UFC Fight Night 27 comes to you from Indianapolis, Indiana this Wednesday. Headlining the card will be a welterweight rematch between Carlos Condit and Martin Kampmann. The event features 12 bouts in total, and plenty at stake.
There was a 13th bout scheduled, but Sara McMann withdrew from her fight against Sarah Kaufman for undisclosed personal reasons. The potential #1 contender’s bout is now off, and Kaufman will fight UFC newcomer Jessica Eye at UFC 166.
Let’s get to what’s at stake for the 12 scheduled fights.
Bantamweight
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Erik Perez
Takeya Mizugaki was a one-time title contender in the WEC, but has yet to recapture that sort of success in the UFC. However, he is on a two-fight winning streak, and he will meet Erik Perez, who is on a sizable win
streak himself.
This
is a chance for the winner to move up towards the Top 10 of the UFC’s divisional rankings. They most likely won’t crack them, but they will draw very close to that distinction. With the title picture very cloudy right now, this is a great chance to make a statement in the 135-pound division.
Featherweight
These are two top-10-caliber featherweights who are trying to make that case on Wednesday.
Darren Elkins had his five-fight win streak stopped by top contender Chad Mendes, and Hioki is coming off a questionable decision loss to Clay Guida. This fight is one of the best fights not being talked about, as these two featherweights can compete against anyone in the division.
The winner will most likely earn a Top 10 opponent in his next outing. That is a big bonus for the winner, who will try to re-enter the title scene.
Lightweight
Roger Bowling vs. Abel Trujillo
Bowling is on a two-fight losing streak, and Trujillo is 1-1 in the UFC. Neither man can afford another loss. It is entirely possible this is a “Loser Leaves Town” type of lightweight matchup.
Their careers may be what’s at stake, and if not that extreme, they still can’t afford to suffer another loss in the lightweight division.
Donald Cerrone vs. Rafael dos Anjos
This is the co-main event of the card, and the two Top 10 UFC lightweights will be battling to get into title contention.
Dos Anjos comes in at #10, and Cerrone is ranked #6 in the division. The winner won’t go immediately into title contention, but he will end up in a spot to challenge another contender for a title shot. Both men are very close to their career goal.
This fight is also a chance for them to make a statement. A convincing victory will pull more supporters behind the winner, as they both are trying to make their cases for big lightweight fights. With other fighters ahead of them in the UFC’s rankings, they need to have an exciting fight.
Welterweight
Cummings will make his UFC debut after being on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen, but neither Alloway nor Cummings have any leeway in this fight. A loss would be devastating. This is probably a fight to determine their UFC futures.
Both Head and High are coming off losses to welterweights just outside of the top 10. Head was stopped by Mike Pyle in December at the TUF 16 Finale, and High was submitted by rising star Erick Silva in June at UFC on Fuel TV 10.
These are two talented welterweights who are trying to get to the next level, but who also could find themselves cut with another loss. They are in unenviable positions. The welterweight division is absolutely stacked with talent, and two straight losses would put their futures in jeopardy.
For either man, being cut would be unfortunate, as they are strong competitors in a tough division. Head is 2-2 in the UFC, and High is 0-2. This is an underrated fight, one which will move the winner back in to the mid-level of the UFC’s most elite division.
Justin Edwards vs. Brandon Thatch
Thatch will make his organizational debut against Justin Edwards (2-2 in the UFC). Edwards impressed with a submission over Josh Neer in his last outing, but still hasn’t established himself in the UFC.
I am not entirely sure why this fight is ahead of Head vs. High, but these two welterweights are lower on the rung. This fight isn’t going to draw much interest, but a loss shouldn’t send either outside of the organization. What’s at stake? Their winning streaks. That’s all. Neither will advance far up the card with a win.
Court McGee vs. Robert Whittaker
A battle of mid-tier welterweights coming off of wins. What’s at stake? Keeping their momentum. They have a lot of work to do in the division on their way up, and keeping that momentum is the biggest concern at this point.
Kelvin Gastelum vs. Brian Melancon
The Ultimate Fighter Season 17 winner drops to welterweight to take on the heavy-handed Melancon in a battle of 1-0 UFC fighters.
Gastelum is undefeated at 6-0, and Melancon sits at a 7-2 career record.
Both were impressive in their UFC debuts, and with that behind them, there is a bit of a brighter sky ahead. Neither would shoot up the rankings with a win, but they would have more support for bigger fights. If Gastelum can impress again, he has much more to gain with a win.
Middleweight
This middleweight bout will cap off the preliminary action on Fox Sports 2.
Andrews and Abedi are both coming off wins, and both look to leave another good impression on UFC fans. As this will be on Fox Sports 2, there won’t be a lot of eyes on the fight, and that should take the pressure off.
This fight is all about each fighter continuing to develop. They aren’t in any position to make big moves, but they need to show the UFC brass that they are adding to their respective games. This fight is all about showing growth as fighters.
Brad Tavares vs. Robert McDaniel
Bubba McDaniel is coming off a good UFC debut after a poor showing on The Ultimate Fighter, but he is running up against one of the UFC’s young guns in Tavares.
This looks like a showcase bout for Tavares, who has won three straight decisions over tough fighters. It looks like a step back for him, but it’s a chance to look exceptionally well to the crowd. McDaniel, however, has a chance to steal his thunder.
Tavares has more at stake. A win will probably move him up the ladder enough to challenge a top-10-level fighter, but a loss will expose him as just another mid-level middleweight. McDaniel, though, has everything to gain, and nothing to lose.
Main Event – Welterweight
Carlos Condit vs. Martin Kampmann
The main event is a rematch of Condit’s UFC debut, where he dropped a contentious split decision to Kampmann.
Now, both welterweights are coming off losses to elite level competition. Kampmann was finished by Johny Hendricks at UFC 154, while Condit has lost two hard-fought decisions, to Hendricks and Georges St.-Pierre. They are currently ranked #6 and #2 respectively in the UFC’s welterweight Top 10.
A title shot is not in the balance due to their recent losses, but a win would put one right back in the catbird’s seat for a contender’s fight. That is massive. High stakes are in play in this important bout.
Condit has shown remarkable improvement since that first fight, but Kampmann has all the tools to make it a difficult night for Condit. This fight is a great way to cap off the night, as both fighters have a propensity for exciting fights. This is everything a fight fan should want in a main event – elite talent, high stakes, and an exciting stylistic matchup.
UFC Fight Night 27: Kampmann vs. Condit 2 is due to take place on August 28, 2013 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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