Preview: UFC Fight Night 212 Prelims

Flyweights

Tatsuro Taira (11-0) vs. C.J. Vergara (10-3-1)

ODDS: Taira (-240), Vergara (+200)

The UFC finally seems more invested in picking up some young Japanese talent, and the hope is that Tatsuro Taira can lead that charge. Just 22 years old, Taira was signed by the UFC earlier this year and looked solid in his debut this past May, taking a clear decision win over Carlos Candelario. Taira mostly held true to form as an accurate but patient striker with some impressive skills on the mat - he didn't quite show out with the type of quick submission win that could've put the division on notice, but three rounds of good work is a promising start for a prospect that still has a lot of development time ahead of him. Things might get tricky for Taira quickly, however, as C.J. Vergara is a potentially tough challenge that's looking to score his second straight upset. Vergara was a fun scrapper on the regional scene that didn't figure to be a particularly strong prospect for the UFC; Vergara mostly found his success through durability and aggression to win wars of attrition, which figured to turn into losing efforts against better and harder-hitting athletes. That made Vergara's 41-second knockout win over Bruno Korea on the Contender Series last year particularly impressive, though a subsequent loss to Ode Osbourne in his UFC debut dulled some of that momentum; Vergara put up a game effort, but did in fact look overmatched in terms of speed and athleticism. But thankfully, Vergara did show a lot of things in a May win over Kleydson Rodrigues that could serve as a template for a victory here; faced with a better athlete that fights behind a low-output approach and bursts of offense, Vergara did well to constantly take the initiative and wear Rodrigues out to walk away with the decision. If Taira can't establish a clear wrestling and grappling advantage, it's easy to envision Vergara upsetting the apple cart again through pace and volume against an opponent that prefers to pick his spots; but Vergara's win over Rodrigues was a bit controversial to begin with, and the bet is that Taira can bank enough control and get close to enough finishes to take this - if he doesn't just score a submission outright. The pick is Taira via decision.

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Rodriguez vs. Hughes
Taira vs. Vergara
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