Preview: UFC Fight Night 148 ‘Thompson vs. Pettis’

Flyweights

Jussier da Silva (22-5) vs. Deiveson Figueiredo (15-0)

ODDS: Figueiredo (-175), da Silva (+155)

This might be the best fight on the card in terms of stakes and styles, so naturally, it comes in a flyweight division that seems earmarked to be shut down in the near future. It would be a shame if da Silva never got his title shot since he has been on the verge of one for the entirety of the division’s existence. While “Formiga” was not in the four-man tournament to crown the UFC’s inaugural flyweight king, he was one of the clear top 125-pound fighters in the world when he was signed shortly thereafter, which made it a shame when he subsequently got knocked out by John Dodson. That earned Dodson a shot at Demetrious Johnson, which started an impressive pattern for “Formiga.” He has only suffered four losses during his time in the UFC, and each of those men got a title fight against Johnson in their next appearance. Otherwise, da Silva has run through the competition with his impressive grappling game, and this encounter with Figueiredo marks his latest attempt to finally get over the hump and get the championship shot that has eluded him, so long as the UFC does not shutter the division first.

Figueiredo has been a pleasant surprise in the dying days of this flyweight division, and he should survive the move up to 135 pounds well when it comes since he is essentially already a bantamweight. Figueiredo is a cousin of the Alcantara brothers, and similar to his kin, he relies on aggressive bursts of athleticism. That would figure to have its limits in a shark tank like the UFC’s flyweight division, but instead, Figueiredo has mostly wrecked shop. Some of his opponents have been technically superior, but Figueiredo knows enough to get by and put himself in position to hit his opponents really, really hard. His ground-and-pound is absolutely brutal, and his last fight saw him melt John Moraga with a particularly devastating punch to the body. In the long-term, Figueiredo will be a fascinating addition to the 135-pound weight class, but as flyweight goes down, “Deus da Guerra” is going down swinging.

Figueiredo’s physical advantages figure to have their limits, and this basically amounts to the last test before he is outright fighting for a title. If this stays on the feet, Figueiredo favors to take this sooner rather than later. Da Silva’s big negative is his willingness to play a slow-paced and losing kickboxing match, and on top of that, Figueiredo hits hard enough that he can probably just knock out “Formiga.” On the mat is where this always figured to be an interesting bout. Da Silva is probably the slickest flyweight there is as far as finding his opponent’s back, but Figueiredo is not too shabby as a grappler and can easily put himself in position to cause a ton of damage on the ground. “Formiga” could just immediately find a submission, but Figueiredo’s physical advantages are too much to ignore, both on the ground and in terms of getting it there in the first place. If he can dictate the terms of the fight, he can probably author a beating. The pick is Figueiredo via second-round stoppage.

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