Light Heavyweights
Modestas Bukauskas (15-6, 3-4 UFC) vs. Marcin Prachnio (17-7, 4-5 UFC)Buy UFC 304 for a chance to win a VIP trip to UFC 310 in Las Vegas!
Bukauskas has seemingly found a foothold on the UFC roster, so now it’s time to wait and see if “The Baltic Gladiator” can put together a breakout performance. Bukauskas came to the UFC in 2020 with a lot of hype, owing to a highly successful regional career, but looked like the type of prospect that might struggle at the UFC level. His wins against better regional competition were rarely clean, with Bukauskas usually leveraging his size and durability to find a few big moments. Indeed, things quickly went south after a successful UFC debut. Bukauskas faced a solid level of competition but strung together three straight losses and suffered a major knee injury in the last of those against Khalil Rountree. After his recovery, Bukauskas won a few fights and quickly found his way back to the UFC early in 2023, and he has seemingly been helped by the lower expectations. Matched with the bottom half of the UFC’s light heavyweight roster, his ability to pump out striking volume has led to some consistent if unspectacular wins. A knockout loss to athletic prospect Vitor Petrino in November showed that Bukauskas might still hit a ceiling, but there’s enough there to suggest that, at age 30, Bukauskas might suddenly turn a corner through sheer experience. To that end, Prachnio is a solid veteran test. Prachnio has done well to bounce back from a particularly terrible start in the UFC. A dedicated striker, Prachnio’s first three UFC fights saw him cycle through a ton of different ideas, only to get knocked out each time. However, the Pole did eventually settle into a patient approach centered around pecking at his opponents from long distance. Opponents that stick to aggression and pressure can still usually blow through Prachnio’s defenses, but enough of the UFC’s light heavyweight roster is slow-footed enough that Prachnio can chip away to some wins. Bukauskas seems to be on the winning side of that equation, as while he might not be the quickest, he’s both rangy and willing to keep pouring out offense, so he should have some big moments even if the fight never moves above a simmer. The pick is Bukauskas via decision.
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Bukauskas vs. Prachnio