*Belal Muhammad lands a heavy left hook on the chin of Sean Brady. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

The UFC returns to its headquarters at the APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, for an exciting Fight Night card. There are plenty of top-notch fights and outstanding matchups, all filled with fighters looking to secure a post-fight bonus this Saturday. In the co-main event, two dangerous Middleweights collide when a proven finisher, Brendan Allen, takes on a powerful striker, Edmen Shahbazyan. In the main event, two top-15 Welterweights face off when former champion Belal Muhammad takes on the quickly rising Gabriel Bonfim. Let’s take a look at the fights on the main card.

Iwo Baraniewski vs. Junior Tafa

*Iwo Baraniewski blasts Ibo Aslan with vicious ground-and-pound. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Light Heavyweight Bout

Iwo Baraniewski: 8-0-0, 6 KO/TKO, 2 Sub.

Junior Tafa: 7-5-0, 7 KO/TKO, 0 Sub.

Baraniewski is undefeated and has UFC victories over Ibo Aslan (14-4-0) and Austen Lane (13-8-0). He’s a powerful brawler with excellent grappling to back up his dangerous hands. He’s impressively durable and will constantly come forward to pressure his opponent, always willing to eat a shot to land one of his own. Despite his brawling tendencies, Baraniewski has solid head movement and is very accurate with his hands, throwing every shot with power and rarely missing. He holds a black belt in Judo, a brown belt in BJJ, and a lengthy amateur MMA career, with an amateur record of 16-3 before turning professional in 2023. He has excellent trips and throws from the clinch and is very aggressive in top position, almost immediately looking to posture up and rain down ground and pound. Baraniewski has not seen a second round in his professional career and has finished all of his victories in under four minutes.

*Junior Tafa rains down shots onto a grounded Sean Sharaf. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Tafa has won two of his last five fights and has UFC victories over Sean Sharaf (4-2-0), Kevin Christian (9-4-0), and Parker Porter (14-9-0). He’s a power-punching brawler who’s always coming forward to throw down. A former professional kickboxer, he held a 23-5 record with 19 knockouts and competed in the premier kickboxing promotion, Glory. Tafa constantly looks to close the distance and throw bombs, and can do serious damage with minimal space. He regularly looks to land shots down the middle, particularly straight punches and uppercuts. He has not attempted a takedown in the UFC and won’t typically initiate grappling exchanges, but has successfully defended 72% of takedowns attempted on him in his promotional tenure. Tafa has only gone past the second round once in his career, always pushing a heavy pace from the opening bell.

Bryce Mitchell vs. Santiago Luna

*Bryce Mitchell fires a straight right hand at Said Nurmagomedov. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Bantamweight Bout

Bryce Mitchell: 18-4-0, 1 KO/TKO, 9 Sub.

Santiago Luna: 8-0-0, 3 KO/TKO, 4 Sub.

Mitchell has won three of his last five bouts and has UFC victories over Dan Ige (19-11-0), Edson Barboza (24-14-0), and Andre Fili (25-13-0). He is a high-level grappler with dangerous submissions. He has a wrestling background, holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and averages more than 3 takedowns per fifteen minutes. Mitchell has excellent control on the ground and always pursues a finish, whether via ground-and-pound or a submission. Training at Barata MMA, he’s most dangerous early on, with eight of his nine submission victories coming in round one. On the feet, he’s in perpetual motion, cuts off the cage well, and has decent power in his hands. Mitchell has one of the three wins in UFC history via a twister submission and can produce submissions from anywhere and any position.

*Santiago Luna clips Quang Le with a stiff left hook. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Luna is undefeated and holds UFC wins over Quang Le (9-3-0) and Angel Pacheco (7-4-0). He’s a dangerous brawler with big-time power in his hands and outstanding wrestling. A former four-time national wrestling champion in Mexico, he often shoots early and transitions quickly on the mat, often reaching full mount with blinding speed. Luna constantly looks to posture up and land ground-and-pound in top position, and he has excellent chokes if he secures his opponent’s back. He fights behind his jab when standing, constantly looking to close the distance and unload power shots inside the pocket. He maintains a heavy pace throughout and has solid cardio, carrying his power throughout the fight and always pursuing a finish. Luna is comfortable anywhere the fight goes and is always willing to eat a shot to land one, remaining dangerous at all times.

