UFC On ESPN 45 “Kara-France Vs. Albazi” + Weekly MMA Report
There was no UFC last week, but we saw amazing action and knockouts. The LFA 159 main event was a one-sided domination of Rodolfo Bellato, who easily defeated Acacio dos Santos via unanimous decision. Yet, the best stoppage was seen in the co-main event of the evening, when Ferreira destroyed Luiz with a flurry of ground-and-pound shots.
NASTY shots from Ferreira!
[ #LFA159 LIVE NOW on #UFCFIGHTPASS ] pic.twitter.com/6leHCizGSH
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) May 28, 2023
Road To UFC: Shanghai Highlights And Best Moments
We also enjoyed four Road To UFC: Shanghai last weekend. There were many high-level battles between prospects, and we’ll take a look at the highlights.
Shin Haraguchi destroyed Patilima with nasty GNP strikes in the second round. The most promising Thai mixed martial artist Peter Danesoe turned the lights out on Kai Xiong with a spectacular flying knee.
A prospect just emerged in the #RoadToUFC tournament!
🇯🇵 Shin Haraguchi remains unbeaten after bullying his way to the finish! pic.twitter.com/x1ICNY1G62
— UFC (@ufc) May 28, 2023
HUGE FLYING KNEE KNOCKOUT! 🤯
🇹🇭 PETER DANESOE TAKE A BOW, WOW! #RoadToUFC pic.twitter.com/XRmQqhK9uU
— UFC (@ufc) May 28, 2023
Sangwook Kim submitted Maruyama with a perfect D’Arce choke, while Sang Yoon Hoo destroyed the Swiss competitor Chris Hoffman with a nasty Muay Thai clinch knee. Plus Taiyilake Nueraji went Super Saiyan against Kim – face-plant KO for the victory!
The Frog Man showcasing some squeeze! 🐸
🇰🇷 Sangwook Kim locks up the D'arce choke to go marching on! #RoadToUFC pic.twitter.com/vVOlLf8LTd
— UFC (@ufc) May 28, 2023
TURNS THE TABLES! 😤
🇰🇷 Sang Hoon Yoo went airborne and lands a BRUTAL knee to finish! #RoadToUFC pic.twitter.com/aDS0UERwVd
— UFC (@ufc) May 28, 2023
WHAT A KNOCKOUT! 🤯
🇨🇳 Taiyilake Nueraji just went SUPER SAIYAN! #RoadToUFC pic.twitter.com/hbXCjanBVA
— UFC (@ufc) May 27, 2023
UFC On ESPN 45 Announcement
Overall, lovely weekend, but let’s focus on the upcoming UFC on ESPN 45 event right now. The New Zealand striker with tremendous takedown defense Kai-Kara France will square off against wrestling specialist Amir Albazi in the main event of the evening.
Image source: @UFCBrasil Twitter
Kai Kara-France defended all the takedown attempts against the best chain wrestler in the division, Askar Askarov. His right hand is very powerful, plus he moves like a cat. Yes, he suffered a loss to a division champion Brandon Moreno, but he is a very slick and quick puncher – a wrestler’s nightmare.
Amir Albazi likes to drag the fight to the ground and maul his opponents. Yes, we’ve seen improvements in his boxing game in his last fight, where he stopped Alessandro Costa via a barrage of punches. Yet, Kara-France is on a whole different level. One way or another, this fight will hardly last for 25 minutes.
Prediction: the fight will not go the distance
In the co-main event of the evening, a stand-up God and a master of tricky kicks, Alex Caceres, squares off against a submission and ground-and-pound specialist Daniel Pineda. Fresh off a head-kick KO against Julian Erosa, Caceres will be looking for another knockout win.
On the other hand, Pineda desperately needs to drag this fight to the ground if he wants to leave the cage with his hand raised. This is the clash of styles, somebody will get finished here.
Prediction: the fight will not go the distance
UFC On ESPN 45 Full Fight Card
Please take a look at the UFC on ESPN 45 full fight card – it looks pretty much solid on the piece of paper.
Main Card (UFC On Fight Pass, ESPN, 9 PM ET, 2 AM UK time)
Flyweight Main Event: Kai Kara-France (24-10-0) vs. Amir Albazi (16-1-0)
Featherweight: Alex Caceres (20-13-0) vs. Daniel Pineda (28-14-0)
Lightweight: Jim Miller (35-17-0) vs. Jared Gordon (19-6-0)
Flyweight: Tim Elliott (18-12-1) vs. Victor Altamirano (12-2-0)
Flyweight: Karine Silva (15-4-0) vs. Ketlen Souza (13-3-0)
Lightweight: Guram Kutateladze (12-3-0) vs. Jamie Mullarkey (16-5-0)
Preliminary Card (UFC On Fight Pass, ESPN+, 6 PM ET, 11 PM UK time)
Welterweight: Elizeu Zaleski (23-7-0) vs. Abubakar Nurmagomedov (17-3-1)
Bantamweight: John Castañeda (19-6-0) vs. Muin Gafurov (18-4-0)
Heavyweight: Andrei Arlovski (34-21-0) vs. Don’Tale Mayes (9-5-0)
Bantamweight: Daniel Santos (10-2-0) vs. Johnny Munoz Jr. (12-2-0)
Strawweight: Jinh Yu Frey (11-8-0) vs. Elise Reed (6-3-0)
Bantamweight: Luan Lacerda (12-2-0) vs. Da’Mon Blackshear (12-5-1)
Light heavyweight: Maxim Grishin (32-9-2) vs. Philipe Lins (16-5-0)
UFC On ESPN 45 Predictions
You can check my predictions for the upcoming card in the playlist below.
Please tune in on Saturday and enjoy another great night of fights. I smell many great knockouts and finishes in the upcoming UFC fight card!
