Preview: UFC 315 Prelims

Light Heavyweights

Modestas Bukauskas (17-6, 5-4 UFC) vs. Ion Cutelaba (19-10-1, 8-9-1 UFC)

ODDS: Bukauskas (-112), Cutelaba (-108)

Two light heavyweight veterans look to keep the momentum going in this confrontation. There’s a chance Bukauskas has finally turned a corner, even if it has taken a bit longer than most of his supporters would have expected. Bukauskas was clearly worthy of his first UFC shot in 2020 after a highly successful regional career, but he also figured to have a rougher jump up in competition than his record would suggest. A lot of Bukauskas’ success centered on his size and durability allowing him to outlast much more limited opponents, and the thought was that he might not have that margin for error against athletes on his own level. Indeed, Bukauskas’ first UFC stint was mostly an exercise in frustration, as he failed to impose himself on most of his opposition before suffering a knee injury against Khalil Rountree in the last fight of his contract. After taking a year to recover, Bukauskas quickly strung together a few wins and made his UFC return as an injury replacement in 2023, after which things have gone much more swimmingly. The first few fights of Bukauskas’ UFC return saw him once again fight much too patiently—albeit now against poor enough competition that he still won—before his last two showings resulted in much more complete affairs that have seen him make his moments of offense count enough to score a finish. “The Baltic Gladiator” is now ready for another step up in competition, which comes here in the form of a perennial gatekeeper. Cutelaba is still somehow only 31 years old, having come to the UFC at age 22 as a raw but talented prospect out of Moldova. Cutelaba seemed to have all the necessary championship-level tools physically, but at a certain point, he started living up to his “Hulk” nickname just a bit too much. Cutelaba has typically fought with a level of unchecked aggression that occasionally finds a first-round finish but more often sees him burning out as he attempts to push things more and more, eventually running into a finish himself. Cutelaba has taken his foot off the gas at times in recent years, which is at least a minor sign of progress, even if it hasn’t done much to change his all-offense and no-defense approach. At any rate, Bukauskas now seems to have progressed enough that he should be able to stick to his guns and land some fight-ending offense. The pick is Bukauskas via second-round knockout.

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