#14 Farès Ziam vs. Tom Nolan

*Farès Ziam blasts Michal Figlak with a thudding kick to the head. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Lightweight Bout

Farès Ziam: 18-4-0, 7 KO/TKO, 4 Sub.

Tom Nolan: 10-1-0, 5 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Ziam is on a six-fight win streak and has UFC victories over Mike Davis (12-3-0), Nazim Sadykhov (11-2-1), and Jai Herbert (14-6-1). He’s a patient, technical kickboxer who constantly feints and looks for openings to land powerful, straight shots. He’s at his best when he takes the center of the octagon and fights at range, picking his opponent apart with a mix of kicks and punches. Ziam is a capable grappler with a solid submission game, particularly chokes, which account for three of his four submission wins. Training at Kill Cliff FC, he rarely absorbs much damage, having defended 65% of significant strikes attempted on him in the UFC. He’s proven capable of surviving deep waters on the ground, regularly getting taken down and fighting back to his feet. Ziam has outlanded his opponent in all of his UFC wins, maintaining a consistent pace throughout the fight.

*Tom Nolan fires a heavy kick to the head of Alex Reyes. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Nolan has won four of his last five outings and holds UFC wins over Charlie Campbell (9-3-0), Victor Martinez (13-6-0), and Alex Reyes (13-5-0). He’s a relentless scrapper who’s dangerous at all times, with powerful striking and a strong submission game. He’s always moving and feinting, with excellent distance management, regularly exiting the pocket to fire heavy kicks from range. Nolan has very fluid striking, constantly varying his strikes and stringing them together in different combinations, always remaining unpredictable. Training at the Team Compton Training Centre, he’s just as comfortable on the mat and will often pursue takedowns early, willing to work and chain shots together to bring the fight to the floor. He’ll look for chokes immediately from top position and has heavy ground-and-pound. Nolan has solid cardio and maintains a consistent pace throughout, but has secured four of his five knockouts in the first round and is especially dangerous early on.

#4 Brendan Allen vs. Edmen Shahbazyan

*Brendan Allen batters Reinier de Ridder with ground-and-pound. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Middleweight Bout

Brendan Allen: 26-7-0, 6 KO/TKO, 14 Sub.

Edmen Shahbazyan: 16-5-0, 13 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Allen has won three of his last five fights and has UFC wins over #8-ranked Middleweight Reinier de Ridder (21-4-0), Marvin Vettori (19-10-1), and Chris Curtis (32-13-0). He’s an excellent grappler with a lethal submission game and solid power in his hands. On his feet, he’s always coming forward, pressuring his opponent while fighting behind his jab and throwing in combination. Training at Kill Cliff FC, he has the cardio to maintain a consistent pace for five rounds and varies his shots well, regularly mixing kicks and body shots into his combinations. He’s averaging over 1 takedown per fifteen minutes and is relentless on the mat, constantly posturing up to do damage and improve his position. He has excellent pressure and control on top but is just as dangerous off his back and can survive in deep waters. Allen has secured eleven of his fourteen submissions via rear-naked choke and is deadly if he can find his opponent’s neck.

*Edmen Shahbazyan lands a thudding right hand on Andre Petroski. Credit: MMA Fighting.*

Shahbazyan has won four of his last five bouts and holds UFC victories over Brad Tavares (21-13-0), Andrè Muniz (24-8-0), and Andre Petroski (13-7-0). He’s a precise, measured striker with solid wrestling skills. He always fights technically and won’t spend much time in the pocket, typically staying at range and darting in and out to land heavy punches and kicks. He has excellent range management and throws everything with power, rarely throwing with much volume but always with knockout intent. Shahbazyan is averaging over one takedown landed per fifteen minutes but is most comfortable on his feet and largely uses his wrestling to deny takedowns and keep the fight standing. Training at Xtreme Couture, he’s a very defensively sound fighter, using great footwork and head movement to avoid significant damage. Shahbazyan has secured thirteen of his fourteen finish victories in the first round and is most dangerous early on.

#5 Belal Muhammad vs. #11 Gabriel Bonfim

*Belal Muhammad ties up and controls Leon Edwards on the mat. Credit: MMA Junkie.*

Welterweight Bout

Belal Muhammad: 24-5-0, 5 KO/TKO, 1 Sub.

Gabriel Bonfim: 19-1-0, 4 KO/TKO, 13 Sub.

