Preview: UFC 243 ‘Whittaker vs. Adesanya’

Women’s Flyweights

Ji Yeon Kim (8-2-2, -170) vs. Nadia Kassem (5-1, +150): Kassem is an interesting prospect at just 23 years old, but she is going to need to develop quickly in order to stay afloat on the UFC roster. Kassem purely crushed cans on her way to the Octagon, so her promotional debut against Alex Chambers was also effectively her professional debut. On the plus side, Kassem managed to beat Chambers via pure aggression, but her follow-up effort against Montana De La Rosa basically showed that the Aussie has little else to offer. She can hunt for submissions somewhat effectively, but her limited athleticism even makes things difficult on the feet. She faces Korea’s Kim, who has had a middling tenure thus far. After losing a fun debut to Lucie Pudilova, Kim’s fights just have not been memorable against opponents who do not press the action. At the very least, Kassem is definitely going to force some fun exchanges, and hopefully, that brings Kim out of her shell. At any rate, provided that she can avoid getting caught in a submission, Kim should be able to physically handle things and outbox Kassem without much issue. The pick is Kim via decision.

Bantamweights

Khalid Taha (13-2, -250) vs. Bruno Silva (10-3-2, +210): A fun bantamweight banger kicks off festivities. Germany’s Taha has typically relied on his athleticism and power, so after a UFC debut up at featherweight went nowhere, it was nice to see him quickly return to 135 pounds, where he can leverage those physical gifts. He certainly did so in April, as he spoiled the debut of Boston Salmon with a 25-second knockout. For an encore, he will take on an “Ultimate Fighter Brazil” Season 4 vet in Silva, not to be confused with the former M-1 Global middleweight champion, who is also under UFC employ. Silva is a fine enough fighter and might be able to take advantage of Taha’s subpar wrestling defense. However, he seems more than willing to stand and trade with Taha, which probably will not go well. The pick is Taha via first-round knockout.