Preview: UFC 315 Prelims

Featherweights

Jeong Yeong Lee (11-2, 2-1 UFC) vs. Daniel Santos (12-2, 2-1 UFC)

ODDS: Lee (-115), Santos (-105)

This should be an entertaining war. Lee won the featherweight “Road to UFC” tournament that spanned 2022 and 2023, and “The Korean Tiger” was certainly the most interesting prospect of the bunch. He tends to throw hard and let the rest figure itself out, which resulted in two quick knockout wins and a decision victory that saw him land the best shots in a wrestling-heavy affair. That ability to land impactful offense got Lee past Blake Bilder in his UFC debut, but his momentum finally stopped in a quick loss to Hyder Amil. Lee didn’t get knocked cleanly out, but he ate a ton of unanswered offense thanks to one of Amil’s usual swarming starts. The good news? Few fighters can keep up Amil’s pace as Lee tries to rebound, but the Korean should still have a tough fight against Santos, who steps in on late notice 10 pounds up from his usual weight class. Santos gets by on doggedness and durability, as he follows in the typical mold of his Chute Box teammates in focusing on offense and pressure over all else. Santos lands on the messier but more durable side of that spectrum, constantly marching forward while also being easy to outmaneuver against an opponent inclined to do so. Santos seemed to be carving out a niche as an action fighter through his first two UFC fights, but things have stalled out since his 2022 win over John Castaneda. His next win over Johnny Munoz was a surprisingly wrestling-heavy grind, and the last two years have seen Santos constantly pull out of fights. Perhaps this move up to 145 pounds finds Santos in better form. It should wind up as a nip-tuck war, with the read being that the Korean can land the cleaner offense. The pick is Lee via decision.

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