Preview: UFC 292 Prelims

UFC 292 took some late hits, but a surprisingly strong seven-bout undercard remains in place for the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday at TD Garden in Boston. The featured spot comes with a plenty of intrigue attached, as Chris Weidman makes his long-awaited return from injury to take on Brad Tavares in a winnable assignment for each man. Further down the lineup are the finals for Season 31 of “The Ultimate Fighter”—two fights between Octagon veterans that are quite compelling—and a pair of middleweight affairs that should provide some entertaining action. Add in two important battles at women’s flyweight to open up the show, and the UFC’s return to Beantown should provide enjoyment from top to bottom.

Now to the preview for the UFC 292 “Sterling vs. O’Malley” prelims:

Middleweights

Brad Tavares (19-8, 14-8 UFC) vs. Chris Weidman (15-6, 11-6 UFC)

ODDS: Tavares (-270), Weidman (+220)

Weidman returns nearly two and a half years after horrifically breaking his leg at UFC 261, and it will be interesting to see exactly where the former middleweight champion fits. It was a strangely full-circle moment from seven and a half years prior, when Weidman was on the other side of one of the most infamous injuries in mixed martial arts history, as his first title defense ended when Anderson Silva similarly broke his leg on a checked kick. Looking back, Weidman’s title reign never gained much momentum, even though the Long Islander had the honor of taking the title from the seemingly unbeatable Silva. “The Spider” was showboating when Weidman knocked him out. When combined with the leg injury ending the immediate rematch, Weidman never truly got the visually clear finish that would have given him a boost in star power. Past that, Weidman’s reign was more notable for his long injury layoffs than anything else before he lost the belt to Luke Rockhold in December 2015, which feels like the end of an era given each man’s lack of subsequent success. After the Rockhold loss, Weidman’s career started to spiral in a particularly frustrating fashion, as many of his losses saw him start off well against his fellow contenders, only to suffer a late finish. After a run of five losses in six fights, a 2020 decision victory over Omari Akhmedov that saw Weidman fight through exhaustion was a cathartic instance of the “All-American” finally getting a win over the finish line. However, Weidman’s momentum was gone in an instant eight months later, when he broke his leg 17 seconds into his fight with Uriah Hall—on a checked kick, just like Silva did. He has undergone multiple surgeries ahead of this comeback fight against Tavares.

Tavares’ current two-fight losing streak is a bit concerning, but the Hawaiian continues chugging along as he mostly has for the last 13 years—a time during which he has been one of the UFC’s most consistent fighters. Tavares is technically sound and unspectacular to a fault, able to hold his own anywhere while rarely finding a finish. Though there are some worries the game is passing him by, his last two losses are fairly in line with the rest of his career. What looked like a winnable fight in 2022 against Dricus Du Plessis looks like a much harder challenge 13 months later, and Bruno Silva is the type of aggressive knockout artist that has always brought out the worst in the Hawaiian. Tavares is usually able to plug his way to a decision win given any sort of athletic parity, and this looks like that type of fight despite some concerns. Weidman figures to come in aggressive but was not looking particularly hot as a striker before this layoff, and outwrestling Tavares has surprisingly never been much of a path to success despite some solid opposition. Plus, Weidman’s cardio was already a major concern years ago. While Weidman might be able to acquit himself well, in general, Tavares should take this over as it drags on. The pick is Tavares via decision.

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Tavares vs. Weidman
Rodrigues vs. Tiuliulin
Hubbard vs. Holobaugh
Katona vs. Gibson
Petroski vs. Meerschaert
Silva vs. Lee
Silva vs. Moroz