Light Heavyweights
John Allan Arte (13-5) vs. Mike Rodriguez (10-3)
Odds: N/A
This should be fun. Rodriguez's flying knee knockout of Jamelle Jones on the Contender Series was exactly the type of thing to get Dana White to sign him to a contract, but in his UFC debut proper against Devin Clark, Clark's wrestling made Rodriguez look like a one-dimensional striker. That might be Rodriguez's destination in the grand scheme of things, but at the very least he showed a bit of an offensive grappling game in his last fight, a one-sided win over Adam Milstead this past December. Rodriguez was initially slated to face Gian Villante in what should've been an entertaining-but-dumb striking match, but things thankfully won't change much with newcomer John Allan stepping in as Villante's replacement. Allan has a muay Thai base and initially shows somewhat of a patient striking style, but that all goes out the window in short order once him or his opponent decide to turn up the pace, as Allan just starts swinging wild hooks without much of a backup plan. He also can't grapple much; Vinicius Moreira got a contract on the Brazilian version of the Contender Series via a win over Allan, which about says it all. This is Rodriguez's fight to lose in every phase, but it should be an entertaining mess; the pick is Rodriguez via second-round knockout.
Featherweights
Andre Fili (19-6) vs. Sheymon Moraes (11-3)
Odds: Moraes (-135), Fili (+115)
This should be a great fight, but in a larger sense, it's some bizarre matchmaking. Fili came into the UFC as the latest-hyped prospect out of Team Alpha Male back in 2013, and it's been a rocky road since; Fili himself has had inconsistent performances, and in the process he's found himself beaten and lapped by talents like Max Holloway and Yair Rodriguez. But over time, Fili has managed to tamp down the wildness in his game, become a more effective range striker and supplemented that with some solid wrestling. Fili seemed to turn another corner in his last fight, a February win over Myles Jury; Fili kept a solid distance and refused to cede pressure, took one punch to land two and generally looked like a more fully realized fighter. So, his reward for all that on a hometown card is a fight against an underrated, tough fighter coming off of a loss. Sheymon Moraes has had an up-and-down career of his own, though a lot of that has been based off how promotions have handled him. World Series of Fighting rushed him into a bantamweight title fight against Marlon Moraes, and after Sheymon moved up to 145, the promotion kept him on a fairly infrequent schedule. After making his way to the UFC, Moraes was given an extremely tough debut fight against Zabit Magomedsharipov, but 2018 saw Moraes finally get some momentum with two wins before falling to Sodiq Yusuff in March. This is a hard fight to call; again, Fili's gotten better at setting a range, but still looks to trade, and the power Moraes throws behind each strike might make it hard for the American to win those exchanges. But, by the same token, that may allow Fili to set a pace that wears Moraes out late. The pick is for Moraes to hit harder enough times to win a decision, but this is probably the closest fight on the card.
Women's Bantamweights
Julianna Pena (8-3) vs. Nicco Montano (4-2)
Odds: Pena (-195), Montano (+155)
Like de Randamie in the main event, it's a shame that Montano will probably be best remembered somewhere between a footnote and a punchline rather than appreciated for what she is. The season of “TUF” that the UFC used to crown their first women's flyweight champion had a weak field, yet Montano coming out on top was still a surprise; she was seeded 14th on the season and was coming off a bantamweight loss to Julia Avila before everything clicked and she turned back all comers. There was some potential for the UFC marketing her as their first Native champ, but between Montano's lack of charisma and nagging injuries, there was instead a sense of trying to get the belt off of her as soon as possible, which eventually happened after she missed weight for a title defense against Valentina Shevchenko that was subsequently scrapped. Montano was also one of a few fighters given short-term suspensions due to tainted supplements, so after a year and a half off, Montano finally returns - now at bantamweight - to take on Pena. Pena's been out of action even longer, last fighting in January 2017 before taking some time off due to pregnancy. It's still hard to calibrate exactly how good Pena is; she's little more than a relentless wrestler and grappler, but that's been enough to make her a bantamweight contender, particularly against poor decision-makers like Cat Zingano and Jessica Eye. Pena eventually got tapped out by Shevchenko in a fight 30 months ago, and steps in here to replace Sara McMann on late notice. Montano's probably the better fighter in the aggregate, but this feels like one of those tilts where someone's physical advantages feel like cheating, as Pena should have enough size and strength to overwhelm and stifle Montano for 15 minutes with constant pressure. The pick is Pena via decision.
