Preview: UFC on ESPN 61 ‘Tybura vs. Spivak 2’

Bantamweights

Charalampos Grigoriou (8-4, 0-1 UFC) vs. Toshiomi Kazama (10-4, 0-2 UFC)

ODDS: Grigoriou (-218), Kazama (+180)

Two bantamweights look for their first UFC win in this 135-pound tilt. Kazama showed some potential as a wrestler and grappler coming out of Japan, but things haven’t gone particularly well during his time under the UFC banner. Kazama made it to the bantamweight final of the first “Road to UFC” tournament and got quickly and brutally knocked out by countryman Rinya Nakamura, then also got finished within a round by Garrett Armfield a year ago. The hope is that things go better against Cyprus’ Grigoriou, who’s also coming off a disappointing UFC debut.

Grigoriou was a solid enough regional prospect, but things worked out surprisingly well for the Cypriot in his appearance on the Contender Series in 2023, as he was able to score a knockout in a minute flat. However, his follow-up effort against Chad Anheliger was a bit of a return to form. Grigoriou tends to throw out ideas without much consistency, and Anheliger was tough enough to survive and score a decision win. Grigoriou could fall into an ugly grind that winds up as a coinflip, but this looks like a fight where he can eventually find a finish. The pick is Grigoriou via first-round knockout.

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Tybura vs. Spivak
Gutierrez vs. Le
Barlow vs. Veretennikov
Mariscal vs. Jackson
Santos vs. Chandler
Grigoriou vs. Kazama
The Prelims