Noche UFC Delivers Amazing Undercard to Glendale Saturday Afternoon!

Noche UFC fight week is here. Saturday, the UFC adds a new chapter to a September tradition with the fourth iteration of the Noche UFC series. Live coverage begins at an earlier time of 2 pm ET/ 11 am PT with the prelims on Paramount Plus.

Main card action caps the day at 5 pm ET/ 2 pm PT. Glendale, AZ's Desert Diamond Arena, the home venue of the Arizona Rattlers, the Indoor Football League National Champions, serves as the setting for the Saturday event.

If there are no adjustments to be made between now and fight night, the final version of Noche UFC will feature a slate of 13 fights from the No. 1 MMA promotion in the world.

Noche UFC Featured Prelim: No. 12 Contender Tim Elliott vs. Edgar Chairez: Elliott Seeks Return to Victory Lane

At the top of the bill for the undercard, the flyweights take to the fabled Octagon for Noche UFC's featured prelim. No. 12 contender Tim Elliott (21-14-1 MMA, 10-12 UFC) battles Edgar Chairez (14-6, 1 NC MMA, 4-2, 1 NC UFC.) All fights mentioned herein are an advertised three rounds at five minutes per round.

Tim Elliott enters Noche UFC with a record of 3-2 in his last five fights. Back on the night of May 2, he dropped a unanimous decision at the hands of Steve Erceg (14-5 MMA, 5-4 UFC) in UFC Perth.

Can he score a win on Saturday in The Valley of the Sun? Tune in and find out.

Edgar Chairez Looks to Go 3-for-3 in '26

Across the way, Edgar Chairez enters this featured prelim on the strength of a 4-1 record in his last five outings. He's won three fights in a row. 

On June 6, he scored a first-round submission by way of rear-naked choke against Bruno Silva (15-9-2, 1 NC MMA, 5-6, 1 NC UFC) inside Meta Apex in Enterprise, NV. In so doing, Chairez secured a $100,000 (USD) cash advance for the Performance of the Night Award.

Edgar Chairez is on a hot streak going into Noche UFC on Saturday. Anytime a fighter is on a sustained winning streak heading into a contest, he can be a force to be reckoned with.

Noche UFC Co-Featured Prelim: Ignacio Bahamondes vs. Muslim Salikhov: Bahamondes Eager to Stop Losing Streak

Immediately beforehand, the co-featured prelim of Noche UFC sees action taking place in the welterweight ranks. Ignacio Bahamondes (17-7 MMA, 6-4 UFC) returns to competition for a fight against Muslim Salikhov (22-6 MMA, 9-5 UFC.) Bahamondes will be making the walk on Saturday with a 3-2 mark in his past five fights.

He's been a streaky fighter of late, having dropped two in a row in the aftermath of a three-fight winning streak. Last time out, he sustained a unanimous decision loss at the hands of Tofiq Musayev (25-6 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in March during UFC Seattle.

Which version of Ignacio Bahamondes is the version that shows up on Saturday to Noche UFC? If it's the version who won three in a row, he'll be in good shape.

Muslim Salikhov Back in Action at Noche UFC

Meanwhile, Muslim Salikhov enters this weekend's card with a 3-2 mark in his five latest bouts. On Nov. 8 of last year, he was on the receiving end of a first-round knockout due to a straight left followed by ground and pound shots from Uros Medic (14-3 MMA. 8-3 UFC.)

After that, Salikhov was slated to fight Jake Matthews on May 30 in UFC Macau but the contest was postponed without a single punch being thrown. Salikhov needed to undergo elbow surgery, necessitating his withdrawal from the event. 

With Muslim Salikhov now afforded a clean bill of health, can he secure a victory in Glendale? Only time will tell.

Noche UFC: Yousri Belagroui vs. Djorden Santos: Belagroui with Late Switch in Opponent

Also on Noche UFC's undercard, the middleweights go to battle for a fight pitting Yousri Belagroui (10-3 MMA, 2-0 UFC) against Djorden Santos (11-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC.) Belagroui comes into the weekend sporting a record of 5-0 in his last five outings dating back to the fall of 2023. 

A 2024 graduate of Contender Series, he scored a third-round knockout due to a knee from the clinch versus Mansur Abdul-Malik (9-2-1 MMA, 3-2-1 UFC) during UFC Seattle at the end of March.

Initially, Belagroui was due to verse Kelvin Gastelum in Noche UFC on Saturday, but Gastelum had to withdraw from the contest due to injury. How much of a change has he had to make in his training camp for this contest?

Djorden Santos Looking to Give Belagroui First UFC Defeat

In the other corner, Djorden Santos enters Saturday night's undercard sporting a 3-2 mark in his last five contests. On the night of May 9, he was on the receiving end of a third-round technical submission due to a rear-naked choke from Baisangur Susurkaev (12-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) during UFC 328.

Saturday's contest at Noche UFC serves as Santos' second consecutive fight in the UFC against an undefeated opponent. Santos couldn't stop Susurkaev five months ago, but can he hand Belagroui his initial defeat in the promotion?

Rest of the Prelims

Noche UFC's undercard is rounded out by the following bouts:

• A lightweight encounter between Drakkar Klose (16-3-1 MMA, 10-3 UFC) and Tommy Gantt (12-0, 1 NC, 1-0 UFC,)
• a lightweight bout matching Rafa Garcia (19-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) against Rongzhu (28-6 MMA, 4-3 UFC.)
• a featherweight fight versing Sean King (6-0 MMA, UFC promotional debut) with Jessie Rosas (8-1 MMA, UFC promotional debut,)
• and a women's flyweight contest pairing No. 15 contender JJ Aldrich (15-7 MMA. 11-6 UFC) and Regina Tarin (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC.)