Muhammad has won three of his last five outings and has UFC victories over #6-ranked Welterweight Sean Brady (19-2-0), #7-ranked Welterweight Leon Edwards (22-6-0), and Stephen Thompson (17-9-1). He’s a dominant wrestler with excellent top control and technical striking. He’s averaging over two takedowns per fifteen minutes and more than a full round of control time in his last five wins. He’s very active in top position, constantly posturing up to throw ground-and-pound while wearing down his opponents with smothering pressure and control. On the feet, Muhammad uses a heavy-handed boxing style, remaining technical and throwing combinations, often using his striking to set up his grappling. Training at Valle Flow Striking, he’s exceptionally defensively sound, having defended 90% of takedowns and 55% of significant strikes attempted on him in the UFC. Muhammad is landing, on average, about 94 significant strikes per fight in his last five appearances and maintains a consistently heavy pace throughout.

*Gabriel Bonfim tags Randy Brown with a stiff overhand right. Credit: MMA Mania.*

Bonfim has won four of his last five fights and has UFC victories over Stephen Thompson (17-9-1), Randy Brown (20-8-0), and Khaos Williams (16-5-0). He’s a well-rounded, technical fighter with sharp kickboxing and dangerous submissions. He’s in perpetual motion, throwing everything with impressive speed while staying technical and never telegraphing his strikes. Bonfim has fantastic distance management and excels at staying out of range and catching his opponents with shots as they enter the pocket, especially with leg kicks. Training with the Bonfim Brothers, he’s averaging over three takedowns per fifteen minutes and advances quickly on the mat. He has solid control from the top and typically pursues chokes, which account for all of his submission victories. Bonfim has earned three post-fight bonuses in his last five outings and is always pursuing a highlight-reel finish.

Best Bets

Iwo Baraniewski by KO/TKO: This is an exciting matchup between two wild brawlers. Neither fighter backs down from a scrap, but I believe Baraniewski has a power advantage and a better chin. Tafa has struggled in his UFC tenure, having suffered four finish losses in his last six fights. Although he has largely lost to grapplers, Tafa’s brawling tendencies often put him in trouble, and I expect more of the same in this matchup. I expect this fight to get off to a quick start, with both fighters meeting in the middle and letting their hands go. I anticipate Baraniewski getting the better of the striking exchanges, forcing Tafa to the outside while constantly pressuring and throwing bombs in the pocket. As the fight goes on and they continue to exchange, I’m confident Baraniewski will find Tafa’s chin and secure his third straight UFC knockout victory.

Brendan Allen Moneyline: This is an interesting matchup between two well-rounded Middleweights. Many fans (myself included) are a bit puzzled by this matchmaking, considering Allen is coming off the biggest win of his UFC career and, instead of receiving a top-five matchup, is fighting an unranked opponent in Shahbazyan. This is a serious step-up in competition for Shahbazyan, and I believe Allen has a significant grappling advantage and the striking to shut Shahbazyan down on the feet. I expect Allen to pressure Shahbazyan from the opening bell, backing him up and not allowing him to fight at his usual slower, more careful pace. As the fight continues and Allen keeps pressing, I expect Shahbazyan to fade, taking some steam off his punches and allowing Allen to secure takedowns and control him on the mat. Once Allen has secured top position, I believe he’ll take full control of the fight, landing heavy ground-and-pound shots and forcing Shahbazyan to get desperate on the bottom. Once Shahbazyan starts taking serious damage, I see Allen taking advantage of his desperation, wrapping up a choke, and submitting him.

Muhammad vs. Bonfim to Go the Distance: This is a fascinating matchup between two well-rounded Welterweights. Bonfim likely has a striking edge, while Muhammad has a grappling edge, but they’re both dangerous wherever the fight goes. Although I expect some competitive striking exchanges, I believe this fight will largely play out on the mat. I anticipate a slower start, with both fighters establishing their rhythm and looking for openings to land strikes or takedowns. As the fight continues, I expect plenty of high-level grappling exchanges, with both men landing takedowns and doing damage on the ground. I wouldn’t be surprised to see some stalemates, both standing and on the ground, that slow the pace and make it tough for either fighter to find a finish. Ultimately, I expect a very technical, competitive fight, but I’m confident it will go to the judges’ scorecards.

UFC Fight Night: Muhammad vs. Bonfim