UFC 310 is set to go down from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday. And the card is stacked.
Flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja is set to defend his belt against a UFC debutant: RIZIN standout Kai Asakura. The co-main event will see undefeated welterweights Shavkat Rakhmanov fight Ian Machado Garry in a likely title eliminator where the winner would fight champion Belal Muhammad next.
The rest of the main card is rounded out by a heavyweight showdown between Cyril Gane and Alexander Volkov with major repercussions; featherweight grapplers Bryce Mitchell and Kron Gracie; and featherweights Nade Landwehr and Doo Ho Choi.
The UFC 310 preliminary card is just as stacked. A litany of former champions, title challengers and contenders will jockey for position in the top 15 of their respective weight classes.
Anthony Smith vs. Dominick Reyes
Former light heavyweight title challengers Smith and Reyes will square off to headline the UFC 310 prelims. Both men fought Jon Jones, with Reyes arguably beating the light heavyweight GOAT. Reyes snapped a four-fight skid with a knockout win over Dustin Jacoby and will look to stay on the right track against Smith. Reyes carries a lot of power and has solid wrestling, making him a hard opponent to ground.
Smith, since his loss to Jones, has turned away prospects not yet ready to compete in the upper echelon of light heavyweight. Smith has fought a who’s who over his 57-fight professional career, beating the likes of Alexander Gustafsson, Volkan Oezdemir, Mauricio Rua, Rashad Evans, Vitor Petrino, Ryan Spann twice, and others.
While Reyes only has 17 professional fights compared to Smith’s 57, Reyes carries experience in opponents’ name value into the match-up, meaning fans are getting two seasoned combatants.
The fight also carries light heavyweight top 15 implications, as Reyes is ranked No. 12 and Smith is ranked No. 13.
Vicente Luque vs. Themba Gorimbo
Gorimbo will get the largest opportunity of his young career when he meets perennial contender Luque, who is ranked No. 14 at welterweight. Gorimbo, who lost his UFC debut to AJ Fletcher, has won four straight UFC fights to set up a ranked match-up. He most recently defeated Niko Price. Now, he gets a dangerous finisher in Luque.
Luque is 15-6 in the UFC with wins over the likes of current welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, former promotional champions Tyron Woodley and Rafael dos Anjos, as well as Price, Jalin Turner, Mike Perry, and Randy Brown.
Gorimbo has been a pleasant story in the UFC, and now he will get the toughest test of his career yet. The oddsmakers favor him as a 2-1 favorite, but Luque carries a huge strength of schedule advantage. Gorimbo can prove he is the real deal and bust into the rankings if he can topple the dangerous veteran.
Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
Fans will be treated to a battle of top-10 featherweights on the UFC 310 prelims.
Sterling, the former bantamweight champion, is ranked No. 9. He could ascend to the top 5 with a win over No. 5-ranked Evloev. Sterling moved up a weight class after losing his title to Sean O’Malley. He was then avenged by friend and teammate Merab Dvalishvili, the current bantamweight champion.
Sterling has beaten a who’s who at bantamweight, including Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw and Cory Sandhagen. “Aljo” then dominated Calvin Kattar in his featherweight debut, showing he is ready to be fast-tracked to the featherweight title. While he may only be a win or two away from realizing that title shot, he has to get through Evloev first.
Evloev is a perfect 18-0 in his professional career and 8-0 in the UFC. His wins have come over the likes of Arnold Allen, Diego Lopes and Dan Ige. Lopes has surged since his loss to Evloev, but Evloev could earn a title eliminator match if he beats Sterling – perhaps a rematch between Lopes and Evloev?
While there are many questions to be answered as far as title contention goes, this fight could answer many of them. Other than the heavy implications, it could be a really fun fight if it hits the ground, as both men are stand-out grapplers.
Randy Brown vs. Bryan Battle
Brown and Battle will clash in a meeting of two men near the top 15 of the welterweight division. The winner could – and should – score a ranked opponent next.
Battle has won three straight bouts outside of a no-contest, scoring finishes over Kevin Jousset, AJ Fletcher and Gabe Green. Brown has won three in a row, securing victories over Elizeu Zaleski, Muslim Salikhov, and Wellington Turman.
Both men have power, though Battle is the more prolific finisher. Brown has fought and defeated stiffer competition, however. Brown will be an excellent gauge to see if Battle is ready for the elite of the welterweight division, while a win over the surging battle would prove Brown has made the necessary adjustments to diffuse dangerous foes.
This will be an exciting scrap, and the winner definitely deserves a push forward in a crowded weight class.
Chris Weidman vs. Eryk Anders
Let’s try this again. Weidman and Anders were listed as a UFC 309 preliminary card fight to watch, but Anders’ medical issue forced a cancellation on the day of the event. The fight was rebooked for UFC 310 instead.
Weidman, a former middleweight champion, is set to fight Anders in the penultimate prelim. Weidman fought a who’s who of middleweights in his surge to the title, defeating Anderson Silva twice, as well as Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort. Despite success against the likes of Luke Rockhold, who he lost his strap to, as well as Yoel Romero and Ronaldo Souza, Weidman came up short. He has since managed wins over the likes of Kelvin Gastelum and Omari Akhmedov before snapping his leg against Uriah Hall. The resilient Weidman pushed through a rough recovery and is determined to make one final run.
A win over Weidman would undoubtedly be the biggest of Anders’s career. While Weidman is not currently ranked at 185 pounds, the winner of this fight could get an opportunity at a top-15 foe.
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