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Fight By Fight Preview | UFC 307 Pereira vs Rountree Jr.
Laying Out The Action Set To Hit The Octagon In Salt Lake City On Saturday
By E. Spencer Kyte, on X @spencerkyte
Each of the last two trips Salt Lake City, Utah have produced iconic moments inside the Octagon.
Two years ago, Leon Edwards snatched victory — and the UFC welterweight title — from the jaws of defeat with his last-minute knockout win over Kamaru Usman, closing out UFC 278 in thrilling fashion. A year later, Justin Gaethje delivered a similar blow to Dustin Poirier to wrap up UFC 291.
This week, the action returns to the Delta Center for UFC 307 for a jam-packed fight card that features several pairings between top contenders, the swan song of a two-time UFC champion, and a pair of fascinating title fights to close out the show.
Here’s a closer look at this week’s slate in the latest edition of the Fight-By-Fight Preview.
Light Heavyweight Championship Main Event: Alex Pereira vs Khalil Rountree Jr.
For the third time this year, light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira puts his title on the line in the main event of a UFC pay-per-view, squaring off with surging challenger Khalil Rountree Jr. to close out UFC 307 in Salt Lake City.
In the roughly 11 months since Pereira claimed the vacant title with a second-round knockout win over former champ Jiri Prochazka last year at Madison Square Garden, the 37-year-old Brazilian has earned consecutive successful title defenses against ex-titleholder Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 and a second stoppage over Prochazka at UFC 303 to push his overall winning streak to four. “Poatan” remains one of the most feared finishers in the UFC — a devastating striker with uncanny speed and technique for someone his size, and someone truly capable of altering the course of a fight with a single thudding blow.
Rountree Jr. touches down in Salt Lake City on a five-fight winning streak, having earned finishes in four of those contests, each more devastating and resounding than the last. In his last appearance, the 34-year-old challenger stopped Anthony Smith in the third round of a fight he was winning handily, rocking him with a sharp, forceful left hand before “Lionheart” slowly collapsed to the canvas with Rountree Jr. standing over him, the follow-up blow locked and loaded, but never fired.
It’s cliche to say that a fight is “going to be fireworks,” but this is one of those instances where the sentiment feels incredibly apt. Pereira has earned finishes in six of his eight UFC victories, including each of his last three outings, while Rountree Jr. has ended things inside the distance in seven of his nine UFC triumphs. Both men thrive in the striking exchanges, which means this could turn out to be a case where whomever lands the heaviest blow first departs Delta Center with the light heavyweight title in tow.
Bantamweight Championship Co-Main Event: Raquel Pennington vs Julianna Pena
Raquel Pennington and Julianna Peña share the co-main event spotlight, as Pennington puts her bantamweight title up for grabs against the returning former titleholder.
Pennington claimed the title in January of this year, navigating the early aggression of Mayra Bueno Silva before distancing herself from the Brazilian the longer the fight progressed en route to claiming a unanimous decision victory. The win pushed the 36-year-old’s winning streak to six and 11-3 over her last 14 appearances, where each of those setbacks has come against a former UFC champion.
Pena has been waiting for her opportunity to challenge for the title she once held since last summer when she was forced out of her trilogy bout with Amanda Nunes at UFC 289 in Vancouver. A slow-healing injury kept her on the sidelines in January, opening the door for Pennington and Bueno Silva to clash, but now “The Venezuelan Vixen” is healthy and ready to step back into the fray in order to attempt to become a two-time UFC champion.
In addition to being the obvious matchup from a divisional standpoint, there is a long-simmering rivalry between the co-main event combatants that is likely to finally boil over this week in Utah. Both were contestants on Season 18 of The Ultimate Fighter, with Pena going on to win the competition before each was added to the UFC roster. There was tension between them in the house, yet somehow, their paths never crossed in the Octagon… until this weekend.
Other Main Card Matchups
Jose Aldo vs Mario Bautista
Brazilian legend Jose Aldo goes in search of his second win of 2024 while Mario Bautista aims to extend his winning streak by defeating his most formidable opponent to date in this fascinating bantamweight pairing.
Aldo ended a brief retirement in May with a masterful decision win over Jonathan Martinez in Rio de Janeiro. It was a vintage Aldo performance as the former featherweight champion looked quick and focused, putting Martinez on the back foot immediately and never allowing him to build any momentum.
It’s difficult to “quietly” win six consecutive fights in the UFC, but that’s where Bautista is at as he readies for this weekend’s engagement with Aldo. The MMA Lab product took another step forward in the division at the start of the year with a unanimous decision win over Ricky Simon and can propel himself further up the divisional ladder with a victory over the “King of Rio” on Saturday.
Can Aldo build off his return win at home and establish himself as a contender in the 135-pound weight class once again or will Bautista continue his methodical march towards the top of the division?
Ketlen Vieira vs Kayla Harrison
Before the bantamweight title goes up for grabs in the co-main event, Ketlen Vieira and Kayla Harrison will share the Octagon in a bout many envision as determining the next title challenger in the 135-pound ranks.
Vieira has been a fixture in the title conversation for the last six years, though she’s previously stumbled in this position. After earning wins over Miesha Tate and Holly Holm, the Brazilian dropped a split decision to Pennington that knocked her back a step. Last summer, she rebounded with a unanimous decision win over Pannie Kianzad.
