UFC 312 Preview
UFC 312 Preview
Sean Strickland vs. Dricus Du Plessis-
There is a lot of built-up animosity between these two. They are meeting for the second time in the octagon and the third time if you count the melee in the crowd. Strickland will try to keep it on the feet in boxing range and use his "wear you down in your face" style, while Du Plessis will be much stronger on the ground and is coming off a fourth-round finish of Izzy via submission. This fight will either be a flat-out war or a snooze fest—there is no in-between.
Tatiana Suarez vs. Zhang Weili-
It's hard not to root for Suarez with all the injuries that she has been through just to get to where she is now. On top of all that, she's a straight-up savage in the cage. She's 7-0 in the UFC with five finishes. Suarez is all action and a great challenger for arguably the GOAT of the division, the current champion Weili. Anyone who has fought her has lost—unless you’re Thug Rose. It might be a hot take, but this fight has the chance to steal the show, and I would say it should be the main event.
Rest of the Main Card-
The heavyweight bout between Tafa and Teixeira should not even get close to seeing the final bell. Jimmy Crute returns home to fight Bellato, and Jake Matthews fights Francisco Prado to open the PPV show.
Prelim Fighters to Keep an Eye On-
Tom Nolan-A great young fighter who is 3-1 in the UFC at only 24 years old. He's fighting back home in front of friends and family, so I honestly expect something big from him on the early card. He has a great all-around game.
Cody Steel-An American wrestler with a gritty style. He will set and push the pace for the whole fight. I just want him to ramp up his striking because his wrestling is already down. In the Contender Series, he shot a takedown about one minute into the first round that was very reckless, with no setup whatsoever. If he starts to master these small parts of his game, we could be looking at a future champion. He has a chance to win some extra bonus money this weekend.
KSIN Featured Prelim
Colby Thicknesse vs. Aleksandre Topuria-This fight is going to be a banger. You have a Volk teammate and training partner who is 25 and has the world ahead of him making his debut against the brother of the 145 World Champion. I'm interested to see how this fight goes on the feet. I would give Colby the slight edge on the ground, even though Topuria isn't a slouch at all down there.
Written By: Jalen King
