The UFC will come to San Antonio tomorrow night for a very exciting Fight Night event. Some very talented young fighters will step into the octagon for a night that will see the lighter weight classes get a chance to shine. This card should give us some very entertaining contests.
Two of the best bantamweights in the world will square off in a main event that could see the winner being set up with a championship opportunity in their very next fight. Plus, an up-and-coming featherweight faces a tough challenger in his quest to climb the ranks and one of the best women’s bantamweights of all time takes on the sixth-ranked contender.
Featherweight bout: Nate Landwehr vs. Austin Lingo
While the UFC featherweight championship may be locked up for a while, the division itself has plenty of room for advancement and Landwehr will look to take advantage of that. Currently ranked 15th, the 34-year-old comes in with a 16-4 record with eight knockouts. He is going to be looking to build on his momentum after winning his previous two fights. Known for scoring knockout wins prior to his UFC career, Landwehr actually secured his first ever submission victory just a couple of fights ago, so he may be progressing his skills in other aspects of the game. It will be interesting to see how he approaches this one.
Of course, whatever the gameplans are, it’s going to be tough to implement them when you’re going up against a fighter who has never been knocked out or submitted. Lingo comes into the fight with a 9-1 record and it also rolling after back-to-back wins. With three knockouts and two submissions in his career, Lingo has proven he can finish fights anywhere, he just hasn’t done it in the octagon yet. In his fourth UFC fight, I expect him to really look for a finish to stake his claim for a spot in the top 15.
Women’s Bantamweight bout: Holly Holm vs. Yana Santos
One of the most memorable moments in the history of the UFC was Holly Holm’s knockout of Ronda Rousey in 2015. Since then though, Holm is just 4-6, including a split decision loss to Ketlen Vieira in her most recent bout. Still, she boasts a 14-6 record with eight knockouts and is still one of the most feared strikers in the sport. Gameplan is never a mystery when it comes to Holm. He is going to try and stay at range and mix it up with her hands and with kicks to overwhelm her opponent. When she really gets going, there’s no one better or more fun to watch.
And if you’re a fan of standup fights, you couldn’t ask for a better opponent for Holm. Santos is going to be willing to stand and strike in this one, and with good reason. She has had a lot of success with that strategy, with an identical 14-6 record and seven knockout victories. She is however, also prone to being knocked out herself, with all three of her most recent losses coming in that fashion. Still, she is a very game opponent and a win over Holly would vault her up in the rankings. I would expect this one to be a lot of fun.
Bantamweight bout: Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen
Cory Sandhagen lands a flying knee against Frankie Edgar
Speaking of a lot of fun, there is just no way this main event doesn’t deliver. The UFC’s bantamweight division is very crowded up top, especially with Henry Cejudo returning to challenge Aljamain Sterling for the title. Still, these two contenders have a huge opportunity in front of them here as a win could very well put them next in line.
Vera will walk into this main event the third-ranked contender in the division. He’s riding a four-fight win streak, which has brought his record to 20-7, with eight knockout and eight submissions. Clearly, this guy knows how to win fights regardless of how they play out. He has knocked out Dominick Cruz and Frankie Edgar, and while most of his submission victories came early in his career, it’s clearly a skillset he could resort to if need be. Vera is dangerous anywhere and a win in this main event could make him a dangerous title challenger.
Vera isn’t the only one in this fight who can score a knockout though. The fifth-ranked contender, Sandhagen has scored some big time highlight reel knockouts, including his flying knee against Frankie Edgar. He hit a brief skid for a moment, losing two in a row to T.J. Dillashaw and Petr Yan before stopping Song Yadong his last time out. There are few fighters in any class as explosive as Sandhagen and that give him the ability to end a fight in the blink of an eye. If these two guys decide to stand in front of one another, we are going to be in for an unforgettable main event.
UFC Fight Night: Vera vs. Sandhagen will be held Saturday, March 25 at 7 PM ET. Fight fans can watch live on ESPN+.