Ailin Perez knew she had a big advantage on the ground over Darya Zheleznyakova – and she proved it.
[autotag]Ailin Perez[/autotag] knew she had a big advantage on the ground over [autotag]Darya Zheleznyakova[/autotag] – and she proved it at UFC Fight Night 243.
Perez (11-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) submitted Zheleznyakova (9-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) with an arm-triangle choke at the 3:52 mark of Round 1. The women’s bantamweight bout was part of the UFC Fight Night 243 preliminary card at Accor Arena in Paris.
It didn’t take long for Perez to clinch, but Zheleznyakova was able to break free. Zheleznyakova caught a Perez kick and slammed her down, but decided to let Perez back up eventually. Perez shot again, but Zheleznyakova stuffed the takedown. The third time was the charm for Perez, who finally was able to get Zheleznyakova down. Perez established dominance on the ground, transitioning to an arm-triangle choke to finish Zheleznyakov.
Chris Duncan had to inform the ref that Bolaji Oki was out.
PARIS – [autotag]Chris Duncan[/autotag] had to inform the referee that Bolaji Oki was out cold at UFC Fight Night 243.
Duncan (12-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) submitted Oki (9-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) with a guillotine choke at the 3:34 mark of Round 1 in their lightweight bout on Saturday at Accor Arena.
As soon as Oki tried to take Duncan down, “The Problem” latched onto his neck. After cinching in a deep choke, Duncan let go to throw some punches, only to realize that Oki was out cold on top of him.
Check out the replay of Duncan’s wild finish below (via X):
Matt Frevola and Fares Ziam meet in a fun lightweight bout that opens the UFC Paris main card at Accor Arena.
[autotag]Matt Frevola[/autotag] and [autotag]Fares Ziam[/autotag] meet Saturday on the main card opener of UFC Fight Night 243 at Accor Arena in Paris. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 3-2 UFC main cards, 2024: 79-68-3
Matt Frevola vs. Fares Ziam UFC Paris preview
Frevola (11-4-1 MMA, 5-4-1 UFC) enters his first fight since headliner Benoit Saint Denis snapped his three-fight winning streak. Prior to the setback, Frevola stopped three straight opponents. Genaro Valdez, Ottman Azaitar and Drew Dober failed to make it out of the first round against “The Steamrolla.” … Ziam (15-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) will look to keep his momentum going as a winner of three straight fights. The Frenchman picked up consecutive decision wins over Michal Figlak, Jai Herbert and Claudio Puelles.
Matt Frevola vs. Fares ZiamUFC Paris expert pick, prediction
Kicking off the main card is a proper action fight at 155 pounds between Ziam and Frevola.
For those familiar with my card formatting critiques, there’s nothing I love more than action-fighting lightweights to kick off the festivities on the main broadcast.
Although Ziam can be stereotyped as more of a ‘point-fighting’ competitor, I believe that Frevola’s aggression will bring out the best in the Frenchman. That said, I find myself leaning toward the American in this spot.
Unless Ziam can turn himself into a one-punch knockout artist, I suspect that Frevola will eventually be able to close in on the French fighter and take this fight to the floor (where the biggest on-paper disparity exists).
It’s hard to bet against Ray Longo fighters, so I’ll take “The Steamrolla” to snatch up a submission by Round 2.
Matt Frevola vs. Fares ZiamUFC Paris odds
Despite the oddsmakers opening the American as the favorite, public money has come in on the French fighter, listing Ziam -132 and Frevola +108 via FanDuel.
Matt Frevola vs. Fares ZiamUFC Paris start time, how to watch
Frevola and Ziam are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 3:05 p.m. ET (9:05 p.m. locally in Paris). The fight will stream on ESPN+.
Morgan Charriere and Gabriel Miranda are a pair of exciting featherweights hunting for their second promotional win at UFC Paris.
