Preview: UFC on ESPN 61 ‘Tybura vs. Spivak 2’

Welterweights

Danny Barlow (8-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Nikolay Veretennikov (12-4, 0-0 UFC)

ODDS: Barlow (-355), Veretennikov (+280)

Barlow is one of the more interesting prospects in the UFC’s welterweight division at the moment, since he could cause some real problems once everything completely clicks. Barlow has a ton of physical talent, blessed with a combination of length and speed that has allowed him to dictate the terms of most of his fights thus far. For most of Barlow’s regional career, that resulted in a quick knockout, but his UFC debut did show that things could get a bit more tedious as he moves up the ladder. Faced with another patient power puncher in Josh Quinlan, the two kept their bout at a simmer until things eventually ramped up into a third-round knockout win for Barlow. The 29-year-old Barlow is still less than three years into his career as a professional, so for now, it’d be prudent to just wait for him to develop and hopefully add some depth to his game. To that end, this fight against a late replacement and UFC newcomer in Veretennikov is a solid next step.

Kazakhstan’s Veretennikov is a 2021 alum of the Contender Series and had the bad fortune of getting matched with Michael Morales, who won a fairly complete decision over him before establishing himself as one of the UFC’s brightest young prospects. That defeat is quite forgivable in retrospect, particularly since Veretennikov has rebounded well, looking dangerous but well-rounded in his three fights since returning to the regional scene. Veretennikov looks like a jack of all trades and master of none who might not stand out at the UFC level but should wind up as a perennial tough out. Here, he gets matched against another rangy top prospect who figures to consistently keep him at bay. It could take Barlow a while to get going, but the lean is that he breaks this fight open at some point. The pick is Barlow via second-round knockout.

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Tybura vs. Spivak
Gutierrez vs. Le
Barlow vs. Veretennikov
Mariscal vs. Jackson
Santos vs. Chandler
Grigoriou vs. Kazama
The Prelims