Preview: UFC on ESPN 62 Prelims

The Ultimate Fighting Championship will return to the UFC Apex with UFC on ESPN 62 this Saturday in Las Vegas. Immediate stakes are lacking, but there is one clear point of intrigue further down the draw. Combat sports veteran Cong Wang makes her anticipated promotional debut and could make an immediate impact in the women’s flyweight division. Outside of Wang’s first Octagon assignment, the bouts are made for violence, either through pure striking matches or battles that were clearly booked with finishes in mind.

Now to the preview for the UFC on ESPN 62 prelims:

Lightweights

Francis Marshall (7-2, 1-2 UFC) vs. Dennis Buzukja (12-4, 1-2 UFC)

ODDS: N/A

With his first UFC victory finally under his belt, Buzukja looks to start building some momentum. “The Great” took the long road to a UFC contract, fighting on Dana White’s Contender Series twice and getting passed over before getting the late-notice call about a year ago. While Buzukja was clearly ready for his UFC shot, it proved a struggle for him to find his footing in the promotion at first. He didn’t accomplish much in a tough matchup against Sean Woodson, and a sophomore appearance against Jamall Emmers ended with Buzukja suffering a knockout in shockingly quick fashion. He looked much better when given a softer touch against Connor Matthews in March. Beyond the result, Buzukja also showed some new wrinkles as a patient striker from range, pivoting from the fairly straightforward pressure-heavy style he has typically used in the past. Initially slated to face Danny Silva, Buzukja gets a new opponent on about four days’ notice, as Marshall steps in for what’s now a lightweight tilt. Marshall finds himself in a similar spot to where Buzukja was prior to his last win, as “Fire” might have to switch things up after his last two results. Marshall looked sharp in his Contender Series win—which happened to be against Matthews—and his UFC debut against Marcelo Rojo before rough outings against William Gomis and Isaac Dulgarian. Gomis was able to frustrate Marshall with his range and speed, outmaneuvering and picking him off for a lot of their fight, while Dulgarian simply ran through him with his outstanding wrestling skills. It has been a year since the loss to Dulgarian, so the hope is that Marshall can show some new wrinkles himself, as he has also typically been a fairly straightforward pressure fighter who was willing to eat offense. The extremely late notice of this replacement makes it a bit hard to parse, but at the very least, Marshall should be able to lean on his wrestling if he’s anywhere near ready to fight. The pick is Marshall via decision.

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Marshall vs. Buzukja
Reese vs. Medina
Borschchev vs. Llontop
Cavalcanti vs. Nunes
Ramaska vs. Fletcher
Wang vs. Leonardo