Breakdown: UFC: 256

 Breakdown: UFC: 256

Figueiredo vs Moreno: 125 lb Title

Figueiredo(-335), MMA Record: 20-1, UFC, Record: 9-1, Age: 32, Height: 5'5, Reach: 68 Inches, Stance: Orthodox, Current Streak: Five Wins:

Deiveson Figueirdo makes a quick turnaround to defend his belt again, less than a month after doing so at UFC 255. He brings one of the most well rounded and dangerous games to the cage. He has cannons in each hand and can slap on a tight submission at almost any moment. Right now, I do not know what the game plan would be to beat him. Some people have suggested to do what Jussier Formiga did in Figueiredo only loss of his career but that was six fights ago and he is a completely different fighter at this point. A win this weekend would cement his status as the Flyweight king and possibly the fighter of the year in this crazy year of 2020. Grades: Striking= 9.25/10, Grappling/Ground Game: 9.25/10 

*IMPORTANT STATS: 63% Takedown Defense, 3 Submission Attempts per 15 Minutes, 55% Striking Accuracy, 52% Striking Defense

NOTABLE WINS: Alex Perez(SUB), Joseph Benavidez(SUB, TKO), Tim Elliot(SUB), Alexandre Pantoja(UD)

Moneno(+265), MMA Record: 18-5-1, UFC Record: 6-2-1, Age: 27, Height: 5'7, Reach: 70 Inches, Stance: Orthodox, Current Streak: Four Wins:

Brandon Moreno looks to be the first Mexican-born UFC champion this Saturday. Since leaving and coming back to the UFC in just over a year, Moreno has looked like a more complete fighter, and not just a ground game specialist. His striking has come leaps and bounds since his UFC debut in 2016, but his path of least resistance though, is still to get the fight on the ground and work to get another submission, which he has ten in his career. At only 27 years old, I do not see this being the only time these two fight and if Figueiredo can keep the belt for a couple of years, I see this match up being one of the classic match ups at Flyweight. Grades: Striking: 8.75/10, Grappling/Ground Game: 9/10

IMPORTANT STATS: 1.93 Takedowns per 15 Minutes, 63% Striking Defense, 0.8 Submission Attempts per 15 Minutes, 3.01 Sig. Strikes Landed per Minute

NOTABLE WINS: Brandon Royval(TKO), Jussier Formigo(UD), Kai Kara-France(UD), Dustin Ortiz(SUB), Louis Smolka(SUB)

Ferguson vs Oliveira: 155 lbs

Ferguson(-175), MMA Record: 25-4, UFC Record: 15-2, Age: 36, Height: 5'11, Reach: 76 Inches, Stance: Orthodox, Current Streak: One Loss:

Tony Ferguson looks to bounce back from his first loss in eight years at UFC 249. One thing that is for sure is that Tony will always bring the heat and his opponents better be ready for it. Comfortable in whatever direction this fights goes in, Tony can finish this fight in almost any way imaginable. Striking is his easiest path to victory in this match up. He has a funky style that can give his opponents fits trying to time him up and find openings. Ferguson has the third most significant strikes landed in Lightweight history with 1,051 strikes. My one big concern is that he is getting long in the tooth at 36 years old and he does have a lot MMA miles on him at this point in his career. A win this Saturday is crucial if he wants to get back to the top of the Lightweight division and capture that title. Grades: Striking: 9/10, Grappling/Ground Game: 9/10

IMPORTANT STATS: 75% Takedown Defense, 5.8 Sig. Strikes Landed per Minute, 4.04 Sig. Strikes Absorbed per Minute, 1.2 Submissions per 15 Minutes

NOTABLE WINS: Donald Cerrone(TKO), Anthony Pettis(TKO), Kevin Lee(SUB), Rafael dos Anjos(UD), Lando Vannata(SUB), Edson Barboza(SUB), Josh Thomson(UD), Gleison Tibau(SUB), Abel Trujillo(SUB), Yves Edwards(UD)

Oliveira(+145), MMA Record: 29-8 1NC, UFC Record: 17-8 1NC, Age: 31, Height: 5'10, Reach: 74 Inches, Stance: Orthodox. Current Streak: Seven Wins:

