UFC on ESPN 48 Fight Card: Strange Matchmaking & Many Debutants

The UFC returns with yet another event this weekend. In fact, we will not have a week without MMA for the next three months. Which fighters are on the card this time and what are the expectations? Here is our UFC on ESPN 48 fight card analysis.

UFC on ESPN 48 Fight Card: Everything You Need to Know

Undoubtedly, the last fight night was one of the best events this year. While we expected to see fewer decisions and more finishes, almost all bouts were extremely action-packed. However, this week's event will probably not be this attractive.

It is a fact that the UFC on ESPN 48 fight card involves more ranked fighters than the previous few. And still, we can't really get too excited about this UFC fight card.

We will see some debutants and some UFC legends but that's about it. And the main event for the UFC fight card this weekend is a strange decision too.

UFC on ESPN 48 Co-Main and Main Events

Middleweight: Sean Strickland (26-5-) vs Abus Magomedov (25-4-1)
Lightweight: Damir Ismagulov (24-2-0) vs Grant Dawson (19-1-1)

As mentioned above, the main event of the UFC on ESPN 48 fight card is a weird one. We all know who Sean Strickland is – a Middleweight monster that has been trying to get a championship fight for years. He is ranked #7 in the division right now.

As for his opponent, this will be his second fight in the UFC and he is already performing in a main event. Abusupiyan Magomedov is a Russian fighter with 25 wins and 4 losses and he made his debut in September 2022, when he destroyed Dustin Stoltzfus in 19 seconds. He is massive for a fighter in this weight class but we do not know too much about his skills and potential.

In the co-main event, we have two fighters that have been neglected by the UFC. Damir Ismagulov has fought 6 times in the UFC, won five of his fights, and is still barely ranked 12th in the division. He has 24 wins and 2 losses in his professional career and is a former Pride FC and M-1 Lightweight Champion.

His opponent – Grant Dawson, will appear for the 9th time in the UFC – he won 7 matches and one ended in a draw. And with these stats (19-1-1), he is barely ranked 15th in the division.

We at NYFights believe that these two fighters should get more opportunities after all that they have achieved already. It is sad to see some fighters get a title fight after 2-3 wins and others fight 10+ times, winning against everyone, and barely getting any recognition.

UFC on ESPN 48 Main Card

Middleweight: Sean Strickland (26-5-) vs Abus Magomedov (25-4-1)
Lightweight: Damir Ismagulov (24-2-0) vs Grant Dawson (19-1-1)
Welterweight: Max Griffin (19-9-0) vs Michael Morales (14-0-0)
Women's Flyweight: Ariane Lipski (15-8-0) vs Melissa Gatto (8-1-2)
Lightweight: Ismael Bonfim (19-3-0) vs Benoit Saint-Denis (10-1-0)
Middleweight: Brunno Ferreira (10-0-0) vs Napsultan Ruziboev (34-8-2)

UFC on ESPN 48 Fight Card: Prelims

Welterweight: Kevin Lee (18-7-0) vs Rinat Fakhretdinov (20-1-0)
Featherweight: Joanderson Brito (14-3-1) vs Westin Wilson (16-7-0)
Women's Featherweight: Yana Santos (14-7-0) vs Karol Rosa (16-5-0)
Lightweight: Guram Kutateladze (12-3-0) vs Elves Brener (14-3-0)
Women's Flyweight: Ivana Petrovic (6-0-0) vs Luana Carolina (8-4-0)
Heavyweight: Alexandr Romanov (16-2-0) vs Blagoy Ivanov (19-5-0)

UFC Fight Card Tonight: Match Ups to Watch Out For

Apart from the co-main and main events of the UFC on ESPN 48 fight card, here are some other good matches that deserve your attention.

Benoit Saint-Dennis is one of the biggest talents in the lightweight division and he will face a debutant – Ismael Bonfim. Dennis was supposed to fight a different opponent but he was pulled out of the fight and Bonfim agreed to fill in on short notice. This one should be interesting.

Kevin Lee vs Rinat Fakhretdinov should be a war. The Russian will appear for the third time in the UFC and his record is 20 wins, 1 loss.

Yana Santos vs Karol Rosa has been placed in the Prelims of the UFC fight card this weekend and we find it strange. Both fighters are ranked high in their division and we believe that this is a fight for the main card.