Competitive violence is on the menu once again this weekend. Friday night, while gridiron football fans have their eyes fixated on the Motor City of Detroit for the second and third rounds of this year’s NFL Draft, MMA takes center stage south of the border (down Mexico way) for LUX Fight League’s latest event.
Guadalajara is the setting for LUX 042, live from Domo Code Alcaide. As usual, this event’s main card will be shown live on UFC Fight Pass, but be prepared to stay up late on Friday night to watch, with a start time of 11 pm ET/ 8 pm PT.
Championship Tripleheader Now a Doubleheader Friday Night
Absent of any late adjustments to the bout order ahead of fight night, the final version of LUX 042 features a full 12-fight card. When the show was first announced to the public, there were to have been three title fights at the top of the bill, but plans have been altered with the postponement of the battle for the LUX Bantamweight Championship between Juan Diaz (11-1-1 MMA, 3-0 LUX) and Andre Barquero (9-2 MMA, 2-0 LUX), a Cage Fury alumnus.
Diaz has been booked to fight Abraham Nava (6-3 MMA, 2-2 LUX) in a contracted catchweight (140 lbs.) during the show on Friday night.
Welterweight Supremacy at Stake in LUX 042 Main Event
Two championship fights will still go on this weekend from Domo Code Alcaide on Friday, including the LUX 042 main event. Immediately following the women’s flyweight championship in the co-main event of the evening, the welterweight title will be handed out.
Incumbent LUX Welterweight Champion Alan Dominguez (10-6 MMA, 7-4 LUX) defends his strap when he takes on challenger (and LUX Middleweight Champion) Nayib Lopez (16-1 MMA, 1-0 LUX), a veteran of the 2023 PFL season. This main event title fight will be an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close out the show.
LUX 042 Main Event Fighter Comparison
Heading into the LUX 042 main event on Friday night, Nayib Lopez stands as the taller man at 6-foot-3, compared to Alan Dominguez’s frame of six feet even. Dominguez owns a narrow 0.8-inch reach advantage (74.8 inches to 74 inches even) over Lopez.
Alan Dominguez Getting “Home Game” in LUX 042 Main Event on Friday Night
Alan Dominguez enters the LUX 042 main event this Friday evening having posted a record of 4-1 in his last five fights. At the present time, he’s on a two-fight winning streak.
Last time out, he scored a unanimous decision victory against Antonio Suarez (14-9 MMA, 4-1 LUX) in an Oct. 6 rematch of their fight from February of last year. Expect the locals in Guadalajara to be firmly on his side on Friday night, as Dominguez is a graduate of Universidad de Guadalajara.
It’s important for a fighter to have as much support as he can possibly have when defending a championship. It’s doubly-important for a fighter to have that support from the fans when the fight is in the same city where he went to school.
With the NBA and Stanley Cup Playoffs now both in full swing, you’re going to be hearing a lot about home-court or home-ice advantage if you haven’t been hearing about that enough as it is already. In MMA, the concept of a “home game” is just as crucial. Champion Alan Dominguez will have the home arena advantage working for him on Friday night.
Nayib Lopez Looks to Rebound After PFL Stint
In the other corner, Nayib Lopez enters the LUX 042 main event this weekend having gone 4-1 in his last five fights. Last year, he saw a 16-fight winning streak snapped at the hands of Magomed Umalatov (15-0 MMA) during PFL 6.
This is a man who was undefeated in professional MMA going into last season in the PFL and who already has a championship at 185 lbs. on his career resume in the sport. There are two salient questions to be asked here:
How much ring rust does Nayib Lopez have after not fighting in 10 months and three days as of the date of LUX 042 on Friday night? Can he return to the win column with a banner performance in the main event and walk away with a second championship belt on his mantle at home?
For the answers, tune into the LUX 042 main event later this week and find out.
Analysis, Film Study, and Prediction
Expect some fireworks in the LUX 042 main event this weekend. Both of these men can complete their assignments inside the distance.
Look for Dominguez’s Wrestling to Tell the Story
Alan Dominguez can control the pace of the fight by using takedowns and wrestling to his advantage. One need look no further than his 2022 fight against Leonel Rojas.
During the first round of a scheduled three, he dumped Rojas and proceeded to rain down ground and pound shots. Although Rojas managed to get back to his feet, Dominguez just took him right back down again, transitioning to side control.
The clock was on Dominguez’s side with the second takedown, eventually advancing to full guard and landing another burst of ground and pound. With Rojas now unable to defend himself, the referee had no choice but to stop the fight.
If Alan Dominguez can put Nayib Lopez on the ground in the LUX 042 main event, he’ll be in complete control of the fight.
Lopez Can Use His Ground Game Advantageously, Too
In the other corner, Nayib Lopez also has a brilliant ground game, as was illustrated in his middleweight championship win against Ivan Valenzuela. Round four of a scheduled five saw Lopez complete a takedown before transitioning to side control.
From there, it was all over but the shouting with Lopez taking back mount and just letting loose with crisp punches to the head. The referee mercifully ended the contest due to the barrage of strikes with 1:16 left on the clock.
If Nayib Lopez can beat Alan Dominguez to the takedown, look out. He just might be walking away as a double-champ on Friday night.
Final Thoughts
On a light night in MMA on Friday ahead of a big day of combat sports this Saturday, consider the LUX 042 main event to be a suitable prelude to the next day’s schedule of events. Don’t miss it.
Prediction: Alan Dominguez by First-Round TKO.
