Lightweights
Drew Dober (25-11, 11-7 UFC) vs. Bobby Green (29-13-1, 10-8-1 UFC)It took each of these fighters a while to get their UFC careers going, but they meet at the right time in what should be a barnburner. For a good while, it looked like Green’s UFC career would be absolutely cursed. A win over Josh Thomson in 2014 served as a bit of a breakout for the charismatic veteran, but his career eventually lost all of its momentum thanks to a morass of injury layoffs and controversial decision losses. However, he was one of a few fighters who managed to break through during the chaotic nature of the pandemic. His health cooperated enough that Green stepped in and fought as often as possible, and the judges finally started rewarding his counter-heavy style with some success on the scorecards. Since the return of fans, Green has separated himself enough as a crowd favorite to ride the most high-profile success of his career, even getting the late-notice call for a main event against Islam Makhachev in February. It did not go particularly well for Green, but the loss did not hurt his stock much. He is right back to prominent spots, including this potential war. Dober hung around the bottom of the roster and did not show much for his first two years in the UFC, but he finally put together a strong performance in a breakout win over Scott Holtzman in 2016, showing himself as an effective high-volume kickboxer. Dober was still fairly lost against any sort of high-level wrestler, but he earned a name as an exciting lightweight even before developing some knockout power to his game circa 2019. A lot of the same issues persist when it comes to facing stronger wrestlers or more technically adept strikers, but Dober is as reliable a gamer as there is on the UFC roster, particularly thanks to his seeming indestructibility. That should make this 15 minutes of non-stop action, even if this looks like a clear Green win on paper. He should be able to score some counters on the feet more than he gets caught, and he also has the potential change-up of pivoting to his wrestling when needed. The pick is Green via decision.
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Cannonier vs. Strickland
Tsarukyan vs. Ismagulov
Albazi vs. Costa
Erosa vs. Caceres
Dober vs. Green
Oleksiejczuk vs. Brundage
The Prelims