Preview: UFC Saudi Arabia Prelims

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s return to Saudi Arabia on Saturday provides a decent slate of prelims with some definite highlights. Given the lack of depth in the UFC heavyweight division, it’s nice to see some interesting talents back in action. The featured spot on the UFC Fight Night 250 undercard sees Shamil Gaziev continue his path back to some significant fights against Thomas Petersen, while the opener sees Hamdy Abdelwahab return from a long layoff to build on a promising Octagon debut. Meanwhile, a women’s flyweight tilt pitting Jasmine Jasudavicius against Mayra Bueno Silva carries the most immediate stakes in terms of high-level positioning within a division. The two remaining matches are matched for action, highlighted by the latest outing from Terrance McKinney.

Now to the preview for the UFC Saudi Arabia prelims:

Heavyweights

#14 HW | Shamil Gaziev (13-1, 2-1 UFC) vs. Thomas Petersen (9-2, 1-1 UFC)

ODDS: Gaziev (-345), Petersen (+275)

The UFC’s attempt to hotshot Gaziev up the rankings failed, but the Russian should prove to have a high floor in the promotion’s heavyweight division. Gaziev didn’t start his professional career until age 30 and looked capable in running through a low level of competition on the regional circuit, so after he was able to make quick work of the historically durable Martin Buday in his UFC debut, it was worth the shot to see if he could crack the Top 10 with a main event against Jairzinho Rozenstruik. However, Gaziev proved unable to score another quick finish, and he unsurprisingly wound up absolutely exhausted after about a round, continuing to fight hard but ending up gassed enough that the fight was stopped after the fourth round. Gaziev rebounded well with a win over Don'Tale Mayes, particularly since the fight went all three rounds, even if it wasn’t particularly pretty. His gas tank still didn’t look particularly strong, but even a tired Gaziev has the wrestling chops to grind out a lot of heavyweights. Petersen should at least prove a bit stouter if things get that far, as the American was a decorated collegiate wrestler; and wrestling is certainly the name of the game for “The Train.” That background made it a bit surprising when he was unable to outwork Jamal Pogues in his UFC debut, though Petersen looked much stronger in a follow-up win over Mohammed Usman in July. Nevertheless, the loss to Pogues does linger when it comes to the thought that Petersen is set to make a run up the ranks, as does his lone pre-UFC loss to Waldo Cortes-Acosta—a knockout that suggests he might run into durability concerns past a certain point on the heavyweight ladder. Gaziev seems set to take this whether it’s a slog or a sprint, and the hope is that it’s the latter. The pick is Gaziev via first-round stoppage.

Jump To »
Gaziev vs. Petersen
McKinney vs. Hadzovic
Jasudavicius vs. Bueno Silva
Alexander vs. Grad
Abdelwahab vs. Pogues