UFC 265: The Important & Underrated Fights to Watch

Read Time:4 Minute, 14 Second

UFC 265 comes to you live from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

The card will feature an interim heavyweight title fight between “The Black Beast” Derrick Lewis and rising star Ciryl Gane. In the co-headliner, Jose Aldo takes on Pedro Munhoz after Amanda Nunes was forced to pull out of her fight with Julianna Pena due to a positive COVID-19 test.

The card is full of great matchups that should excite fight fans. However, we decided to showcase the important and underrated matchups of the night.

See the five matchups you don’t want to miss below.

Important: Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane for the UFC Heavyweight Championship

Is there a fight more important than this one this week? In a weird move from the UFC just a few months after Francis Ngannou won the belt, Derrick Lewis (25-7) will take on Ciryl Gane (9-0) for the interim heavyweight championship. “The Black Beast” gets his second crack at the heavyweight strap after going 4-0 in his last four. He’s a fan favorite, so despite the behind the scenes drama, people are excited for another Derrick Lewis fight week.

As for his opponent, Ciryl Gane has had an impressive, yet fast rise to the top. Proving that he is extremely well rounded, and can go the distance if need be. It’s even crazier that he was signed at 3-0 and is now 9-0. Talk about a homegrown champion… You don’t see this happen very often, especially not in the UFC. But when you look at his resume and see he’s taking out names like Tanner Boser, Junior dos Santos, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, and Alexander Volkov, you know you can’t deny this man and what he brings to the division. In terms of betting on Lewis vs Gane, the undefeated Frenchman is a sizeable betting favorite at -335 on some sites. Meanwhile Lewis is aiming to prove he is the ultimate underdog and defeat the oddsmakers as a +260 underdog.

It’s going to be a good one, make sure you order your PPV.

Important: Vicente Luque vs. Michael Chiesa in a Welterweight Title Eliminator

This is a true title eliminator fight. Vicente Luque (20-7) is currently ranked #6 in the UFC’s welterweight division. He is riding a 3-fight win streak after finishing Tyron Woodley, Randy Brown, and Niko Price. Michael Chiesa (17-4) on the other hand is ranked #5 and has been looking great at welterweight.

A win here would likely put either fighter just one more win away from a title fight. The welterweight rankings are a steep climb, and a slip up would be costly.

Underrated: Tecia Torres vs. Angela Hill in a Highly Anticipated Rematch

The fight Angela Hill (13-9) has been asking for again finally happens on Saturday night. She meets Tecia Torres (12-5) in the octagon again years later. After their first outing, Hill was only three fights into her career. Regardless of the first outcome, Angela now has the chance to right that wrong on the main card of UFC 265.

Torres is coming off her first UFC stoppage since her time on The Ultimate Fighter. She outclassed newcomer Sam Hughes at UFC 256, hoping to do the same to Hill when they meet again in the octagon. Hill is coming off a win over Ashley Yoder after suffering two close split decision losses to Cláudia Gadelha and Michelle Waterson.

There’s some bad blood here, so don’t miss it because it’s going to be a fun one.

Important & Underrated: Yadong Song vs. Casey Kenney in a Winner Gets A Ranked Opponent Next Fight

The agency Casey Kenney (16-3-1) is signed to, tends to have access to certain opponents on a regular basis. Yadong Song (16-5-1) is one of those, who faces his sixth fighter signed to that agency. Regardless of the fact, the fight could potentially be a Fight of the Night contender.

It’s an important one for both men, as Song is looks to bounce back from his first UFC loss. Kenney on the other hand had his win streak strapped by the crafty veteran, Dominick Cruz. He too will look to bounce back in a big way come fight night.

Underrated: Manel Kape vs. Ode Osbourne in a Battle of Flyweight Prospects

What a banger of a matchup! Former RIZIN bantamweight champion Manel Kape (15-6) will take on the DWCS prospect Ode Osbourne (9-3) at flyweight. This fight is one that is on the prelims, but like Brawler Bible always says… WATCH THE PRELIMS. They rarely ever disappoint.

Though this is one of our underrated fights to watch, it’s also very critical for Kape who started his UFC stint 0-2. Ode on the other hand bounced back from his UFC debut loss to Brian Kelleher. This fight has a certified banger written all over it. With both of their fighting styles clashing on Saturday night, fight fans are in for a treat.

About Post Author

Connor Rogowsky

Connor "Rags" Rogowsky is a The Scrap's Co-Founder and a MMA writer during his free time. Rogowsky played football and track collegiately, and holds a Masters of Science in Psychology from Southern New Hampshire University.Make sure to follow Rags on Twitter (<a href="http://www.twitter.com/rogowskyc">@rogowskyc</a>).
Happy
Happy
0 %
Sad
Sad
0 %
Excited
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
Angry
0 %
Surprise
Surprise
0 %

About Post Author

Average Rating

5 Star
0%
4 Star
0%
3 Star
0%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%

Leave a Reply

Previous post 3, 2, 1: A week full of opportunities & bright prospects
Next post Five UFC fighters you should be following on Instagram