Fight By Fight Preview | UFC Fight Night: Sterling vs Zalal
Previewing All The Action Set To Hit Meta APEX On Saturday Night In Las Vegas
By E. Spencer Kyte
After the annual trip to Miami and a week spent in the Great White North, the Octagon returns home to Las Vegas and the Meta APEX for a UFC Fight Night card headlined by a critical matchup in the featherweight division.
This is an event with some sneaky important matchups and a couple of potential barnburners on deck, so let’s dive into the action and get primed for what’s about to transpire on Saturday night.
Main Event Matchup: Aljamain Sterling vs Youssef Zalal
Top 10 fighters looking to further their respective cases for title contention clash here as Aljamain Sterling shares the Octagon with Youssef Zalal.
Sterling has gone 2-1 since moving to the 145-pound weight class, earning decision wins over Calvin Kattar and Brian Ortega on either side of a decision loss to undefeated top contender Movsar Evloev. He’s been stumping for a championship opportunity on the basis of pedigree and tenure, but the best thing he could do for himself is go out on Saturday night and turn in a dominant effort against Zalal; preferably one that ends in a finish.
In five starts since returning to the UFC fold two years ago, Zalal has gone 5-0 with four finishes, most recently making quick work of Josh Emmett at UFC 320. He’s exhibited aggression and confidence, keen finishing instincts, and a fully formed game that make him appear to be a genuine threat in the featherweight ranks.
This is a pivotal matchup for each man as it represents the kind of opponent each needs to defeat in order to truly establish themselves as contenders. Sterling has beaten a pair of veterans that have fallen off, while Zalal has been working his way forward through mostly solid competition prior to besting Emmett, who was Top 10 at the time. Evloev is almost assuredly next in line, but it’s the winner of this one and Jean Silva in the discussion… and possibly in line to face each other later in the year?
Additional Main Card Matchups
Norma Dumont vs Joselyne Edwards
Streaking bantamweights Norma Dumont and Joselyne Edwards meet in a bout that could potentially determine the next title contender in the 135-pound weight class.
Currently stationed at No. 3 in the rankings, Dumont has won six straight with her last three victories coming against perennial contender Ketlen Vieira, former title challenger Irene Aldana, and former featherweight champ and bantamweight title challenger Germaine de Randamie. With former champ Raquel Pennington injured and ex-titleholder Julianna Pena seemingly focused on other things, this is a good matchup for Dumont to remain active and potentially strengthen her case for title contention.
Edwards enters on a four-fight winning streak, having earned finishes in each of those contests. She’s yet to face anyone who has had real, sustained success in the UFC, but the 30-year-old veteran has been handling her business with aplomb and could catapult herself into the thick of the chase by toppling Dumont on Saturday.
Will the Brazilian add another win to her streak and cement her Top 5 standing, or can Edwards pull the upset and shake up the bantamweight hierarchy?
Rafa Garcia vs Alexander Hernandez
This is a fun little lightweight pairing between a couple guys hovering just outside the rankings and eager to make a case for deserving a number next to their names.
Garcia has won two straight and four of his last five, most recently collecting a third-round finish of Jared Gordon last September. He trains with Cub Swanson’s Bloodline Combat Sports team, which has been white-hot of late and has gone 6-2 since dropping his first two UFC appearances, but has come up short in the two spots that might have carried him into the rankings in the past.
Hernandez has won four straight and each of his last five lightweight starts, with stoppages of Chase Hooper and Diego Ferreira in his last two outings. “El Gran Chango” has never looked better, showing the consistency that was lacking earlier in his career, and could make a case for a step up in competition with a fifth straight win this weekend.
The lower third of the lightweight rankings feel primed for potential changes, with Beneil Dariush set to face Quillan Salkilld and Michael Chandler somehow still holding down a spot in the Top 15 despite having lost three straight and his last win coming four years ago against Tony Ferguson. These two men have some ground to make up, but an emphatic performance from either man should put them in the mix to challenge someone in that space later this year.
Davey Grant vs Adrian Luna Martinetti
Davey Grant and promotional newcomer Adrian Luna Martinetti meet in this main card matchup that feels like a sure-fire Fight of the Night contender.
Grant has been a fixture in the division for well over a decade and thrived in the Second 15, where he’s served as both a measuring stick and truth machine against a host of veterans, hopefuls, and tough outs alike. He had earned consecutive wins and victories in four of five before running afoul of Charles Jourdain last October and is certainly more than capable of spoiling Martinetti’s debut on Saturday.
The 30-year-old debutant from Ecuador earned his spot on the roster with a win over Mark Vologdin in a knock-down, drag-out battle last season on Dana White’s Contender Series. He’s won 15 straight overall, eight by stoppage, and is the kind of attacking fighter that will be looking to move forward and prove himself from the opening second of the contest.
This is one of those pairings that feels destined to produce an entertaining scrap for as long as it lasts, whether that’s 15 seconds or 15 minutes. Grant is always game for a punch-up and Martinetti seemed giddy while going back-and-forth with Vologdin, so expect fireworks in this one for sure.
