The UFC’s eighth straight weekend with an event during a run of nine in a row takes the company to the South American nation of Uruguay for the first time, as the capital city of Montevideo plays host to UFC on ESPN+ 14.
The main event features an adopted South American, Valentina Shevchenko. The Lima, Peru resident by way of Kyrgyzstan seeks to make the second successful title defense of her flyweight belt when she meets up with Liz Carmouche.
Carmouche (13-6 MMA, 5-4 UFC), for her part, has been a trailblazer in the sport of women’s mixed martial arts, but has never won the big one. She does, however, own the only stoppage victory anyone has ever put on Shevchenko (17-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC) in her MMA career, back in 2010.
While this show isn’t the heaviest on star power, it’s sneaky with interesting storylines. So let’s break down six burning questions heading into UFC on ESPN+ 14, which takes place Saturday at Antel Arena in Montevideo, Uruguay. The card streams on ESPN+.
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Can Valentina Shevchenko avenge her only stoppage loss?
When Carmouche was announced as the next challenger for Shevchenko’s flyweight championship, there was a noticeable contingent on social media who turned thumbs down on the decision.
Shevchenko wasn’t among them.
Why wouldn’t “Bullet” want this fight? In a martial arts career which has spanned a combined 81 MMA, kickboxing, and boxing matches, she’s only been stopped once: by Carmouche. And while that doctor stoppage loss at something called “C3 Fights: Red River Rivalry” in Oklahoma in 2010 might seem like a million years ago, a competitor like Shevchenko isn’t about to pass on the opportunity to right a wrong nearly a decade in the making.
And besides, it’s not like this is the sort of walkover some have painted this to be. Carmouche has won four of her past five, and her only loss in that span, a split decision to Alexis Davis, was highly debatable.
So yes, this fight’s a big deal to the champion, and it’s against a foe who will give you a battle, win or lose, so you best expect the best version of “Bullet” to show up on Saturday.
Can Liz Carmouche add a world title to her considerable legacy?
If Carmouche never fought again, her legacy in the sport is already secure.
The San Diego-based “Girl-rilla” is a trailblazer. She was the first openly LGBT competitor to compete for a major promotion with Strikeforce. She competed in the first women’s fight in UFC history when she challenged Ronda Rousey for the bantamweight title in the main event of UFC 157. And she went into the history books as the first fighter ever to win a legally sanctioned MMA fight at Madison Square Garden in New York when she beat Katlyn Chookagian via decision in the opening matchup of UFC 205.
But Carmouche would trade all of that for the opportunity to say she’s won a world title. She lost a competitive fight to Marloes Coenen for the Strikeforce belt in 2011. She put a scare into Rousey before losing via armbar at UFC 157. Now she’s got one more chance, one that she thought she might never get, to add “world champion” to a pioneering legacy.
Can Vicente Luque move into the welterweight elite?
Remember that wild brawl Vicente Luque got into with Bryan Barberena at UFC on ESPN 1? Sure you do. That crazytown throwdown remains on the short list of “Fight of the Year” candidates as summer turns into fall.
Luque’s next fight was supposed to be against Neil Magny, the sort of high-profile matchup which could have propelled Luque even further up the welterweight ranks, but Magny had to pull out due to a U.S. Anti-Doping Agency suspension.
Luque (16-6-1 MMA, 9-2 UFC) did what he had to do against late sub Derrick Krantz at UFC Rochester, TKOing him in the first round, but it’s not the sort of win which moves you forward.
Now he’s got that chance, with a bout against Mike Perry (13-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC), who likes to brawl and make things exciting. Luque is 9-1 in his past 10, and all nine wins are finishes. Don’t be surprised if this, too, is a thriller, and another win should finally get Luque’s name on to the list of real contenders.
Is it ‘Platinum’ Perry’s time?
If Mike Perry’s stardom was a puzzle, all the pieces are there, but they simply need to be put together.
The fighter nicknamed “Platinum” has proven his toughness and durability. He’s capable of creating exciting fights and has three post-fight bonuses over the past two-and-a-half years to show for it.
Perry’s also got a checkered past and can make questionable statements, but he wears his heart on his sleeve and isn’t afraid to express his vulnerabilities, which makes him someone fans can both love to hate or simply love.
The puzzle pieces he hasn’t quite put together yet? Getting it all right on a consistent basis. He looked ready to break through after a pair of knockouts in 2014, then dropped three of his next four. Now, he’s coming off a tremendous win in a “Fight of the Night” performance against Alex Oliveira in April. He’s got a chance to put on a show against another exciting competitor in the red-hot Luque. This could be just he fight to take “Platinum” Perry to the next level.
Can ‘No Time’ get it back together in time?
Remember when Volkan Oezdemir was on the fast track to the UFC light heavyweight title? “No Time” announced his presence in the UFC with what was considered an upset split-decision win over Ovince Saint Preux, then smoked Misha Cirkunov and Jimi Manuwa in a combined one minute, 10 seconds. It appeared the next big thing at 205 pounds was on our hands.
Since then … well, he got steamrolled by Daniel Cormier in a title fight at UFC 220. Then finished by Anthony Smith. Then Oezdemir proclaimed himself a brand-new fighter, but dropped a close decision to Dominick Reyes at UFC London.
Now Oezdemir (15-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) is more than two years’ removed from the win over Manuwa, and it appears “No Time” is almost out of time. Except, this is the UFC light heavyweight division, where you can hang around forever as long as things don’t get too bad, and if you’re someone like Jan Blachowicz, you can find yourself turning things around many years into your UFC career.
Which helps make Oezdemir’s fight with another perennial tough out in the division in Ilir Latifi, as they appear finally set to meet in their third attempt to make the fight, so interesting. Latifi (14-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC), too, has plugged away for a long time, and is also trying to put together that elusive run to the top.
If Oezdemir isn’t going to be remembered just as a guy who got rushed into a title fight too fast and never was the same, then he’s going to have to turn things around starting now.
Can the ‘Tiny Tornado’ cut a new path?
Tecia Torres long seemed right on the cusp of strawweight title contention. The only loss in her first seven UFC fights was a decision against Rose Namajunas, which is hardly something to hang your head over. A three-fight win streak dominated by a one-sided decision over Endeavor-favored client Michelle Waterson put Torres (10-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) on the short list at 115 pounds.
Then she got to the big dogs of the division, like Jessica Andrade and Joanna Jedrzejcyzk, and Torres’ patient, point-fighting style wasn’t enough to get the job done. Nor did a move from American Top Team to Colorado Springs seem to help, as she dropped a third straight fight at UFC 235 to the up-and-coming Weili Zhang.
Now, Torres faces another up-and-comer in Marina Rodriguez (11-0-1 MMA, 1-0-1 UFC), who is unbeaten in her two UFC fights. Can Torres forge a new path? We’ll find out.
