5 things to watch out for at UFC Fight Night: Colby Covington vs. Joaquin Buckley
The UFC visits Tampa, Florida this weekend for a Fight Night event. This show will mark the final event of 2024.
UFC Fight Night: Colby Covington vs. Joaquin Buckley has some fun-sounding bouts on tap, so what can we expect this weekend? With any luck, the event will be just as fun as last weekend's pay-per-view, ensuring that the year ends on a high note.
Here are five things to watch out for at UFC Fight Night: Colby Covington vs. Joaquin Buckley.
#5. Is Adrian Yanez more than an action hero?
Arguably the most exciting-sounding fight on tap for this weekend's event is the bantamweight tilt between Adrian Yanez and Daniel Marcos.
The fight also sees Yanez at a crossroads of sorts. Not only is the 31-year-old Texan looking to pick up his second win in a row following his knockout of Vinicius Salvador in May, but he has more to prove than that.
Yanez was once considered one of the hottest prospects in the UFC at 135 pounds. He climbed into the bantamweight top 15 with five straight wins, including four by knockout.
However, when he tried to step up in competition, he was badly beaten by both Rob Font and Jonathan Martinez. Both fights exposed his style somewhat, suggesting that unless an opponent engages in a firefight with him, he's relatively easy to counter and shut down.
It's likely that, if Yanez plays that way, Marcos will engage in his kind of fight. In that sense, this ought to be a win for the Texan.
To really show progress, though, Yanez might need to show a more measured approach. That's the way he needs to go if he wants to climb back up the ladder.
There's nothing wrong with being an action hero in the UFC, of course - just ask the likes of Drew Dober and Niko Price, who've enjoyed lengthy careers with the promotion.
If Yanez wants to be more Robbie Lawler than Dober, though, he needs to change things up slightly. Seeing if he can do this is one of this weekend's more intriguing questions.
#4. Vitor Petrino needs to bounce back to be considered a prospect to watch
The UFC's light heavyweight division is relatively thin on top-level prospects right now. That's why fans were so interested in the rise of Vitor Petrino earlier this year.
'Icao' came into 2024 on the back of a three-fight win streak in the octagon, taking his overall record to 10-0. When he then got past veteran Tyson Pedro, it was easy to imagine him proceeding into title contention later in the year.
However, the Brazilian stumbled in his last fight, submitting to a guillotine choke from Anthony Smith just two minutes into the first round.
It's easy to put the loss down to a veteran making the most of a silly mistake - Petrino leaving his neck open for the choke - but if 'Icao' wants people to forget it, he needs to win impressively this weekend.
The Brazilian has a main card showcase against ageing kickboxer Dustin Jacoby, and if he really is a blue-chip prospect, it's a fight he ought to win handily.
If he can do that, then the hype train will be back on the rails. If he fails, though, it'll likely be derailed for good.
#3. Manel Kape will be hoping to jump the queue at 125 pounds
This past weekend saw Alexandre Pantoja defend his flyweight title successfully for the third time, choking out Kai Asakura in the headliner of UFC 310.
The UFC are likely to turn to Brandon Royval for the next shot at 'The Cannibal'. He's ranked No. 1 and has won his last two fights. However, Royval only lost to Pantoja a year ago, too.
Therefore, there's a chance that with a big win this weekend, Manel Kape could jump the queue into a title shot.
'Starboy', who faces Bruno Silva, is only ranked No. 9. Despite this, prior to his loss to Muhammad Mokaev in the summer, he was riding a four-fight win streak. He also holds a knockout win over Asakura.
As arguably the flashiest striker in the division, Kape already has a cult following of sorts. If he could unleash the kind of knockout power he used to dispatch Zhalgas Zhumagulov, for instance, then he'd have a lot of momentum going into 2025.
Perhaps it wouldn't be enough for him to leapfrog Royval, but stranger things have happened. At the worst, a big win over Silva could put him in line for a top contender's fight next year, making him a man to watch closely this weekend.
#2. Does Colby Covington have anything to offer to the UFC at this stage?
This weekend's main event will see the return of one of the UFC's most divisive fighters - former interim welterweight champion Colby Covington.
'Chaos' has not fought for a year now after losing to Leon Edwards in their title bout, and you have to go all the way back to March 2022 to find his most recent win.
In that sense, there's an argument that his current ranking of No. 6 is highly inflated, and that he doesn't belong in the top 15 at all.
At his peak - from 2017 through to his first title bout with Kamaru Usman in 2019 - Covington was undoubtedly a great fighter. While his brash persona earned him the ire of most fans, his insane cardio, excellent wrestling and volume striking allowed him to defeat top fighters like Robbie Lawler and Rafael dos Anjos.
Against Edwards, though, 'Chaos' looked far past his best. He was unable to push the heavy pace he'd once loved, and basically became a walking target for 'Rocky'.
A year later, then, does he have anything to offer? It's a very fair question.
On one hand, he's faced with a stylistically good opponent in Joaquin Buckley, and the fact that he agreed to take the fight on relatively late notice could bode well for his chances.
On the other hand, though, Covington looked so bad against Edwards that it's hard to see him rolling back the years here. 2019, after all, is now five years ago.
Quite how 'Chaos' looks, then, and whether he has any future at the top of the UFC's welterweight division is a huge question that needs to be answered this weekend.
#1. Can Joaquin Buckley's hot streak continue against a stylistically difficult opponent?
The rise of Joaquin Buckley has been one of the more unexpected things to happen in the UFC's welterweight division. It's also been good, though, in that it's added a dangerous new contender to the mix at 170 pounds.
Still mostly recognized for his viral spinning back kick knockout in 2020, 'New Mansa' looked like he'd probably go onto a career as an action fighter rather than a contender.
However, his drop to welterweight in 2023 changed things entirely. Buckley is now riding a five-fight win streak, and recently broke into the top ten by knocking out longtime contender Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson.
A win this weekend would be Buckley's fourth in 2024. Not only would it propel him into title contention, but it'd also mean he ought to be considered one of the best fighters of the year.
However, whether he can do it is debatable. 'New Mansa' is faced with Colby Covington, and while there are doubts over 'Chaos', at his best he'd be a stylistically difficult foe thanks to his wrestling abilities.
If Buckley's hot streak can continue, though, then he may well join the list of UFC fighters who became unexpected title contenders after changing weight classes.
To do that, he'll probably need to pick Covington apart from the outside - more carefully than he usually looks to do - while avoiding the takedown.
Either way, then, we'll find out whether 'New Mansa' is for real this weekend - making this the fight to keep a close eye on.