Paul Craig has been more of a curiosity than a contender to this point in his Ultimate Fighting Championship career. That perception could soon change.
The Allen-Craig showdown and its inevitable fallout in the middleweight division is but one story to watch at UFC Fight Night 232. Here are four more:
A Star on the Rise
The burgeoning Latin American scene has proven to be fertile ground for mixed martial arts, and the UFC appears to have mined another potential gem in Michael Morales. The undefeated Ecuadorian puts his perfect 15-0 record on the line against Jake Matthews in a compelling welterweight co-main event that figures to serve as his sternest test to date. Morales springboarded into the UFC off Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021, then proceeded to rattle off wins over Trevin Giles, Adam Fugitt and Max Griffin. He steps back into view as the youngest fighter on the card, having turned 23 in June. A mainstay of the UFC roster since 2014, Matthews has won eight of his past 11 bouts. The 29-year-old Australian last competed at UFC 291, where he took care of Darrius Flowers with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their July 29 altercation. Can Morales climb another rung on the welterweight ladder, or will Matthews stand in the way of progress?
Graduation Day
Of all the graduates from Season 7 of Dana White’s Contender Series, Payton Talbott may spur the most intrigue. The unbeaten 25-year-old makes his promotional debut opposite Nick Aguirre in a three-round welterweight showcase that figures to determine the course of his immediate future at 170 pounds. Still green but undeniably talented, Talbott punched his ticket to the UFC with a unanimous decision over Reyes Cortez Jr. on Week 1 of DWCS in August. He had finished his five previous opponents, three of them in Urijah Faber’s A1 Combat organization. Aguirre draws the assignment as a prohibitive favorite. The Valle Flow Striking Academy export set foot in the Octagon for the first time in January, only to lose a unanimous decision to Dan Argueta at UFC Fight Night 217. Will Talbott prove himself fit for primetime, or does Aguirre spoil the party?
Friendly Fire
After a three-fight detour at 125 pounds, Amanda Ribas returns to the women’s strawweight division to face the surging countrywoman Luana Pinheiro in a featured attraction. Ribas started her UFC run with four straight victories and emerged as one of the company’s stars on the rise, her bubbly charisma marrying beautifully with the violent abilities she brought the cage. However, the former Jungle Fight champion has alternated wins and losses in each of her past four outings, leaving some to wonder whether or not they jumped the gun on her as a title contender in the making. Ribas approaches her latest hurdle in search of momentum, having succumbed to punches and elbows from Maycee Barber at UFC on ABC 5 in June. Based at the famed Nova Uniao camp, Pinheiro carries a nine-fight winning streak that now spans six-plus years. The 30-year-old Brazilian improved to 3-0 in the UFC with a split decision over ex-Invicta Fighting Championships titleholder Michelle Waterson-Gomez on April 8. Which strawweight will bolster her stock?
No More Training Wheels
Yet another Nova Uniao prospect appears poised to burst on the scene. Rafael Estevam, he of an unblemished 11-0 record, makes his Octagon debut against former LFA champion Charles Johnson in a three-round flyweight prelim that buoys a hefty undercard. Estevam, an ex-Shooto Brazil titleholder, made his way onto the UFC roster via Dana White’s Contender Series in September, when he wrecked Joao Elias with second-round punches. It was the 27-year-old Brazilian’s third finish in four appearances. Johnson, 32, answers his latest call to arms in dire need of a victory, as back-to-back losses to Ode Osbourne and Cody Durden have him spiraling toward uncertainty. Can he avoid becoming a steppingstone for the ambitious newcomer?