Middleweight
NR | Marc-Andre Barriault (11-4, 0-3 UFC) vs. NR | Abu Azaitar (14-2-1, 1-0 UFC)ODDS: Barriault (-130), Azaitar (+110)
While his brother rightfully gets all the headlines—both as a prospect and for nearly getting cut due to a violation of COVID-19 protocols—Azaitar is back after nearly three years away to try and make an impact at middleweight. Azaitar’s style is not particularly slick, but it has been surprisingly effective. He is willing to overextend himself at range to snipe at his opponents with powerful strikes and has an aggressive if sloppy wrestling and grappling game. The whole package does not seem like it should work, but it is a testament to Azaitar’s athleticism and confidence that he has managed to rack up a decent slate of wins over the last decade. After dealing with injuries and a USADA suspension, Azaitar returns to face Canada’s Barriault, who also returns from USADA issues. Barriault has made his hay with a fairly straight-ahead brawling style that has resulted in some close fights, both prior to and inside the UFC. While “Power Bar” usually finds moments where he can overwhelm his opponents, he is just as likely to eat their offense in return. After opening his UFC career with three straight losses, Barriault looked to have stopped his slide with win over Oskar Piechota in June, only to have that result turned to a no contest due to an unintentional use of ostarine. At any rate, this figures to be an entertaining mess of a fight that will probably wind up as a narrow decision one way or the other. Neither man inspires much confidence, but Azaitar does seem to have a bit more evasiveness and power. The pick is Azaitar via decision.