Bantamweights
John Castaneda (19-5, 2-1 UFC) vs. Daniel Gustavo Santos (8-2, 0-1 UFC)The bantamweight division is already an embarrassment of riches, but Castaneda could break through and add himself to the list of interesting talents at 135 pounds. After failing to earn a contract with a win on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2017, Castaneda eventually found his way to the UFC three years later as a late replacement. At that point, “Sexi Mexi” looked like a fighter destined to be stuck on the UFC fringes. On the regional scene, Castaneda had the requisite level of wrestling and grappling to switch things up and score some wins, but he did not appear to have one particular skill on which to hang his hat against better competition. A tough debut against Nathaniel Wood seemed to drive that point home, but Castaneda has strung together two impressive wins since, knocking out Eddie Wineland and handily beating Miles Johns on his way to a third-round submission. Castaneda looks to make it three straight victories against Brazil’s Santos, who is coming off a fun loss in his UFC debut in April. An experienced veteran still on the right side of 30, Santos has a fairly straight-ahead approach built around marching down his opponents and throwing power, often in the form of a spinning strike. Julio Arce was able to outmaneuver the “Willycat” over three rounds, but Castaneda’s scrappier style may make that proposition a bit more difficult, particularly since Santos does not seem to get discouraged by a lack of success. This should be a nip-tuck affair, but the thinking is that Castaneda can still mix things up enough to come out on the right end of things. The pick is Castaneda via decision.
Jump To »
Dern vs. Yan
Brown vs. Trinaldo
Barcelos vs. Jones
Yusuff vs. Shainis
Castaneda vs. Santos
Davis vs. Borshchev
The Prelims