Featherweight
NR | Youssef Zalal (10-3, 3-1 UFC) vs. NR | Seung Woo Choi (8-3, 1-2 UFC)ODDS: Zalal (-255), Choi (+195)
Zalal’s 2020 slate ended on a down note, but it was still a breakout year for “The Moroccan Devil.” Zalal did not have particularly high expectations upon his UFC debut, as he was facing fellow newcomer Austin Lingo in a thrown-together fight and did not look particularly ready, even for that bout. However, the Lingo fight was where Zalal suddenly turned a corner, and he eventually wound up kickstarting his UFC career with a three-fight winning streak. The Factory X prospect was slated to face Choi in October in an attempt for his fourth win of the year, but the South Korean withdrew from the fight and was replaced by Ilia Topuria, who relied on his power and relentlessness to hand Zalal his first UFC loss. Now, things have circled back to the Zalal-Choi pairing, and this time, Zalal steps in on late notice to take the fight. The worry with Choi was that he would quickly be out of the promotion after two straight losses to start his UFC career, as the rangy striker did not get much done against the wrestling of Movsar Evloev and Gavin Tucker. Those losses look much better with hindsight, and Choi wound up impressing in his most recent bout, a one-sided win over Suman Mokhtarian in his home country. Despite the difference in relative hype for these two fighters, there is a solid chance that Choi can take this, given that he can match Zalal’s length and looks to be the more powerful hitter. However, Zalal has also shown a willingness to mix in takedowns when needed, and while he is nowhere near Evloev and Tucker’s level of wrestling, that is enough to serve as a tiebreaker in a fight that could go either way. The pick is Zalal via decision.
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