Many fans are excited about the UFC 179 main event featuring featherweight champion Jose Aldo defending the title against Chad Mendes, but the entire fight card for Saturday’s pay-per-view is worth watching.
With Glover Teixeira going to battle against Phil Davis in the light heavyweight division and Darren Elkins and Lucas Martins fighting each other at featherweight to impress UFC officials, the undercard bouts could be just as entertaining as the main event.
Here is the entire UFC 179 fight card, predicted winners in every bout and a preview of the most underrated matchup on the card.
Where: Ginasio do Maracanazinho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
When: Saturday, October 25
Start Time: 10 p.m. ET
Watch: PPV (local service providers)
Live Stream: UFC.com
Most Underrated Fight: Darren Elkins vs. Lucas Martins
There are several bouts that could theoretically steal the show as the Fight of the Night, but the featherweight bout between Darren Elkins and Lucas Martins could legitimately go either way and has possible title implications.
For Martins, his path to title contention has been under the radar. Many MMA fans initially wrote him off after he lost to Edson Barboza in his debut. Previously, Martins had gone 12-0 in his career and was one of the brightest stars in the division.
The Brazilian bounced back with three straight victories, including two knockouts and a submission. Martins isn’t just winning again; he is winning in dominant fashion and looks more focused than ever.
When asked about his loss to Barboza, Martins spoke to Thomas Gerbasi of UFC.com regarding the lessons he learned and how it has refocused him:
Barboza had a big name at 155. There was a lot of talk about him being a future champion, and people know your first fight in UFC is very hard. Now I just focus on my next opponent, fight hard, and good things happen. You always learn more from a loss then you do a win, and you see I have not lost since.
Adam Martin of MMAOddsBreaker.com talks about his excitement for the matchup:
As good as Martins has been since his UFC debut, Elkins is a UFC veteran who’s had his share of adversity during his career. Elkins has lost two of his last three fights (including a TKO defeat against featherweight No. 1 contender Mendes), but each of the last two bouts have been decided by the judges.
If Elkins wants to win on Saturday, he will have to finish the fight early and not allow the judges’ scorecards to play into the result. Even with his ability to take a punch and keep coming, Elkins will be in trouble against an elite striker like Martins.
Aldo is favored to win over Mendes again, and the champion will be looking for a new challenger if those predictions are correct. With Martins possibly stringing four wins together if he takes down Elkins, Dana White and UFC officials must consider the Brazilian as a championship contender.
The key for Elkins will be to bull rush his opponent and never give him the chance to land his heavy strikes. In the event that Elkins’s game plan fails, Martins will be right there to end this fight quickly and cement his spot as one of the top fighters in the division.
Predicted winner: Martins defeats Elkins via first-round TKO.
Stats via UFC.com.
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