Another big featherweight fight has been added to this summer’s slate of fight cards. That and more in today’s MMA odds and ends.
Chad Mendes vs. Myles Jury, UFC Fight Night 133
A featherweight bout between the returning Chad Mendes and Myles Jury has been added to UFC Fight Night 133, which takes place Saturday, July 14 at CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho. The UFC has officially confirmed the matchup. Mendes (17-4) has not fought since December 2015 when he was brutally finished by Frankie Edgar. The former long-time featherweight title contender was suspended for two years due to a USADA violation and aftrer serving his suspension is ready to return. Though he was once one of the most feared fighters at 145lbs due to his combination of knockout power and wrestling, Mendes has lost three of his last four fights. To be fair to him, though, those losses came against elite competition in the forms of Edgar, Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor. Still, having two knockout losses in recent memory is not a good sign for Mendes as he looks to climb back up the featherweight ladder. Jury (17-2) won the first 15 fights of his MMA career at lightweight but after losing to Donald Cerrone decided to drop down in weight. Since moving to 145lbs, Jury is 2-1 with a submission loss to Charles Oliveira in his featherweight debut and then back-to-back wins over Rick Glenn and Mike de la Torre. Jury looks like he has the weight cut to 145lbs down perfectly and if he stays healthy he could potentially make a run for the featherweight title. Clearly the UFC thinks Jury could be a really good fighter in his new division and is giving him a tough fight off the back. Even despite Mendes’ long layoff, he should still be one of the strongest featherweights out there as well as one of the most powerful. I am not discounting Jury winning this fight, but I would expect Mendes to be a slight betting favorite at the opener due to his high-level championship experience.
Ricardo Ramos vs. Kyung Ho Kang, UFC 227
Bantamweights Ricardo Ramos and Kyung Ho Kang will clash at UFC 227, which takes place Saturday, August 4 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. MMA journalist John Hyon Ko broke the news on Twitter. Ramos (11-1) is 2-0 in the UFC and most recently knocked out Aiemann Zahabi at UFC 217. Kang (14-7, 1 NC) is 3-1, 1 NC in the UFC and in his last outing he submitted Guido Cannetti. Both guys are riding three-fight win streaks right now, but after how impressive he was in his last fight, I’d imagine Ramos will be favored here.
