Preview: UFC 258 Prelims

Morales goes down and @CGutierrezMMA earns the 10th TKO victory by leg kicks in UFC history #UFCVegas pic.twitter.com/MnxqIx3PxX

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) May 30, 2020

Catchweight

NR | Chris Gutierrez (15-4-2, 3-1-1 UFC) vs. NR | Andre Ewell (17-6, 4-2 UFC)

ODDS: Gutierrez -160, Ewell +140

This late addition to the card should be a solid fight at 140 pounds. Ewell kicked off his UFC career with a win over former bantamweight champion Renan Barao, but any good vibes from that result were quickly dashed after a one-sided loss to Nathaniel Wood. Both fights were a clear demonstration of Ewell’s strengths and weaknesses, which have held true since. Ewell’s lanky frame makes him an effective range striker, but things quickly go downhill otherwise, particularly if an opponent can take him to the mat. Ewell has still found some success, but it has mostly been through coming out on the right side of ugly split decisions, which could also happen here. Gutierrez had the bad luck of running into Raoni Barcelos in his UFC debut, but “El Guapo” has been undefeated since. In his first few UFC bouts, Gutierrez continued to use a neutralizing style built mostly on leg kicks to slow down his opponents, but to his credit, he has begun to apply more of a pressure game in his last few fights. Gutierrez is still riding a thin margin to victory—he nearly lost to Cody Durden thanks to some early wrestling struggles—but so is Ewell; and Gutierrez remains the much more well-rounded fighter. Ewell should have some success at range, particularly at first, but Gutierrez should settle into his usual groove of leg kicks and offensive wrestling to neutralize his counterpart. The pick is Gutierrez via decision.