The UFC heads south of the border to Mexico City, where Arena CDMX is the venue for UFC Fight Night: Moreno vs Kavanagh.
The fight card is full of Mexican fighting talent, and a wild night is expected as the fighters compete in front of a packed, passionate crowd in the Mexican capital
Ahead of fight night, we take a look at the fight card and pick out three key questions that we’ll get answers to as the action unfolds.
Is Brandon Moreno still elite at 125-pounds?
This fight card was built around the former undisputed UFC flyweight champion, and now, with a short-notice replacement standing across from him, the pressure on Brandon Moreno has cranked up a notch ahead of fight night.
Moreno sits fourth in the official UFC flyweight rankings, and knows that nothing short of a resounding victory here will be good enough to gatecrash the championship picture at 125 pounds. But against Lone’er Kavnaagh, he faces a fast, dangerous, explosive fighter with one-shot knockout power in MMA gloves.
England’s Kavanagh was stoped by Charles Johnson last time out in something of a surprise result as he lost his undefeated record. But Kavanagh’s weapons remain as dangerous as ever. And now, after learned the lessons that saw him get clipped last time out, Kavanagh is arguably more dangerous than he’s ever been.
Victory for the Englishman would catapult Kavanagh into cotnention at the top of the flyweight division. But for Moreno, this is simply a must-win fight. If he gets the job done, a title shot might not be too far away…
Can ‘Chito’ turn back rising star Martinez?
Former bantamweight title challenger Marlon Vera still has plenty of gas left in the tank, but he’s got a tough test ahead of him this weekend.
Ninth-ranked bantamweight cotnender “Chito” will take on the man listed one spot below him, Mexico’s David Martinez, who blasted into the bantamweight rankings with an impressive win over longtime contender Rob Font.
Now Martinez is looking to topple another ranked contender in Vera, but Vera himself still has his sights set on another run at the division’s elite. When “Chito” puts it all together, he can compete with almost anyone at 135 pounds. But Martinez brings speed and explosiveness to the top 10, and this could be the moment he announces himself as a legitimate threat to the division’s best.
Can Daniel Zellhuber become a legitimate Mexican contender at 155?
On paper, Mexico’s Daniel Zellhuber ticks a lot of boxes – he strikes well, he’s got excellent cardio, he has an exciting fighting style. But he’s heading into his home assignment on a two-fight skid.
Zellhuber has what it takes to become a star at 155 pounds, but he doesn’t have the names on his resumé yet. That could start to change on Saturday night when he takes on UFC vet and perennial crowd-pleaser King Green.
Green has sneaky good striking and underrated submissions, but his fighting style, with his hands held low, leaves him open for heavy-handed opponents. And you can’t leave the door open too often in MMA. If you get cracked by a big puncher wearing MMA gloves, it’ll be nighty-night time, and that’s a fate that has befallen Green in recent years.
Zellhuber will hope to add Green to his list of wins, and he’ll want to do it in spectacular fashion. But he’ll need to be wary of Green’s skills – he may be more hittable these days, but he’s every bit as dangerous as he’s ever been.
A big win for Zellhuber could see him become a legitimate star, and see him face ranked opposition next.
UFC Mexico: Official fight card
MAIN CARD
- Brandon Moreno vs Lone’er Kavanagh – flyweight
- Marlon Vera vs David Martinez –bantamweight
- Daniel Zellhuber vs King Green – lightweight
- Edgar Chairez vs Felipe Bunes – flyweight
- Imanol Rodriguez vs Kevin Borjas – flyweight
- Santiago Luna vs Angel Pacheco – bantamweight
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Jose Medina vs Ryan Gandra – middleweight
- Macy Chiasson vs Ailin Perez – women’s bantamweight
- Cristian Quinonez vs Kris Moutinho – bantamweight
- Douglas Silva de Andrade vs Javier Reyes – featherweight
- Ernesta Kareckaite vs Regine Tarin – 130-pound catchweight
- Erik Silva vs Francis Marshall – featherweight
- Wes Schultz vs Damian Pinas – middleweight
