The UFC visits Orlando, Fla. on Saturday for UFC on FOX 28. The event is headlined by a featherweight bout between heavy-handed strikers Josh Emmett and Jeremy Stephens. In the co-main event, top-ranked women's strawweight contenders, Jessica Andrade and Tecia Torres meet in the hope of moving one step closer to a title bout.
Here are eight fights to watch before the event.
1. Josh Emmett vs. Ricardo Lamas - UFC on FOX 26 - December 16, 2017
Josh Emmett was unranked 2-1 underdog when he stepped into the octagon at UFC on FOX 26 to face the No. 3 ranked Ricardo Lamas in a featherweight tilt. The fight was Emmett's second at the 145-pound limit in the UFC. Emmett weighed in 2.5 pounds heavy for the contest, so there were questions about how he would look on fight night.
Every punch Emmett threw against Lamas was at full power. With time ticking down in the first round, Emmett had landed nine of 37 attempted strikes. When his 38th attempted strike landed, it turned out Lamas' lights. That punch, a left hook, ended the fight at 4:43 of the first stanza.
The victory rocketed Emmett to the No. 4 ranking in the featherweight division.
2. Jeremy Stephens vs. Dooho Choi - UFC Fight Night 124 - January 14, 2018
Dooho Choi was coming off a "Fight of the Year" worthy performance against Cub Swanson when he stepped into the octagon to face Jeremy Stephens at UFC Fight Night 124. Yes, Choi lost that three-round war with Swanson, but he solidified his reputation as one of the most aggressive strikers in the featherweight division in that contest.
Stephens became the first man to knock out Choi when he dropped him to the mat with a right hand and then finished the fight with powerful strikes on the ground in the second round of the bout.
The victory gave Stephens his second straight "Fight of the Night" bonus.
3. Jessica Andrade vs. Claudia Gadelha - UFC Fight Night 117 - September 23, 2017
Jessica Andrade was four months removed from dropping a five-round decision to UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk when she stepped into the octagon to face No. 1 ranked contender Claudia Gadelha, who had won two straight since her own decision loss to Jedrzejczyk.
Gadelha was more than a 3-1 favorite in the fight.
The two slugged it out from the opening bell. Early in the fight Gadelha opened a nasty cut on the forehead of her opponent, but that didn't slow the heavy-handed Andrade who opened up a cut next to the left eye of Gadelha before the end of the first round.
As the fight progressed, Andrade took control. She pressured, fought off takedowns and most importantly she landed a lot more strikes during the final 10 minutes of the bout. Andrade landed 194 strikes to Gadelha's 20 in the second and third rounds.
4. Tecia Torres vs. Juliana Lima - The Ultimate Fighter 25 Finale - July 7, 2017
That's how you get your first finish in the UFC! Tecia Torres with the choke on Julianna Lima! #TUF25Finale https://t.co/lSvN34mR5q
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) July 7, 2017
Tecia Torres has one finish in her professional MMA career, it came on July 7, 2017, when she faced the more experienced Juliana Lima.
Lima did her best to negate the speed advantage of her opponent early with a takedown, but she was unable to keep Torres on the mat. Torres used her strength and strong base to keep the fight against the cage for the majority of the first stanza.
Early in the second round Lima once again shot for a takedown. Torres quickly transitioned to the back of her opponent and promptly locked in a rear-naked choke. Lima tapped 53 seconds into the second stanza.
Not only was the victory the first stoppage win of Torres' career, it also earned her the first fight-night bonus of her UFC tenure.
5. Ovince Saint Preux vs. Yushin Okami - UFC Fight Night 117 - September 23, 2017
There have been five Von Flue choke submissions in UFC history. The holds namesake, Jason Von Flue, landed the first on January 16. 2006. More than eight years later, Saint Preux made it two when he stopped Ryan Jimmo at UFC 174. The three most recent Von Flue submissions all took place in 2017. Jordan Rinaldi stuck one on August 5. But it was Saint Preux, who had fans calling for the hold to be renamed the Von Preux, when he submitted Marcos Rogerio de Lima and Yushin Okami via the choke in back-to-back fights.
6. Ilir Latifi vs. Sean O'Connell - UFC Fight Night 81 - January 17, 2016
Ilir Latifi is not a tall light heavyweight. At 5-feet-10-inches, he usually gives up a significant height and reach advantage. When he faced Sean O'Connell, Latifi was shorter by three inches and had a reach disadvantage of a half inch, which actually made it one of his more evenly matched fights.
Latifi is a powerfully built fighter who uses his low center of gravity and wrestling skills when he can't get inside to put his powerful hands on his opponent's chin. He didn't need his wrestling against O'Connell. Latifi required just two strikes to end the fight at the 30-second mark of the first round.
7. Mike Perry vs. Jake Ellenberger - UFC Fight Night 108 - April 22, 2017
LIGHTS OUT.
Mike Perry knocks out Jake Ellenberger in dramatic fashion! #UFCNashville https://t.co/Ez75UFTFgk
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) April 23, 2017
Mike Perry opened his MMA career with nine straight knockout victories. He dropped a decision to Alan Jouban in his 10th fight when Jouban refused to engage the heavy-handed striker in a slugfest. Jake Ellenberger, who entered his fight against Perry with 19 career knockout wins of his own, did an excellent job of avoiding a war with Perry for the first round.
The tables turned in the second round. Perry hurt early in the second round with a left hook and then tried to launch an attack. Ellenberger tried to clinch to keep Perry from unloading his hands, but Perry had a surprise for his opponent. That surprise was a vicious right elbow that dropped Ellenberger to the mat.
The fight ended 65 seconds into the second stanza.
8. Max Griffin vs. Erick Montano - UFC Fight Night 98 - November 5, 2016
Max Griffin began his UFC career with a third-round TKO loss to Colby Covington. The former Tachi Palace welterweight champion wanted to rebound from that defeat, the first stoppage setback of his career when he faced Erick Montano a few months later.
Bounce back he did.
Griffin stunned Montano with a short right. Once his opponent hit the mat, Griffin unleashed a torrent of ground strikes that forced the referee to halt the fight just 54 seconds after it began.
