It’s about to get heavy in Vegas, as battling big men Curtis Blaydes and Sergei Pavlovich meet at UFC Fight Night 222. Each man boasts serious knockout power, with Pavlovich in particular rarely letting a foe hear the final bell. A well-matched battle between the third and fourth-ranked fighters in the heavyweight division, expect current UFC Champion Jon Jones to be watching this one with interest.
Interest is not in short supply over the course of the rest of the card either. Tough middleweight veteran Brad Tavares gets it on with former M-1 Champion Bruno Silva in the co-main event. The lightweights take centre stage as Bobby Green looks to break a two-fight funk against Paddy Pimblett-victim Jared Gordon. There’s also outings for Brogan Walker-Sanchez and Jeremiah Wells.
Here’s everything you need to know about a hot night under the lights in the Nevada desert.
Where: UFC Apex, Paradise, Nevada
When: Saturday 22nd April 2023, 10pm UK time
How To Watch: BT Sport 1HD
Tale Of The Tape:
Pavlovich:
Place Of Birth: Orlovsky, Rostov Oblast, Russia
Age: 30
Record: 17-1
Height: 6’3”
Reach: 84’’
Stance: Southpaw
Last Fight: Pavlovich needed just 54 seconds to knock out popular Australian Tai Tuivasa back in December. The Russian earned a Performance of the Night bonus for his efforts.
[ @RazorBlaydes265 | #UFCVegas71 | Saturday | LIVE on @ESPNPlus ]
Blaydes:
Place Of Birth: Lakewood, Colorado, United States
Age: 31
Alias: Razor
Record: 15-3-1
Height: 6’4’’
Reach: 80”
Last fight: Blaydes’ last fight ended in bizarre circumstances. Brit Tom Aspinall landed a kick and as he put his foot back down, incurred a knee injury that stopped the fight in 15 seconds. The bout went down as a TKO victory for Blaydes, but in circumstances neither man would have wanted.
Full Fight Card:
Main Card
Sergei Pavlovich vs. Curtis Blaydes
Brad Tavares vs. Bruno Silva
Bobby Green vs. Jared Gordon
Iasmin Lucindo vs. Brogan Walker-Sanchez
Jeremiah Wells vs. Matthew Semelsberger
Preliminary Card
Ricky Glenn vs. Christos Giagos
Rani Yahya vs. Montel Jackson
Karol Rosa vs. Norma Dumont
Mohammad Usman vs. Junior Tafa
Francis Marshall vs. William Gomis
Priscila Cachoeira vs. Karine Silva
Brady Hiestand vs. Danaa Batgerel
*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change
