November is looking like an auspicious month for the UFC, full of action-packed fight nights.
However, UFC 322 has garnered a significant amount of attention with the confirmed bouts on the fight card.
These include the title fights, such as Jack Della Maddalena vs. Islam Makhachev for the Welterweight belt, and Valentina Shevchenko vs. Zhang Weili for the Women’s Flyweight Championship.
While those five-round wars are very anticipated, that isn’t the only attraction that’s on offer for Madison Square Garden.
The Most Recent Fight Announcement
A freshly confirmed fight takes the stage in New York as ranked Lightweights, Beneil Dariush and Benoit Saint-Denis go head-to-head.
This comes just less than a month after Saint-Denis’ submission win over Mauricio Ruffy at UFC Paris.
The Frenchman has a grand opportunity to enter the top 10 in the rankings with his 100% finish rate.
The last time the ‘God of War’ fought for a position in the top 10, he was knocked out by Dustin Poirier in the second round at UFC 299.
Dariush last competed at UFC 317, where he inspired a comeback unanimous decision win over Renato Moicano.
For nearly 19 months, the 36-year-old hadn’t fought before that after back-to-back first-round knockout losses to Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan.
Nonetheless, the Iran-born fighter has a wide range of experience in the UFC, defeating the likes of Mateusz Gamrot and Tony Ferguson.
The best way to look at this matchup his veteran vs prospect, and it may be a closer battle than fans think.
Other confirmed UFC 322 bouts
The #4 Welterweight, Leon Edwards, takes on the #9 contender, Carlos Prates, which will definitely feature on the main card.
Edwards is trying to return to the win column after starting a losing streak from his submission defeat to Sean Brady at UFC London.
Prates found redemption not too long ago after an incredible first-round knockout against Geoff Neal at UFC 319.
It’s a fight that could give the winner a chance to enter title contention, but not in a strong position.
Roman Kopylov tries to return to the Middleweight rankings against a dangerous Brazilian striker, Gregory Rodrigues.
The Russian wants to return to winning ways, while Rodrigues earns a second chance at entering the rankings after a brutal knockout win at UFC 317.
Another man searching for redemption is Bo Nickal as he takes on 36-year-old Fighting Nerds fighter, Rodolfo Vieira.
Nickal lost his perfect record to Reinier de Ridder in his last fight, while Vieira won by decision for the first time in his career.
One-to-watch prospect, Baysangur Susurkaev, takes on Eric McConico in a Middleweight bout.
The Russian earned a contract with the UFC and won on his debut in just four days, making him a formidable challenge for McConico.
A high-contender matchup sees Women’s Flyweights, Erin Blanchfield and Tracy Cortez, square off in the Octagon.
This particular battle could be a title eliminator, depending on which fighter can make a statement victory.
Another exciting Middleweight fight sees Kyle Daukaus take on Gerald Meerschaert, which has a high probability of not going the distance.
‘GM3’ is hoping to break his three-fight losing streak, while Daukaus is coming off a surprising knockout win over Michel Pereira.
40-year-old UFC Strawweight veteran, Angela Hill, defends her #12 contender’s spot against Fatima Kline.
Kline is a promising prospect with back-to-back TKO victories as she faces the division’s record holder for most fights and wins.