Harrison made her first foray into the famed Octagon in April, instantly establishing herself as a force in the division with a one-sided, second-round submission win over former champion Holly Holm. The two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time PFL tournament champion is 17-1 overall with all but four of her victories coming inside the distance.
The winner of this one will be in pole position to challenge whoever emerges with the title on Saturday night, which certainly adds to the intrigue surrounding this matchup. Vieira is as tested a contender as there is in the division at the moment, while Harrison looked like a force of nature in her debut, so it will be interesting to see how things shake out when the two share the Octagon this weekend.
Roman Dolidze vs. Kevin Holland
The main card opens in the middleweight division, as Roman Dolidze faces off with Kevin Holland.
This will be Dolidze’s third start of the year after he rebounded from his February loss to Nassourdine Imavov with a short-notice unanimous decision victory over Anthony Smith up a division at UFC 303. The Georgian has gone 7-3 over his first 10 UFC starts, splitting time between the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, and looks to cement his place in the Top 10 with a triumphant return to the middleweight ranks here.
Holland returned to the 185-pound weight class last time out following a two-fight skid down at welterweight, registering a first-round submission win over Michal Oleksiejczuk. Since his breakout 2020 campaign, where he won five bouts in eight months, the talkative “Trailblazer” has gone 5-6 with one no contest, including just one win in his last four middleweight starts.
Both looked solid last time out, setting up this compelling clash of styles. Dolidze will surely look to use his superior size and strength to bully Holland in grappling exchanges and connect with force if the opportunity presents itself, while the former Dana White’s Contender Series competitor is likely to lean on his speed and overall striking advantage to keep this one in space.
Preliminary Card Fights
Stephen Thompson vs Joaquin Buckley
The prelims wrap with a fascinating fight in the welterweight division as Top 10 mainstay Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson faces off with the surging Joaquin Buckley.
A fixture in the upper tier of the rankings for the last decade, the 41-year-old Thompson has competed once per year in each of the last couple years, and touches down in Utah looking to get things moving in the right direction after losing to unbeaten contender Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 296 last December. Buckley extended his welterweight record to 4-0 in May with a unanimous decision win at home in St. Louis over Nursulton Rubiboev, building on his stoppage win over Vicente Luque six weeks earlier.
Marina Rodriguez vs Iasmin Lucindo
Marina Rodríguez and Iasmin Lucindo clash this weekend in a meeting of Brazilians looking to build momentum in the strawweight division.
A four-fight winning streak between January 2021 and November 2022 carried Rodriguez into title contention, but the Muay Thai stylist has since dropped three-of-four and returns here looking to rebound from her split decision loss to Jessica Andrade at UFC 300. Since losing her promotional debut in the summer of 2022, Lucindo has collected three straight wins to climb into the Top 15, most recently besting veteran contender Karolina Kowalkiewicz on the scorecards.
Austin Hubbard vs Alexander Hernandez
Austin Hubbard and Alexander Hernandez throw down at UFC 307 in a pivotal battle for both lightweights.
Hubbard landed on the wrong side of things in his return to the Octagon at UFC 292, losing in the TUF 31 lightweight finale to Kurt Holobaugh, but rebounded with an outstanding performance against Michal Figlak in April. Hernandez returns to the 155-pound weight class after making three of his last four starts as a featherweight, with his lone victory in that stretch being a lightweight win over respected veteran Jim Miller.
Cesar Almeida vs Ihor Potieria
It’s a battle of Dana White’s Contender Series grads in the middleweight division as Cesar Almeida faces off with Ihor Potieria on Saturday’s early slate.
A member of last year’s graduating class from the annual talent-search series, Almeida debuted in April with a win over Dylan Budka but was out-wrestled by Roman Kopylov in a grueling battle at UFC 302 last time out. Potieria matriculated from Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021 and has gone 2-3 in his first five appearances inside the Octagon, including splitting his first two starts in the 185-pound weight class.
Ryan Spann vs Ovince Saint Preux
Ryan Spann and Ovince Saint Preux square off in a clash of tenured light heavyweights where the former is looking to get things moving in the right direction again and may also be looking to get one back for a couple former teammates, as well.
Once viewed as a dark horse contender in the 205-pound weight class, Spann enters on a three-fight slide, having most recently gotten stopped by Bogdan Guskov in April. Saint Preux enters off a win over Spann’s teammate at Fortis MMA, Kennedy Nzechukwu, and counts a similar victory over former Fortis man Alonzo Menifield amongst his 15 career UFC victories.
Carla Esparza vs Tecia Pennington
Two-time strawweight champ Carla Esparza makes her final trek into the Octagon in a clash with fellow TUF 20 alum Tecia Pennington early in the UFC 307 card.
Esparza returns for the first time since dropping the title to Zhang Weili at UFC 281 and giving birth to her first child, seeking to close out her Hall of Fame-worthy career on a high note. Pennington made her postpartum return to action earlier this year, landing on the wrong side of a debated split decision in a clash with Tabatha Ricci in St. Louis.
Court McGee vs Tim Means
Welterweights Court McGee and Tim Means open the show at Delta Center on Saturday in what should be an entertaining clash between a couple grizzled veterans.
A Utah native, McGee looks to halt a three-fight slide and pick up his fifth straight victory when competing in his home state. The 40-year-old Means touches down in Salt Lake City looking to rebound following a first-round stoppage loss to Uros Medic in April and a rough run of results over his last five outings.
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