Preview: UFC Fight Night 226 Prelims

Women’s Bantamweights

Jacqueline Cavalcanti (5-1, 0-0 UFC) vs. Zarah Fairn dos Santos (6-5, 0-3 UFC)

ODDS: Cavalcanti (-375), Fairn dos Santos (+295)

This marks the return to bantamweight for France’s Fairn dos Santos, who makes her first trip down to 135 pounds since 2017—one of a few questions “Infinite” needs to deal with as she fights on home soil. Assuming she can make the bantamweight limit, the cut down should be a positive for Fairn dos Santos given the arc of her career thus far. She was an effective bully as a striker on the regional scene but clearly hit a physical wall against full-time featherweights Megan Anderson and Felicia Spencer. That dynamic was affirmed further with her January fight against Josiane Nunes, which resulted in a decision loss that was nonetheless the best performance of Fairn dos Santos’ UFC career. The fight may have been at 145 pounds, but taking on a bantamweight-sized fighter—particularly one who did not look to exploit her subpar wrestling and grappling—let Fairn dos Santos show off some of her best weapons. She should have some parity against Portugal’s Cavalcanti, another fighter who has fought at higher weight classes but is looking to settle in as a full-time bantamweight. She will be the larger fighter despite Fairn dos Santos’ impressive frame, and while she can suffer from low output at times, her regional success has shown her to be the harder hitter with enough cardio to carry her power into multiple rounds. Fairn dos Santos is tough enough that she should be able to hang with Cavalcanti without getting knocked out, but the UFC newcomer reads as the more physical fighter and should be a better bully, even if her counterpart figures to land a decent amount of offense herself. The pick is Cavalcanti via decision.

Charriere vs. Zecchini
Lapilus vs. Loughran
Cavalcanti vs. Fairn dos Santos
Edwards vs. Cornolle
Loosa vs. McKee
Basharat vs. Rodrigues