125 lbs.: Yuta Sasaki vs. Willie Gates
Yuta Sasaki (18-3-2) roared out of the gate in his UFC career with a 66-second submission of Roland Delorme, extending his unbeaten streak to 12 straight. His recent efforts haven’t been quite as successful, suffering consecutive stoppage losses to Leandro Issa and Taylor Lapilus.
"Ulka" replaces Paddy Holohan, who was forced to retire because of a blood issue.
The towering Willie Gates (12-6) rebounded from his debut loss to John Moraga with a brutal first-round beating of Darrell Montague. He fought again just a month later, replacing Ian McCall against Dustin Ortiz and taking a frightful thrashing in the process.
He has stopped nine opponents overall, five of them via knockout.
"Perhaps this is just me very well-documented bias toward Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) talking, but I’m leaning toward Sasaki here. Gates relies extensively on being ludicrously tall for the Flyweight division. Sasaki’s even taller at 5’10" and lethal on the mat, a bad sign considering Gates’ struggles with wrestling.
Issa is a world-class grappler, while Lapilus proved significantly better than expected in his subsequent fight with Erik Perez. Sasaki overwhelms Gates in the clinch and eventually chokes him out.
Prediction: Sasaki def. Gates via first-round submission