UFC Nashville fight weeks rolls on with two days to go before fight night. This upcoming weekend, the famous Octagon touches down in The Music City of Nashville, TN. Saturday’s card is the second time in under two months that MMA action has taken place there.
In June, the PFL trekked to Nashville for the first of its three semifinal cards in that promotion’s ongoing 2025 World Tournament. Exactly one month removed from the PFL’s turn in Nashville, UFC CEO Dana White’s promotion heads to the birthplace of country music.
Live coverage of UFC Nashville begins with Saturday’s prelims at 6 pm ET/ 3 pm PT. Main card fights cap off the evening’s schedule at 9 pm ET/ 6 pm PT. Inside the United States of America, UFC Nashville will be seen linearly on ESPN and via streaming media over ESPN+.
All told, the final version of Saturday night’s show features a full slate of 12 fights from the MMA leader.
UFC Nashville Main Event: No. 9 Contender Derrick Lewis vs. No. 13 Contender Tallison Teixeira
At the top of the bill on Saturday night, the big boys come to play in the UFC Nashville main event. No. 9 contender Derrick Lewis (28-12, 1 NC MMA, 19-10 UFC meets up with No. 13 contender Tallison Teixeira (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC.) This main attraction is an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round to close out the night’s activities.
Derrick Lewis will make his 42nd career walk to an MMA cage this Saturday evening having posted a record of 2-3 in his last five bouts. He’ll be looking to score his second victory in a row over the weekend after knocking out Rodrigo Nascimento (12-4, 1 NC MMA, 4-3, 1 NC UFC) in the third round of a scheduled five with an overhand right followed by ground and pound shots.
Since then, “The Black Beast” has been out of action. A planned fight between Derrick Lewis and Alexandr Romanov was postponed ahead of UFC Edmonton on Nov. 2 of last year after both contestants had been rebooked. Subsequently, Lewis’ fight versus Jhonata Diniz got scrubbed after the latter was booked for UFC 309 two weeks later.
How will Lewis respond after a 14-month hiatus? Tune into the UFC Nashville main event and find out.
Meanwhile, Tallison Teixiera has yet to lose thus far in his professional MMA career. This past February, in his freshman UFC appearance, he scored a first-round knockout in just 35 blistering seconds by way of elbows and knees versus Justin Tafa (7-5, 1 NC MMA, 4-5, 1 NC UFC.)
Teixeira and his camp probably never expected to be appearing in a main event this soon into his UFC tenure. Saturday’s UFC Nashville headliner is only his second bout under the promotional banner. Can he score a resume-building victory this weekend?
UFC Nashville Co-Main Event: No. 12 Contender Stephen Thompson vs. Gabriel Bonfim
Immediately prior to the main attraction, the UFC Nashville co-main event of the evening sees action take place at welterweight. No. 12 contender Stephen Thompson (17-8-1 MMA, 12-8-1 UFC) sets foot inside the Octagon to fight Gabriel Bonfim (17-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC.) This is a three-round contest at five minutes per round.
Thompson is in must-win territory entering UFC Nashville this Saturday night, having only posted a 1-4 record over the course of his last five fights in the promotion. Currently, he’s dropped two fights in a row.
Last time out, he came out on the wrong end of a third-round knockout due to a right hook versus Joaquin Buckley (21-7 MMA, 11-5 UFC) in October’s UFC 307. Buckley then followed that win up with a third-round TKO (doctor’s stoppage) of Colby Covington right before Christmas in Tampa.
As far as the Thompson camp is concerned, their fighter is obviously hungry to not only pick up a victory in UFC Nashville but also prove that he’s still got the chops at 170. This is a man who’s been in this scenario before in his career, so can he get back in the win column?
Across the way, Gabriel Bonfim has posted a mark of 4-1 in his last five fights. Currently, he’s experiencing the reverse of Stephen Thompson going into this fight, as Bonfim has won two fights in succession.
Back on Feb. 15, Bonfim stepped into the Octagon inside the UFC Apex in Enterprise, NV, stopping Khaos Williams (15-5 MMA, 6-4 UFC) with a technical submission via D’arce choke with six seconds remaining on the second-round clock.
He’s a young man of just 27, so he hasn’t peaked athletically as yet. If he’s as explosive when he peaks as he is right now, you may be seeing a future UFC Welterweight Champion in waiting once the cage door shuts on Saturday night.
UFC Nashville: No. 14 Contender Calvin Kattar vs. Steve Garcia
Also on the UFC Nashville main card, you’ll be treated to a featherweight fixture matching 14th-ranked Calvin Kattar (23-9 MMA, 7-7 UFC) with Steve Garcia (17-5 MMA, 6-2 UFC.) Kattar, much like Stephen Thompson in the co-main event, is in a precarious position heading into UFC Nashville on Saturday.
He’s also gone 1-4 in his last five UFC appearances and has been defeated four times consecutively. This losing streak was extended with a unanimous decision in favor of Youssef Zalal (17-5-1 MMA, 7-3-1 UFC) on Feb. 15.
Saturday’s contest marks crunch time for Calvin Kattar. A fifth straight loss for “The Boston Finisher” would not only cost him his spot in the rankings at 145 lbs, it could also spell the end of his UFC run.
Expect him to fight with frustration over the weekend.
In the other corner, Steve Garcia has posted a perfect 5-0 record in his last five contests. During the Sept. 7, 2024 UFC Fight Night inside the UFC Apex, he finished Kyle Nelson (16-6-1 MMA, 4-5-1 UFC) inside the first round of the bout. He’d been scheduled to return this past February in Seattle but the fight versus Edson Barboza was scrubbed prior to the show after the latter bowed out of the event.
Will Garcia pick up his sixth win in a row? Only time will tell.
Final Thoughts
Which main card fight or fights are you looking forward to on UFC Nashville? Let us know in the comments.