Montel Jackson vs Raoni Barcelos
The second men’s bantamweight clash on the main card — and third fight in the 135-pound ranks overall — is a fascinating matchup between DWCS alum Montel Jackson and underrated Brazilian Raoni Barcelos.
Jackson has been someone who has felt poised to break through for a number of years as he slowly worked his way forward in the division, only to have an odd, low-output performance in October against Deiveson Figueiredo that halted his six-fight winning streak. He has all the tools to be a force in the division — very good wrestling; sharp, powerful hands — but just needs to trust in his weapons and show a little more urgency in order to get right back on the climb.
Barcelos had a statement win over previously unbeaten prospect Payton Talbott at UFC 311, but then seemingly fell back under the radar despite the fact that he added additional wins over Cody Garbrandt and Ricky Simon to his resume later in the year to push his overall winning streak to four. The 38-year-old is well-rounded and adept at getting out ahead of his opponents, which makes him an interesting foil for Jackson here.
Will “Quik” make an immediate return to the win column, or can Barcelos collect a fifth straight win and a place in the rankings?
Marcus Buchecha vs Ryan Spann
Brazilian jiu jitsu legend Marcus Buchecha makes his third UFC start in Saturday’s main card opener, sharing the cage with intriguing heavyweight Ryan Spann.
Buchecha arrived in the UFC last summer, positioned as a potentially compelling addition to the heavyweight ranks given his grappling acumen and pre-established name. Through his first two appearances, however, the 15-time world champion has yet to register a win, having followed up his debut loss to Martin Buday with a draw against Kennedy Nzechukwu in December.
A long-time light heavyweight, Spann made the jump up a division last March, suffering a second-round knockout loss to Waldo Cortes Acosta that feels less significant with each additional win the Dominican contender collects. He rebounded in July with a first-round submission win over Lukasz Brzeski where he showed the same flashes that made him a popular dark horse for much of his time in the 205-pound ranks.
This is another challenging assignment for Buchecha as Spann has tremendous length, established power, and the kind of quick submission attacks that can catch anyone if they’re not careful. At the same time, “Superman” has struggled with consistency throughout his career, and needs to show that he has changed before anyone can rightfully get behind him as a name to watch in the heavyweight ranks.
Preliminary Card Pairings
Rodolfo Vieira vs Eric McConico
Middleweights Rodolfo Vieira and Eric McConico face off in the final preliminary card bout of the weekend on Saturday night.
The 36-year-old Vieira has toggled between submission finishes and struggling to get beyond the middle of the pack in the division, entering this one off his UFC 322 knockout loss to Bo Nickal. McConico went 1-2 in his 2025 rookie year, sandwiching a win over Cody Brundage between losses to Nursulton Ruziboev and Baisangur Susurkaev.
Jackson McVey vs Sedriques Dumas
Jackson McVey and Sedriques Dumas share the Octagon here in a clash of competitors looking to get things moving in the right direction.
McVey faced opponent changes, fight cancellations, and tough assignments in his two starts last year and looks to begin 2026 with his first UFC win. Now in his fourth year on the roster, Dumas had a rough 2025 of his own and aims to get back to the form that produced three wins in four straight prior to last year.
Mayra Bueno Silva vs Michelle Montague
Mayra Bueno Silva and Michelle Montague face off in a fascinating bantamweight pairing on Saturday’s prelims.
Bueno Silva is currently mired in a four-fight funk, with her last official win coming three years ago, while Montague makes her second UFC appearance after dominating Luana Carolina in her debut last September. Bueno Silva is undoubtedly better than her recent results suggest, but Montague profiles as someone with upward potential, so it will be interesting to see how this one shakes out.
Jafel Filho vs Cody Durden
A last-minute shift creates a potentially more compelling flyweight prelim as Jafel Filho faces off with Cody Durden.
Filho has established himself as a sturdy “Second 15” fighter in the 125-pound weight class, with a trio of first-round submission wins and losses to the two most talented opponents he’s faced thus far. A divisional stalwart stepping in for Lucas Rocha, Durden has faced strong competition throughout his UFC run and is the type of game veteran than can step up and derail a winning streak in a heartbeat, especially in a situation like this where he’s filling in on short notice.
Max Griffin vs Victor Valenzuela
Veteran welterweight Max Griffin begins another year on the roster by playing “Welcome Wagon” to newcomer Victor Valenzuela.
Despite entering on a two-fight skid, Griffin remains one of the more established and reliable hands in the division when it comes to matchups like this and seeing where debutants stand. Valenzuela faltered on Dana White’s Contender Series last season, losing to unbeaten Brazilian Michael Oliveira, but rebounded earlier this year with a second-round finish of DWCS grad and UFC alum Yusaku Kinoshita.
Talita Alencar vs Julia Polastri
Brazilian strawweights open the show on Saturday as Talita Alencar faces off with Julia Polastri.
As long as she’s not facing Stephanie Luciano, Alencar is rock solid, as she’s 0-1-1 against Luciano and 7-0 against everyone else, including having won back-to-back contests against Vanessa Demopolous and Ariane Carnelossi. Polastri put up her best performance to date since graduating from Dana White’s Contender Series in 2023 last time out, collecting a third-round stoppage win over divisional stalwart Karolina Kowalkiewicz.
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