After a week away, MMA’s top promotion is back this Saturday morning (USA time) for UFC Saudi Arabia. This week’s show is the second time in just over seven months that the UFC has ventured to Saudi Arabia for an event.
Prior to the Feb. 1 card, Dana White‘s promotion first made a trip to the kingdom of Saudi Arabia in June of 2024 for UFC on ABC 6. That night, in the main event of the evening, Robert Whittaker (26-8 MMA, 17-6 UFC) needed a minute and 49 seconds to punch his way to a finish against Ikram Aliskerov (15-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC).
UFC Saudi Arabia has some history attached to it, with Laura Sanko becoming the first female broadcaster to work as a commentator on an MMA show in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Live coverage of the event begins Saturday morning at 9 am ET/ 6 am PT on ESPN+ with the prelims before moving onto the main card at 12 noon ET/ 9 am PT on the streaming platform, highlighted by a contest between Israel Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC) and Nassourdine Imavov (15-4, 1 NC MMA, 7-4, 1 NC UFC) in the main event.
Exciting Prelims on UFC Saudi Arabia Saturday
There will plenty of time to analyze the fights on the main card before the weekend. Our focus this time out, however, are the preliminary fights during Saturday’s event. Put on a pot of coffee if you’re getting up early to watch UFC Saudi Arabia and make certain that you watch these awesome fights.
UFC Saudi Arabia Featured Prelim: Shamil Gaziev vs. Thomas Petersen
The prelims on Saturday are bookended by fights in the UFC heavyweight division. At the top of the bill as far as the undercard is concerned is this contest at 265 between No. 14 contender Shamil Gaziev (13-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) and Thomas Petersen (9-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC).
Gaziev, a 2023 graduate of Dana White’s Contender Series, enters this weekend’s card having posted a record of 4-1 in his last five contests. Back in August of last year, he returned to the win column with a unanimous decision victory after three rounds over Don’Tale Mayes (11-7, 1 NC MMA, 4-5, 1 NC UFC) during UFC on ABC 7 from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Across the way, Thomas Petersen has gone 4-1 over the course of his five most recent trips to the Octagon. Last time out, he scored a unanimous decision win against Mohammed Usman (10-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) in UFC on ESPN 60 from the Apex in Enterprise, NV. This is an interesting tilt on Saturday in the UFC Saudi Arabia prelims.
If you’re rolling out of bed a little late, make sure that you don’t oversleep and miss this fight by mistake. You’ve got two fighters going in the same direction, sporting identical 4-1 marks in their last five fights and both men got their hands raised in their most recent bouts. Whose path to the top includes a win on Saturday?
UFC Saudi Arabia Co-Featured Prelim: Terrance McKinney vs. Damir Hadzovic
Immediately beforehand, the UFC Saudi Arabia co-featured undercard bout sees action take place at lightweight between Terrance McKinney (15-7 MMA, 5-4 UFC) and Damir Hadzovic (14-7 MMA, 4-5 UFC). Terrance McKinney comes in having posted a 2-3 record in his last five bouts.
Most recently, he dropped a first-round knockout in 37 seconds by way of head kick to Esteban Ribovics (14-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) on May 11 during UFC St. Louis. McKinney has had the better part of the last nine months to stew over what happened in Missouri last spring, so how can he bounce back?
In the other corner, Damir Hadzovic has a 2-3 record in his own right of late, but it’s been a while since he’s walked into an arena for competition on fight night. Last time out, he was on the losing end of a unanimous decision against Marc Diakiese (18-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) in July of 2022. A planned return to the cage last year around this time versus Bolaji Oki (9-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) went unrealized amid visa troubles.
Thus, ring rust is an issue. Will having more than two and a half years away from the cage play a factor into his preparation for this fight?
UFC Saudi Arabia Prelims: Jasmine Jasudavicius vs. Mayra Bueno Silva
Also on the undercard on Saturday is a women’s flyweight contest matching No. 12 contender Jasmine Jasudavicius (12-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC) and No. 7 contender Mayra Bueno Silva (10-4-1, 1 NC MMA, 5-4-1, 1 NC UFC).
Jasmine Jasudavicius enters the show this week having posted a mark of 4-1 in her last five fights and is currently on a three-fight winning streak. Last November, she bested Ariane Lipski da Silva by way of third-round submission due to a D’arce choke during UFC Edmonton. She’s on a roll and a win here during UFC Saudi Arabia likely will propel her to a spot in the top-10 at 125 as soon as this coming Monday.
Meanwhile, Mayra Bueno Silva comes into UFC Saudi Arabia looking for a place in the top-5 at women’s lightweight, sporting a record of 2-2 with one no-contest over the course of her last five outings. She’s on a two-fight skid, however, going winless in her three most recent bouts, including a defeat by way of second-round TKO (doctor’s stoppage due to a cut) last June during UFC 303 versus Macy Chiasson (10-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC.)
To find the last time that Mayra Bueno Silva got her hand raised, you’d have to go back to Feb. 18, 2023 and UFC Vegas 69, when she finished Lina Lansberg with a second-round submission (kneebar). It’s been almost two years since she exited the cage as a winner. Will the skid end here?
Final Thoughts
Which prelims are you looking forward to on UFC Saudi Arabia Saturday? Let us know in the comments.