best when pressuring forward, throwing bombs and powerful kicks, especially to the body. He is more than willing to eat a shot to land one, absorbing an almost equal amount of significant strikes as he lands per minute. Costa slows as the fight continues, but will get more aggressive, throwing caution to the wind and taking more risks.

#2 Jiří Procházka vs. #3 Carlos Ulberg

*Jiří Procházka batters Khalil Rountree Jr. up against the cage. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Light Heavyweight Title Bout

Jiří Procházka: 32-5-1, 28 KO/TKO, 3 Sub.

Carlos Ulberg: 14-1-0, 9 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Procházka has won four of his last five fights and holds UFC victories over #4 ranked Light Heavyweight Khalil Rountree Jr. (15-7-0), #7 ranked Light Heavyweight Jamahal Hill (12-4-0), and #9 ranked Light Heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir (21-8-0). He’s an elusive striker with a unique style and serious knockout power. He has excellent head movement and footwork, always remaining elusive and entering the pocket from different angles. Procházka is an unpredictable striker who can go from 0 to 100 at any time, often fighting at a slower pace before exploding forward and throwing bombs. Training at Jetsaam Gym Brno, he will constantly pressure his opponent but has excellent counterstriking and regularly dodges his opponent’s punches before landing his own. He won’t typically look for takedowns but is solid in top position, with devastating ground and pound and good chokes. Procházka hasn’t been to a decision in any of his last sixteen fights and always puts on a show while hunting for a finish.

*Carlos Ulberg lands a final shot to finish off Dominick Reyes. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Ulberg is on a nine-fight win streak, with UFC victories coming over #5 ranked Light Heavyweight Jan Błachowicz (29-11-1), #9 ranked Light Heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir (20-8-0), and #14 ranked Light Heavyweight Alonzo Menifield (17-5-1). He’s an accurate, technical striker with excellent power and speed. He remains patient and technical throughout, floating on the outside while looking for openings, often lighting his opponents up with kicks before he closes the distance to let his hands go. Training at City Kickboxing, Ulberg will often lure his opponent in with a slower pace before exploding forward with huge, heavy shots. He has outstanding distance management and does a great job moving in and out of the pocket without taking damage. He won’t usually initiate grappling exchanges, but is capable on the mat and has solid defensive grappling. Ulberg always pushes a solid pace throughout the fight and has outlanded all of his UFC opponents.

Best Bets

Swanson vs. Landwehr Over 2.5 Rounds: This is an outstanding matchup and an excellent way to kick off the main card. Both of these fighters put on a show every time they enter the Octagon, but neither is known for finishing fights quickly. Between the two of them, they have combined for a total of 29 finish victories, with 18 of those finishes coming after the first round. They both seem to constantly find themselves in all-out brawls, pushing a heavy pace, and constantly exchanging with their opponents, and that’s exactly how I expect this fight to play out. Although both have grappling skills, I expect this to largely play out on their feet, with both men meeting in the middle early on and testing each other’s mettle. As the fight continues and both men absorb damage, I expect the pace to slow, with them still going toe-to-toe but reducing their output. I’m confident this will be a very fun fight and that both fighters will leave everything inside the cage, but I’m also confident it will last at least two and a half rounds.

Azamat Murzakanov Moneyline: This is another exciting matchup of two dangerous strikers. While both fighters have impressive wins and top-tier skills, I believe Murzakanov has an edge in power and speed. Costa, although coming off a good win over Roman Kopylov, has at many times in recent fights looked lackadaisical and gunshy, often being put on the back foot and having to fight defensively. You cannot afford to fight with a lazy or slow style against Murzakanov, who will always remain technical and only needs a single punch to end your night. I expect Costa to be looking for big shots and to match Murzakanov's power, while Murzakanov avoids those power shots and counters with quick, precise punches, rather than being drawn into a brawl. As the fight continues, Costa’s output will slow, and he’ll take more risks, creating more openings for Murzakanov to control the cage and continue to drain Costa’s cardio while doing damage of his own. Costa has proven impressively durable in his UFC tenure, so while it may be tough for Murzakanov to secure a finish, I’m confident he’ll walk away with the biggest win of his career.

Jiří Procházka Moneyline: This is a massive fight for the vacant Light Heavyweight title that I’ve been looking forward to. Both of these fighters have proven to be the best of the best in this division, but I believe that Procházka’s unorthodox style and power will be too much for Ulberg to handle. Ulberg, in my opinion, is at his best in a more technical, almost point-fighting style of fight where he can stay at range and use all of his weapons. It’s virtually impossible to fight that kind of fight with Procházka, who is constantly coming forward, giving you different looks and entries into the pocket, and not allowing his opponent to find any kind of rhythm or comfort level inside the cage. I expect Ulberg to struggle to establish the range and keep pace with Procházka, unable to land clean kicks or punches and burning out his cardio as Procházka continues to advance and land his own shots. As the fight goes on, I expect Procházka to take control of the center of the Octagon and stay in Ulberg’s face, taking away his kicking game and forcing him to take risks and engage in Procházka’s style of fight. I’m unsure of how long this fight will go or how it will end, but I believe that when the dust settles, Procházka will have regained his Light Heavyweight title.

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