[autotag]Morgan Charriere[/autotag] and [autotag]Gabriel Miranda[/autotag] meet Saturday on the main card of UFC Fight Night 243 at Accor Arena in Paris. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 3-2 UFC main cards, 2024: 79-68-3
Morgan Charriere vs. Gabriel Miranda UFC Paris preview
Charriere (19-10-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) saw a four-fight winning streak come to an end in April in a Fight of the Night split decision loss to Chepe Mariscal. The France-born fighter has taken home bonuses in both of his UFC appearances. In his debut, he recorded a Performance of the Night-worthy first-round finish of Manolo Zecchini. … Miranda (17-6 MMA, 1-1 UFC), like his opponent, is 1-1 in the UFC, but with flipped results. The Brazilian lost his debut to the headliner of this event, Benoit Sant Denis. In his second appearance, Miranda rebounded beautifully with a first-round submission of Shane Young at UFC 293 last September.
Morgan Charriere vs. Gabriel Miranda UFC Paris expert pick, prediction
Serving as an action-filled offering at featherweight is a fun fight between Charriere and Miranda.
Even though Charriere came up short in a highly competitive fight with Chepe Mariscal earlier this year, I’m happy to see the UFC still giving him a showcase spot here. That said, Miranda is incredibly dangerous – particularly early on in fights.
Charriere does have the propensity to find himself in close fights, but I suspect that Miranda’s marauding style brings out the best in “The Last Pirate.”
So long as Charriere can survive the early storm from the Brazilian, then I believe he’ll be able to get Miranda out of there in the mid-to-late rounds.
I’ll officially pick Charriere to force a stoppage via strikes in Round 2.
Morgan Charriere vs. Gabriel Miranda UFC Paris odds
The oddsmakers and the public heavily favor the French fighter, listing Charriere -750 and Miranda +490 via FanDuel.
Morgan Charriere vs. Gabriel Miranda UFC Paris start time, how to watch
Charriere and Miranda are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 3:35 p.m. ET (9:35 p.m. locally in Paris). The fight will stream on ESPN+.
Kevin Jousset vs. Bryan Battle is an interesting welterweight attraction at UFC Paris.
[autotag]Kevin Jousset[/autotag] and [autotag]Bryan Battle[/autotag] meet Saturday on the main card of UFC Fight Night 243 at Accor Arena in Paris. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 3-2 UFC main cards, 2024: 79-68-3
Kevin Jousset vs. Bryan Battle UFC Paris preview
Jousset (10-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) enters UFC Paris looking for his third consecutive win to open his UFC tenure after beating Kiefer Crosbie and Kenan Song in 2023. This fight marks his first of the year. … Battle (10-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) was none too pleased after his last fight that ended in a no contest, accusing Ange Loosa of milking an accidental eye poke. Prior to that, “The Ultimate Fighter 29” winner had won back-to-back bouts and hopes to regain momentum.
Kevin Jousset vs. Bryan Battle UFC Paris expert pick, prediction
Although you could argue that Battle is due for some bigger names, Jousset is a well-trained fighter who brings a solid game to the table.
Not only does Jousset have the grappling ability that you would assume with his judo roots, but the City Kickboxing representative also demonstrates the savvy jabs, feints and leg kicks that you would associate with his more well-known stablemates.
However, aside from the fact that Battle also has some judo roots of his own, “The Ultimate Fighter” winner also looks like he can keep pace with the Frenchman’s output.
This isn’t a fight I’m super confident forecasting, but I’ll side with Battle to get the nod from the judges for the more impactful offense.
Kevin Jousset vs. Bryan Battle UFC Paris odds
The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the American fighter, listing Battle -172 and Jousset +140 via FanDuel.
Kevin Jousset vs. Bryan Battle UFC Paris start time, how to watch
Jousset and Battle are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 4:15 p.m. ET (10:15 p.m. locally in Paris). The fight will stream on ESPN+.
William Gomis and Joanderson Brito both enter UFC Paris on winning streaks. Whose will come to an end?
[autotag]William Gomis[/autotag] and [autotag]Joanderson Brito[/autotag] meet Saturday on the main card of UFC Fight Night 243 at Accor Arena in Paris. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 3-2 UFC main cards, 2024: 79-68-3
William Gomis vs. Joanderson Brito UFC Paris preview
Gomis (13-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) will look for a win in front of his hometown crowd to also keep his early UFC career perfect as he’s opened with three consecutive wins by majority decision, split decision, and most recently TKO. This will be his first fight of 2024. … Brito (17-3-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) has been on a tear since losing his UFC debut in January 2022 as he’ll enter on a five-fight winning streak.