Featherweights
Darren Elkins (24-7) vs. Ryan Hall (7-1)
Odds: Hall (-125), Elkins (+105)
The UFC's seen leglock specialists before, but few approach MMA as game theory in the manner that Hall does. His fight against Gray Maynard was a perfect example; Hall was content to keep Maynard at bay with the longest kicks possible, and at the first sign of Maynard closing the distance, Hall would either try a crazy roll or just flop to his back, forcing Maynard to disengage through the sheer threat of his ground game. It's hard to know exactly how that's going to play against Elkins, who has made a living out of being the most persistent grinder in the featherweight division, wading through constant abuse to clinch up and blanket his opponents. And thanks to some refinement at Team Alpha Male over the last few years, Elkins has added enough of a striking game that he now sometimes hits his opponents as he, well, still wades through constant abuse. After reeling off a six-fight win streak, Elkins finally hit a wall against stronger wrestlers in Alexander Volkanovski and Ricardo Lamas, but Hall isn't that level as a pure wrestler, as dangerous as he is. It's hard to tell how Elkins's constant pressure will work against Hall; either it's enough to neutralize and control him, or Elkins will just charge headlong right into some sort of submission. The pick is Hall via second-round submission.
Bantamweights
Pingyuan Liu (13-5) vs. Jonathan Martinez (10-2)
Odds: Liu (-140), Martinez (+120)
The Chinese MMA scene is now firmly solid where it can provide UFC-level prospects, and Pingyuan Liu is among the latest wave. Liu fought a dreadful slate of competition before getting signed last year, but he's done well with the move up in difficulty, scoring two wins in as many bouts, narrow as they may have been. Liu has some basic skills and some solid physical gifts, but he's still very much a fighter who's learning how to react once his opponent offers up some resistance; his November fight against Martin Day in particular saw Liu struggle to regain momentum at times, enough so that most felt it was a Day win. Liu goes for win No. 3 against Jonathan Martinez, who's in somewhat of the same boat in trying to find his footing on the roster. Martinez has some solid submission skills, but he's traditionally used them as a defensive reaction rather than forcing his grappling game onto his opponents, though his February win over Wuliji Buren saw him get the better of a lot of exchanges. Both fighters are fairly formless in their approach, so this should be a bit of a mess, but the pick is Liu via decision, if for no other reason than that he seems like the more powerful athlete.
Women's Strawweights
Livinha Souza (13-1) vs. Brianna Van Buren (8-2)
Odds: Van Buren (-125), Souza (+105)
At this point, it's hard not to feel for Invicta Fighting Championships and their inability to keep any sort of title picture intact. This past May, the promotion held a one-night tournament to crown a new strawweight champion and Van Buren came out on top. So, naturally, it took all of about a month for the UFC to need an injury replacement for Cynthia Calvillo on this card and give Van Buren the call. Van Buren lives up to her "The Bull" nickname; at five-foot-nothing, she's an absolute fireplug and wastes no time looking to take down her opponents and control things from there. She'll have her hands full against fellow former Invicta champ Souza, however. Souza's been bubbling under the radar as a potential star for a while thanks to her charisma and infinite amounts of swagger, and inside the cage she mostly gets by on a strong BJJ game, supplementing that with striking that's completely reckless, but often aggressive enough to be effective. It's a hard one to call, since Van Buren could just be powerful enough to grind this one, but the pick is for Souza to stay active from bottom and cause enough damage on the feet to take a narrow decision.
Bantamweights
Benito Lopez (9-1) vs. Vince Morales (9-3)
Odds: Lopez (-145), Morales (+105)
The night starts off with a barnburner, as Lopez is quietly making a case as one of the most exciting fighters on the UFC roster. Lopez's approach to everything is essentially to punch his way through it, and his 2017 bout against Albert Morales was the type of war that would've given him a name years ago, but now gets crushed under the schedule of frequent events. A one-sided loss to Manny Bermudez in February showed that grappling may not entirely be Lopez's bag, but that may not matter here against Morales, who's looked solid in the two striking matches that have made up his UFC career. Morales isn't an overwhelming athlete, which hurt him against Yadong Song, but in general he's well-practiced and willing to stay consistent over 15 minutes. He'll probably be the more accurate fighter here, but without fight-ending power the pick is Lopez via decision, mostly since his aggression and willingness to throw volume makes for a round-winning style, whether or not those wins are deserved.