Charles Oliveira looks to get the biggest win of his career in the co-main event of the evening this Saturday. He is currently on a seven fight win streak, which is the fifth longest in UFC Lightweight division history. He famously has the most submission wins in the UFC, with 14 of them and is second all time in performance bonuses won, with 16 of them. Formally a one trick pony that looked lost on the feet early on in his UFC career, his striking has improved greatly and is now a threat in both aspects of the sport. If you would have told me four to five years ago when Oliveira had lost four of his last six fights and was struggling to make the Featherweight limit, that he would be one fight away from a title shot at 155 lbs, I would have told you that you were a crazy person but that is why we love the fight game. Grades: Striking: 8.75/10, Grappling/Ground Game: 9.5/10  

IMPORTANT STATS: 42% Takedown Accuracy, 2.8 Submission Attempts per 15 Minutes, 3.27 Sig. Strikes Landed per Minute, 2.61 Takedown Landed per 15 Minutes

NOTABLE WINS: Kevin Lee(SUB), Jared Gordon(KO), Nik Lentz(TKO,SUB), David Teymur(SUB), Jim Miller(SUB), Clay Guida(SUB), Will Brooks(SUB), Myles Jury(SUB), Jeremy Stephens(UD), Darren Elkins(SUB)

JDS vs Gane: Heavyweight 

JDS(+335), MMA Record: 21-8, UFC Record: 15-7, Age: 36, Height: 6'4, Reach: 77 Inches, Stance: Orthodox, Current Streak: Three Losses:

Junior dos Santos will look to snap the longest losing streak of his career in the main card opener this weekend. One of my earliest MMA memories was the first card on FOX where JDS knocked out Cain Velasquez in about a minute into the first round to win the Heavyweight belt. That was nine years ago and JDS has looked like a shell of what we saw that night. While he has not been bad enough to where I would be calling for him to retire, he just looks like his chin has flown away and he can not eat the shots that he use to eat. He is still a threat on the feet and can knock anybody out with one punch. If JDS does want to make one more run at the title, he will need to leave the octagon with his hand getting raised this Saturday. Grades: Striking= 9/10, Grappling/Ground Game: 8.5/10

IMPORTANT STATS: 81% Takedown Defense, 4.59 Sig. Strikes Landed per Minute, 48% Striking Accuracy, 3.19 Sig. Strikes Absorbed per Minute

NOTABLE WINS: Derrick Lewis(TKO), Tai Tuivasa(TKO), Blagoy Ivanov(UD), Ben Rothwell(UD), Stipe Miocic(UD), Mark Hunt(KO), Frank Mir(TKO), Cain Velasquez(TKO), Shane Carwin(UD), Roy Nelson(UD), Gabriel Gonzaga(TKO), Cro Cop(TKO), Stefan Struve(TKO), Fabricio Werdum(TKO)

Gane(-435), MMA Record: 6-0, UFC Record: 3-0, Age: 30, Height: 6'4, Reach: 81 Inches, Stance: Orthodox, Current Streak: Six Wins:

Ciryl Gane is one of the brightest prospects the Heavyweight division has seen in a long time. The only undefeated fighter on the card this weekend, Gane will be taking a huge step up in competition with this match up. It is warranted with the fact that he has outclassed every opponent he has faced thus far in his UFC career. A big strong fighter that has been proven to finish the fight where every it goes, Gane will look to use his 81 inch reach and keep his opponent on his outside. He is also a lot quicker than he looks and gets in and out of punching range very well. A win this Saturday would be the biggest of his career and put him on the fast track to the top of the Heavyweight division. Grades: Striking: 8.75/10, Grappling/Ground Game: 9/10

IMPORTANT STATS: 60% Takedown Accuracy, 1.32 Takedowns per 15 Minutes, 5.12 Sig. Strikes Landed per Minute, 73% Striking Defense

NOTABLE WINS: Tanner Boser(UD), Don'Tale Mayes(SUB), Raphael Pessoa(SUB)

Under The Radar Fights:

Renato Moicano(+135) vs Rafael Fiziel(-160): Lightweight

Kevin Holland(-135) vs Ronaldo Souza(+110): Middleweight

Cub Swanson(+130) vs Daniel Pineda(-150): Featherweight

Mackenzie Dern(-185) vs Virna Jandiroba(+155): Strawweight

Billy Quarantillo(-130) vs Gavin Tucker(+105): Featherweight

* All stats are from http://ufcstats.com/event-details/d0d43cb9b14f231c