5 potential winners at UFC 264 who can move on to bigger and better things
UFC 264 promises to be one of the biggest pay-per-view events of the year, with some huge fights littering the card from top to bottom. Many of these fights come at a pivotal time in these athletes' careers, and a win under such a spotlight could see their stock rise exponentially.
In the following list we will go over five fights where the winner could use such a victory to springboard into bigger and better things, be that breaking into the top ten or five, a number one contender shot or even a title fight. Honorable mentions go to Ryan Hall vs. Illia Topuria, Michel Perreira vs. Niko Price and Trevin Giles vs. Dricius Du Plessis.
#5 Omari Akhmedov vs. Brad Tavares - UFC middleweight
Two ranked middleweights clash in this early prelim brawl between Omari Akhmedov and Brad Tavares. This fight has been somewhat hidden at the bottom of the card, but it could well see the winner break into the top of the middleweight division.
Omari Akhmedov currently sits at 13th whilst Tavares is ranked at 15th. Both men are coming off impressive wins, with Akhmedov submitting Tom Breese in January whilst Tavares picked up a unanimous decision victory over Antonio Carlos Junior at UFC 257. Tavares has lost two of his last three fights, although they were both against elite opposition in Israel Adesanya and Edmen Shahbazayen.
A win here for either man would solidify their place as a top-ranked middleweight. Akhmedov has looked especially impressive as of late, with only one loss coming in his last eight appearances. His wrestling credentials could easily see him pick up wins over some of the top 10 UFC 180lbers considering the division's deficit in defensive wrestling.