The UFC's optimistic comeback as the only game in town in professional sports in the country has come to life this week in the form of three fight cards over an eight-night span at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The return sprint that began with an eventful UFC 249 comes to a close with the UFC presenting its second Fight Night card in three days.
The third card, headlined by heavyweights Walt Harris and Alistair Overeem, takes place on Saturday night. While it doesn't have the same star power atop the card as its pay-per-view predecessor one week earlier, this Fight Night show still offers a number of interesting storylines throughout the card.
Let's take a closer look at three undercard bouts worth watching this weekend in Jacksonville.
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Claudia Gadelha (17-4) vs. Angela Hill (12-7): This women's strawweight co-main event has the potential to be the sleeper on this card, and not simply because of the 115-pound division's reputation for providing excitement. Both fighters have been seemingly reborn of late and enter an interesting crossroads duel that should send the winner closer to a title shot and the loser rethinking the future of their career.
Gadelha, the 31-year-old former title challenger from Brazil, felt like she had entered a turning point in her career following a 2018 loss to Nina Ansaroff. She took action by moving her camp to New Jersey under Mark Henry and reconstructing her wrestling-based style. Despite a work-in-progress win over Randa Markos last July, Gadelha still hasn't been able to showcase her full evolution because her January opponent, Alexa Grasso, missed weight and withdrew from UFC 246. Gadelha will face off against the 33-year-old division stalwart Hill, who has used the last year to prove she's much more than a journeywoman who trades wins and losses. Hill is riding an impressive three-fight win streak, including consecutive victories over a one-month span to open the year.
Dan Ige (13-2) vs. Edson Barboza (20-8): Riding a five-fight win streak, Ige just might be the best-kept secret at 145 pounds. So what's his reward to test out that theory? A matchup with the always dangerous -- and equally exciting -- Barboza, who is making a curious move down in weight. At 34, this is all about reinvention for the the Brazilian striker, who has lost four of five at lightweight. Yet Barboza only tends to lose to the upper elite, which offers Ige a challenge to prove he's exactly that on Saturday. A native of Hawaii, the 28-year-old Ige is fresh off edging Mirsad Bektic in February by split decision. To keep the momentum going, he'll need to avoid fighting Barboza on the veteran's own terms and rely on activity to keep those patented kicks at bay. It's a notion that's easier said than done. Expect fireworks.
Song Yadong (15-4-1, 1 NC) vs. Marlon Vera (15-5-1): The jostling amid the featherweight rankings will only continue with this featured bout pairing red-hot opponents looking to make a name for themselves. Yadong, a 22-year-old from China, is the latest prodigy to be mentored by Hall of Famer Urijah Faber at Team Alpha Male and very much looks like the goods. The exciting striker hasn't lost in eight fights and remains unbeaten since joining the UFC in 2017. Although he's fresh off a majority draw against Cody Stamann in December, Yadong was deducted a point for an illegal knee which kept him from winning. He'll face a truly unsung performer in Ecuador's Vera, who is riding a five-fight win streak and seems to have figured out at age 27 how to bring out the very best of himself. Vera's third-round knockout of Andrew Ewell last October earned him a Performance of the Night bonus.
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