Former light heavyweight title challenger Dominick Reyes looks to snap a three-fight slide as he returns to action against Ryan Spann on Saturday night.
It’s been well over a year since Reyes last competed and a strange second career chapter for the talented fighter from Hesperia, California. After winning his first dozen fights, including each of his first five UFC appearances, Reyes faced Jon Jones for the light heavyweight title at UFC 247, dropping a unanimous decision in a bout that many believed he won.
Jones ultimately vacated and Reyes faced off with Jan Blachowicz for the vacant title at UFC 253, where he was knocked out in the second round. Six months later, he suffered the same fate against current champ Jiri Prochazka.
Through his first eight UFC starts, Spann is 6-2 with four finishes, but it’s his setbacks that currently dictate his standing in the division, not his triumphs, as the Fortis MMA man suffered first-round stoppage defeats in his first two attempts to really push forward in the rankings. He got back into the win column with a first-round submission win over Ion Cutelaba, showing greater poise in the chaos, and looks to maintain that when he steps in opposite Reyes this weekend.
A victory isn’t going to carry either man into immediate title contention, but it will bring the winner closer, and a definitive victory for either party will clear up some of the questions that continue to be asked about each of them.
