Preview: UFC Fight Night 196 ‘Costa vs. Vettori’

Lightweights

NR | Grant Dawson (17-1, 5-0 UFC) vs. NR | Ricky Glenn (22-6-1, 4-3 UFC)

ODDS: Dawson (-365), Glenn (+305)

Dawson is an interesting prospect, particularly as he attempts to keep the level of his skills ahead of his increasingly tougher matchmaking. After a long wait to start his UFC career—the delay was due to the same “pulsing” issue that affected Jon Jones—Dawson started off as a fairly one-dimensional wrestler. To his credit, Dawson was quite effective in that dimension, overwhelming his opponents with pace and finishing ability. However, there was very much the feeling that things could go south if he was ever pushed out of his comfort zone. After some issues on the scale at 145 pounds, Dawson is now a full-time lightweight, and his March bout against Leonardo Santos resulted in an impressive performance against his first real test. While his striking defense is still quite exploitable, Dawson showed a much better command of picking his spots against his toughest opponent yet, scoring a finish at the last possible moment. Glenn is the perfect next step up, as “The Gladiator” has made his hay in the type of grimy fights into which Dawson tends to drag his opponents. Glenn was a well-tested veteran by the time he got the late-notice call from the UFC in 2016, and he spent the next two and a half years traveling an expected path, wading through his opponent’s offense to try and win an ugly fight. Sometimes it works and sometimes it fails, given Glenn’s lack of high-level athleticism. Still, it is a sure bet that Glenn is going to give his opponent the toughest fight possible. Glenn spent about three and a half years on the shelf after a 2018 loss to Kevin Aguilar, but his June return went about as well as possible, as he quickly clipped Joaquim Silva and scored a knockout in just 37 seconds. There is a real chance that Glenn is finally where Dawson hits his ceiling for the time being; he is a surprisingly stout wrestler, and Dawson’s defensive holes are begging to be exploited by an experienced veteran. With that said, Dawson is also rapidly improving, and there are still some questions about how Glenn fares up a weight class at 155 pounds—a change that started with the win over Silva. The pick is Dawson via decision.

Continue Reading » Clark vs. Edwards