Preview: UFC on ESPN 47 ‘Vettori vs. Cannonier’

Lightweights

#8 LW | Arman Tsarukyan (19-3, 6-2 UFC) vs. Joaquim Silva (12-3, 5-3 UFC)

ODDS: Tsarukyan (-1050), Silva (+700)

This may not be the most scintillating matchup, but it is hard to complain about seeing Tsarukyan back in action. One look at Tsarukyan’s regional footage ahead of his UFC debut showed a fighter with championship-level upside—a forecast only helped by his hanging tough with Islam Makhachev in that first Octagon assignment in 2019. It still stands as one of Makhachev’s toughest wins to date. From there, the Armenian rebounded and stayed along a steady path as one of the best prospects in the sport, showing some improved striking to supplement a relentless wrestling game that few opponents could withstand. After obliterating Christos Giagos and Joel Alvarez, 2022 saw Tsarukyan earn the first main event slot of his UFC career against Mateusz Gamrot—an excellent fight that went against him in controversial fashion. Gamrot’s own aggressive wrestling game banked some control time but accomplished little else, but that was still enough for him to earn the win against Tsarukyan on the scorecards despite the latter proving himself as the more effective striker. At any rate, it figured to be a speed bump for what was still an elite talent, a point further driven home by Tsarukyan capping off the year with a one-sided win over fellow fringe contender Damir Ismagulov. Tsarukyan was initially slated for his second main event against Renato Carneiro in April until issues on the “Moicano” side scrapped those plans. A few other options fell by the wayside, and in a pairing that feels hastily thrown together, Silva steps up to the plate for a tough challenge. Despite his “Netto BJJ” nickname, Silva has mostly separated himself in the UFC as a knockout artist with a blitzing approach that can cut both ways. The Brazilian can annihilate the occasional opponent, such as Jesse Ronson in his most recent fight in October, but Silva’s own questionable chin has seen him eat the occasional knockout of his own. For a clear step back in level of competition, Silva still serves as a dangerous opponent. With that said, Tsarukyan does not tend to mess around much and should quickly be able to put Silva through the ringer. The pick is Tsarukyan via second-round stoppage.

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Vettori vs. Cannonier
Tsarukyan vs. Silva
Duncan vs. Petrosyan
Sabatini vs. Almeida
Torres vs. Motta
Salikhov vs. Dalby
The Prelims