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Fighters on the Rise | UFC 303: Pereira vs. Prochazka 2
Shining A Spotlight On Three Ascending Talents Aiming To Make More Waves This Weekend At UFC 303
The first International Fight Week took place in 2012, and the 11 previous iterations of the annual UFC showcase have produced more than a handful of breakout performances and moments that elevated competitors to a different level of stardom and standing.
In 2013, Chris Weidman shocked the world, knocking out Anderson Silva to claim the UFC middleweight title. Four years later, Robert Whittaker ascended to the middleweight throne with a gutsy decision win over Yoel Romero. In 2021, Merab Dvalishvili made it clear he was a contender in the bantamweight division with his come-from-behind finish of Marlon Moraes, and the following year, Alex Pereira punched his ticket to his first UFC championship opportunity by punching Sean Strickland in the face, hard.
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This weekend’s International Fight Week pay-per-view is packed with exciting fights capable of producing captivating highlights and standout contests, with the three fighters below carrying the potential to elevate their names even further as part of this year’s summer spectacular.
This is Fighters on the Rise for UFC 303.
Diego Lopes
In his first 12 months as a member of the UFC roster, Diego Lopes went 3-1 and claimed a place in the Top 15 in the featherweight division, but that doesn’t quite tell the whole story.
The dangerous Brazilian debuted on incredibly short notice at UFC 288, losing a narrow, competitive decision to undefeated Russian Movsar Evloev. He followed that up three months later by submitting Gavin Tucker in 98 seconds to claim his first UFC win, and then trimmed eight seconds off the time he needed to handle his business when he knocked out Pat Sabatini at UFC 295 in New York City.
Fight By Fight Preview | UFC 303
And earlier this year at UFC 300, Lopes lowered his “quickest UFC victory” time by another second, dropping Sodiq Yusuff with nasty uppercuts and collecting his third consecutive stoppage win in just 89 seconds.
This weekend, the 29-year-old gets the biggest opportunity of his career, stepping into a short-notice co-main event pairing with Brian Ortega where the winner would be on the very short list of possible title challengers in the 145-pound ranks heading into the second half of the year.
Lopes is a menace, and I mean that in the most respectful and appreciative way possible. He fights with an aggression and intensity few can replicate because he is so confident in his ability to create damage and find attacking opportunities from any position, and it overwhelms his opponents. He comes out of the corner like he was shot out of a cannon, forcing the opposition to immediately contend with a barrage of offense, and over his three fights where he had ample time to prepare, no one has been able to last more than two minutes with him.
Jumping into a fight with Ortega is a considerable step up in competition, as save for his injury defeat in his first meeting with Yair Rodriguez (which he avenged last time out in Mexico City), the 33-year-old Top 5 fixture has only lost twice — in championship fights against Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski.
Lopes has been a revelation since joining the roster and stands on the brink of a massive breakout, having already garnered a strong following amongst the hardcore set thanks to his dynamic performances and magnificent hair. Should he continue his winning way this weekend in Las Vegas, he will find himself thrust into the spotlight and knocking on the door of a championship opportunity.
Payton Talbott
Payton Talbott is just eight fights into his professional MMA career and the 25-year-old from Reno, Nevada is already starting to make waves.
Last August, Talbott outworked Reyes Cortez on Dana White’s Contender Series, showcasing a diverse skill set and unique level of dynamism in the Octagon to earn the victory and a UFC contract. In his promotional debut three months later, Talbott began the third round of his fight with Nick Aguirre by signaling that his opponent was breaking, and backed that up by collecting the submission win just 58 seconds into the final stanza.
In his sophomore outing earlier this year, Talbott turned in an outstanding performance against fellow DWCS grad and bantamweight prospect Cameron Saaiman, handing the South African a second straight loss by dispatching him just 21 seconds into the second round.
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Saturday night, Talbott makes his debut before a full-scale UFC crowd when he takes on France’s Yanis Ghemmouri as part of the UFC 303 preliminary card slate.
While perhaps not the matchup most anticipated for Talbott following his win over Saaiman in March, it’s the kind of “focus check” fight that should give everyone a greater idea of what to possibly expect from him going forward.
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Talbott looks like the genuine article — he’s well-rounded and dangerous in all facets, doesn’t seem to be shaken by the exponential increase in attention he’s received over the last year, and remains unflappable inside the Octagon.
Bantamweight is arguably the toughest division around when it comes to making real headway and eventually breaking into the rankings, but through his first two UFC appearances, Talbott looks the part of someone that will have a long career with a number next to his name.
Vinicius Oliveira
“The second it landed, it was clear that Oliveira was the clubhouse leader in the Knockout of the Year race and that it is going to take something otherworldly to unseat him from that position.”
That’s what I wrote in regard to the hellacious knee that Vinicius Oliveira landed on Benardo Sopaj in March to register his first UFC victory and earn Knockout of the Month honors in the March 2024 Monthly Report. Six weeks later, Max Holloway did Max Holloway things and left Justin Gaethje lying face down on the canvas at UFC 300 to move into pole position in the Knockout of the Year race, but Oliveira remains on the podium and gets his first chance to follow-up that effort this weekend when he takes on Ricky Simón.
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One of 18 Brazilians to garner a contract last season on Dana White’s Contender Series, the aggressive 28-year-old owns a 20-3 record with 18 of his victories coming inside the distance, and 16 of those coming by way of strikes. His finish of Sopaj, which was as clean as it was punishing, came with 19 seconds remaining in a bout where he was clearly on his way to a win, and yet “Lok Dog” wasn’t taking any chances.
Saturday night in Las Vegas, Oliveira gets a massive opportunity: a matchup against Simon, a tenured figure in the bantamweight division who held down a place in the Top 15 prior to his loss to Mario Bautista at the start of the year. Simon is 8-4 in the UFC, with stoppage wins over Merab Dvalishvili, Raphael Assuncao, and Jack Shore, and three of his four setbacks coming against ranked opponents.
While Simon is unquestionably the toughest opponent he’s faced to date, Oliveira can put himself on the doorstep of the Top 15 after just two UFC appearances, and that kind of opportunity will undoubtedly bring out the best in him this weekend. Following up his highlight reel debut win was always going to be a tall order, but if he can get through Simon on Saturday, it would be a more meaningful effort than his breakout performance earlier this year.
UFC 303: Pereira vs Procházka 2 took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 29, 2024. See the Final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
