Baeza enters the cage on the heels of back-to-back losses. The MMA Masters product last competed at UFC Fight Night 197, where he succumbed to third-round punches from Kalinn Williams on Nov. 13. Fialho, meanwhile, finds himself on the rebound following a unanimous decision defeat to Michel Pereira in his Octagon debut at UFC 270 on Jan. 22. The setback snapped a four-fight winning streak for the Sanford MMA standout.
As Baeza and Fialho make their final preparations for what figures to be a shootout at 170 pounds, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied them to this point:
29: Years of age for Baeza, who was born on Aug. 23, 1992 in Davie, Florida.
7: Baeza victories by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 70% of his career total (10). His list of UFC victims: Matt Brown and Hector Aldana. Baeza owns one other victory by submission—he put away Takashi Sato with a second-round arm-triangle choke at UFC on ESPN 18 in 2020—and two more by decision.
81: Seconds needed for Baeza to punch out John McDonald in his Aug. 22, 2015 professional debut at Ring of Dreams 17. Having occurred six-plus years ago, it remains the fastest finish of his 12-fight career.
104: Significant strikes landed by Baeza in a unanimous decision loss to American Top Team’s Santiago Ponzinibbio at UFC Fight Night 189 on June 5, 2021. It established a new personal benchmark for the Floridian, nearly doubling his previous high.
.854: Cumulative winning percentage between the two men—Williams and Ponzinibbio—who have defeated Baeza. They boast a combined record of 41-7.
28: Years of age for Fialho, who was born in Cascais, Portugal, on April 7, 1994.
11: Fialho wins by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 79% of his career total (14). The Bellator MMA alum’s list of victims includes Stefan Sekulic, Sang Hoon Yoo and James Vick. Fialho holds one other win by submission—he dispatched Nuno Faria with a first-round rear-naked choke at an International Pro Combat show in 2014—and two more by decision.
3: Sub-minute finishes on the Fialho resume. He knocked out Alvaro Sanches in 53 seconds at IPC 6 on Jan. 26, 2015, wiped out Manuel Meraz with punches in 29 seconds at Bellator 150 on Feb. 26, 2016 and took care of the aforementioned Yoo with punches in 18 seconds at UAE Warriors 20 on June 19, 2021.
18: Rounds completed by Fialho as a professional mixed martial artist. He has gone the distance on four different occasions and carries a 2-2 record in those bouts.
85: Combined victories between the four men—Pereira, Antonio dos Santos Jr., Chris Curtis and Chidi Njokuani—who have beaten Fialho. They sport a cumulative .739 winning percentage (85-30).