William Gomis vs. Joanderson Brito UFC Paris expert pick, prediction
I can understand why Gomis is on this card, but I have no clue why Brito isn’t getting booked against bigger names after accruing wins over the likes of Jack Shore and Diego Lopes.
Either the matchmakers hate or over-hype Gomis given their recent booking attempts, because I’m not seeing it regarding the MMA Factory product. Aside from Gomis’ lone stoppage victory in the UFC coming by way of a low blow, he hasn’t had any convincing performances in his first three swings at bat.
Whereas Brito – a walking destroyer of men – is riding an impressive 5-fighting winning streak by stopping everyone who has stood in his way.
The pick is for Brito to take Gomis down and smash him into submission in Round 1.
William Gomis vs. Joanderson Brito UFC Paris odds
The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the Brazilian fighter, listing Brito -310 and Nelson +240 via FanDuel.
William Gomis vs. Joanderson Brito UFC Paris start time, how to watch
As the featured bout, Brito and Gomis are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 4:45 p.m. ET (10:45 p.m. locally in Paris). The fight will stream on ESPN+.
Either Nassourdine Imavov or Brendan Allen will take a big step toward a UFC middleweight title shot, but who will it be?
[autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] and [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] meet Saturday on the main card of UFC Fight Night 243 at Accor Arena in Paris. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 3-2 UFC main cards, 2024: 79-68-3
Nassourdine Imavov vs. Brendan Allen UFC Paris preview
Imavov (14-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC) vs. Allen (24-5 MMA, 12-2 UFC) is an intriguing matchup between middleweights officially in the UFC’s top-10 rankings. … Imavov, who’s No. 4, has won back-to-back bouts, including the biggest victory of his career in his most recent matchup as he finished former title challenger Jared Cannonier in the fourth round of their encounter in June. … Allen has been on a roll since February 2022, having won seven consecutive fights. Allen is coming off a split decision win over Chris Curtis in their five-round rematch that took place this past April.
Nassourdine Imavov vs. Brendan Allen UFC Paris expert pick, prediction
Despite the UFC drowning us in middleweight main events since the pandemic, this is a fight that actually deserves five rounds. The three-round nature should favor Imavov, but I believe Allen is a live underdog in this spot.
Aside from the fact that Allen is riding the momentum of a seven-fight winning streak, the American fights at a dogged pace and has one of the more dangerous grappling games in the division (currently owning the second most submissions in UFC middleweight history).
Imavov is an incredibly skilled and well-trained fighter, but the Frenchman’s propensity to both clinch and fade down the stretch worries me against a grapple-heavy fighter like Allen.
Even though I’m officially picking Allen to dig out a decision win, a late finish from “All In” wouldn’t shock me either.
Nassourdine Imavov vs. Brendan Allen UFC Paris odds
The oddsmakers and public favor the French fighter, listing Imavov -230 and Allen +184 via FanDuel.
Nassourdine Imavov vs. Brendan Allen UFC Paris start time, how to watch
As the co-main event, Imavov and Allen are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 5:15 p.m. ET (11:15 p.m. locally in Paris). The fight will stream on ESPN+.
Check out these images from the UFC Fight Night 243 ceremonial weigh-ins and fighter faceoffs ahead of the event at Accor Arena in Paris.
Check out these images from the UFC Fight Night 243 ceremonial weigh-ins and fighter faceoffs ahead of the event at Accor Arena in Paris. (Images via UFC YouTube)
UFC Fight Night 243 ceremonial weigh-ins are complete, and the fighters came face-to-face one final time before Saturday’s event.
UFC Fight Night 243 ceremonial weigh-ins took place Friday, and the fighters came face-to-face one final time before Saturday’s event.
The weigh-ins took place at Etihad Arena in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, which hosts Saturday’s event (ESPN+). Check out the video above to see the athletes from all 12 scheduled matchups come face-to-face. Plus, don’t miss the photo gallery below.
