The UFC was busy announcing new struggles. Following are a few of the new upcoming bouts set for spring UFC cards, and my first thoughts on them.
Michel Prazeres vs. Ismail Naurdiev, UFC Fight Night 145
Due to an accident to Ramazan Emeev, Ismail Naurdiev has taken a short-notice fight against Michel Prazeres in UFC Fight Night 145, taking place February 23 in The O2 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic. MMABrasil broke the news. Prazeres (26-2) is 10-2 at the UFC entire and will be riding an eight-fight win series at the moment. He had trouble making the lightweight limit of 155lbs and because moving up to welterweight has looked even better with back-to-back wins over Zak Cummings and Bartosz Fabinski. Naurdiev (17-2) is making his UFC debut on the strength of back-to-back knockout wins. He’s experience fighting in ACB, along with the majority of his wins have come by stoppage. However he has also fought a very low amount of rivalry and Prazeres is a significant step up. I expect Prazeres for a solid favorite here, and he deserves it after the current series he has went on inside the Octagon.
Enrique Barzola vs. Kevin Aguilar, UFC on ESPN 2 Featherweights Enrique Barzola and Kevin Aguilar are set to meet UFC on ESPN two, taking place March 30 at Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. MMAWeekly broke the information. Barzola (15-3-1) is 5-1 in the UFC and is currently riding a four-fight win streak together with all his wins coming by decision. Barzola’s record is remarkable, but his lack of completing instincts could damage him as he advances up the featherweight ranks. Aguilar (16-1) is coming from a successful UFC debut when he won a unanimous decision over Rick Glenn, and overall he’s riding an eight-fight win streak. His only career loss came from Leonard Garcia back in 2013, but he’s been perfect in his MMA career. This is a fairly solid matchup between two men on win stripes but according to his ability to really finish a fight I’d have to prefer Aguilar to receive his hands raised.
Tom Breese vs. Ian Heinisch, UFC Fight Night 147
Due to an injury to Cezar Ferreira, Ian Heinisch is stepping up as an injury replacement to carry on Tom Breese at UFC Fight Night 147, taking place March 16 at The O2 Arena in London, England. Breese (11-1) is 4-1 at the UFC and is coming off of a TKO win over Dan Kelly in his middleweight debut. Heinisch (12-1) is now riding a four-fight win streak and is coming off of a successful UFC introduction when he conquered the aforementioned Ferreira by choice. His only career defeat came against Markus Perez, who only submitted Anthony Hernandez at UFC Fight Night 144. This looks like a really solid matchup between two middleweights with future title aspirations. Both Breese and Heinisch are very well-rounded fighters and this is going to be a close fight. I’d have to prefer Breese only based on the fact the struggle is in England, but I expect Heinisch to be somewhat competitive in this matchup and that he is worth considering as a puppy.
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