UFC 269 | Prelim Preview
Saturday, December 11th (10:00 PM EST Main Card, 8:00 PM EST Prelims, 6:15 PM EST Early Prelims)
Josh Emmett vs. Dan Ige
WATCH - Call him #9 Dan "10k" Ige, cause that's his actual ratio of performance bonus per UFC fights. With recent losses to #5 Calvin Kattar and #4 Korean Zombie he's going to have to prove that he didn't peak when rewarded a robbery decision victory over #10 Edson Barbosa. #7 Josh Emmett had a relatively slow start to his UFC career but has been on an absolute roll lately demolishing #14 Shane Burgos. Emmet will bring the pace and the violence so it will be all on Ige to see if he can find a lucky shot to stop Emmet in his tracks.
Pedro Munhoz vs. Dominick Cruz
WATCH - It's one thing to call a former champion washed because he no longer has the belt. It's another thing to actually beat him. #9 Dominick Cruz only losses in his career have been title fights. And #8 Pedro Munhoz doesn't seem like the type of up and comer who nails the coffin on former champs. He's one year younger than Cruz and in his last fight lost to the aging former champ #3 Jose Aldo. If anything, Munhoz is just playing the role of a rebound fight for former champs to place themselves solidly back in the top 5. If you've ever seen either of these guys fight, its high pace but a lot more feints than action so the brunt of the damage will be from leg kicks.
Augusto Sakai vs. Tai Tuivasa
WATCH - There will never be a boring Tai Tuivasa fight. It is quite literally impossible. The man's only gameplan is to land a looping bomb that takes your head off. So it's no surprise he finds himself getting a ranked opponent after he destroyed former NFL player Greg Hardy in glorious fashion on a McGregor card. His opponent #11 Augusto Sakai has done nothing but get wrecked and TKOd his last two fights so he's banking on Tuivasa not being able to match the level of ranked fighters which is what happened last time Tuivasa was on a win streak like this.
Jordan Wright vs. Bruno Silva
WATCH - For all its problems, Middleweight seems to have the most fun fighters that are just below the top 15. Jordan Wright and Bruno Silva fit right with all the other killer prospects who neglect wrestling practice (and champion hopes) for some good ol' swang and bang coin flip fights. Jordan Wright has won and lost all of his fights in the UFC by KO/TKO and Bruno Silva's only fights in the UFC so far have been KO/TKO wins. Get ready for some fireworks!
Andre Muniz vs. Eryk Anders
WATCH - What did I just say about Middleweights just below the top 15? Well it all applies to Eryk Anders. And while the excitement angle applies to Andre Muniz as well, he actually has decent ground game which is why he's the most likely of the 4 Middleweights on this card to actually crack the top 5 of the division and potentially compete for UFC gold.
Miranda Maverick vs. Erin Blanchfield
BATHROOM BREAK - Two incredibly young fighters from Invicta. They've looked decent in their limited UFC experience so far so hopefully they turn it up a notch because women's flyweight is desperately in need of some new talent. But this fight has a very low possibility of being entertaining due to how raw in talent these two are and it's a bit ridiculous that it has found itself higher on the card than top 5 ranked flyweights, TUF winner Ryan Hall, and guaranteed banger Randy Costa!
Alex Perez vs. Matt Schnell
WATCH - FLYWEIGHTS! TOP 10 MEN'S FLYWEIGHTS! Sure #4 Alex Perez looked lost when he got dismantled by #1 Figgy in his shot at the title. And sure #9 Matt Schnell singlehandedly kept #7 Rogerio Bontorin relevant by losing a fight Schnell should've easily won on paper. But these guys are absolute tiny monsters, and there is no larger guarantee of a banger than top 10 men's flyweights!
Ryan Hall vs. Darrick Minner
WATCH - No offense to Darrick Minner but this one is all about Ryan Hall. The man is the most unique fighter in UFC history. He spends entire rounds laying on the ground daring his opponent to join him there. And his only strategy is to go for a leg lock, a submission almost impossible to pull off in a fight. There's nothing more insane than watching a professional combat fighter rolling around on the ground desperately trying to get a hold on his opponent's leg while his opponent is trying to punch his face off.
Randy Costa vs. Tony Kelley
WATCH - Randy Costa is young as hell and kill or be killed. Tony Kelley is the opposite. We all know who to root for if we want this to be a banger!
Gillian Robertson vs. Priscila Cachoeira
WATCH - It's a what have you done for me lately kind of sport. And with that said, Priscila has our attention, finishing her last 2 fights after starting her UFC career 0-3. In women's flyweight terms, that's the equivalent in excitement of 1 v 10ing an army of Francis Nganouu's and knocking them all out. She's worth a watch while the good times roll, no matter how much of a bust her opponent appears to be.
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