Fiziev-Gamrot shapes up to a classic striker-vs-grappler matchup. Gamrot averages 4.5 takedowns per 15 minutes, but Fiziev’s takedown defense ranks fourth all-time among lightweights at a 90 percent clip, and has earned eight of his 12 professional wins via knockout. The winner of this fight will likely get another chance to catapult themselves into the title picture, so the stakes are critical as the title goes up for grabs weeks later.
Smack in the middle of Fiziev-Gamrot and UFC 294 is a main event between the surging Grant Dawson and veteran fan-favorite Bobby Green. Dawson, who is unbeaten through nine UFC fights, seems to have rounded into form since moving up to lightweight in March 2021. A mauling-style grappler with slick jiu jitsu, Dawson has made a habit of earning rear naked choke submissions (four of his eight UFC wins came via rear naked choke).
He faces a solid test for his first five-round fight in Green, a 46-fight veteran who has faced the toughest in the division since joining the roster from Strikeforce in 2013. Green most recently earned a last-second submission win over former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson and headlined a fight night in February 2022 against Makhachev.
