The UFC heads to Singapore for the second time this week, and the women step into the spotlight as former bantamweight champion Holly Holm will face Bethe Correia, who had a shot at the title once.
Holm (10-3) has lost three in a row and has been trending in the wrong direction ever since she beat Ronda Rousey. However, her latest loss – the defeat to Germaine de Randamie in February for the featherweight title – was highly controversial, to say the least. Correia (10-2-1) has a win, two losses and a draw in her last four fights. While she is solid on the mat, she doesn’t go there that much. She might not want to try and stand with Holm, a world-class boxer and kickboxer who thrives on those that try to rush at her. Holm is an excellent counterpuncher that needs a win badly, and she’ll be hungry in Singapore, while Correia might be fighting for her UFC career. She’s posted at -600 for this fight while Correia is at +400.
Heavyweights Andrei Arlovski (25-14, 1 NC) and Marcin Tybura (15-2) will meet in Singapore in a match the oddsmakers expect Tybura to win. He’s listed at -240 while Arlovski is at +190. Arlovski is a former champion that has come back down to Earth. After a surprising six-fight winning streak, he’s lost four in a row by stoppage with three by knockouts. Tybura has won two straight, and while he is known for his grappling and submissions those two wins have come by knockout. That doesn’t bode well for Arlovski, who has been knocked out 10 times now in his career. His chin doesn’t seem to be getting any better. That being said, he still does possess knockout power and Tybura will have to watch for that.
Dong Hyun Kim (22-3-1) enters his welterweight bout with Colby Covington (11-1) with plenty of momentum. He has won three straight since losing to current champion Tyron Woodley. Covington has also won three in a row. Covington is known for his wrestling and the fact that he has a big gas tank. That should come in handy against Kim, who keeps on coming. Kim is a judo artist who is excellent at takedowns, but Covington’s best attribute is his wrestling. If he manages to get on top of Kim, it could be lights out for the South Korean.
Finally, a welterweight contest opens the main card as former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos (25-9) takes on Tarec Saffiedine (16-6). This will be the first match at 170 pounds for dos Anjos, who was a massive lightweight, but his weight cut hurt him badly when he lost his belt to Eddie Alvarez. He did look better in a loss to Tony Ferguson, but health-wise, welterweight is probably better for dos Anjos as he gets older. Saffiedine has lost three of his last four, and the former Strikeforce champion has battled a number of injuries since joining the UFC. He’ll probably want to keep this standing up, which suits dos Anjos just fine. He could be even more powerful than he was at 155 pounds. Dos Anjos will be looking to announce his arrival to the 170-pound division with a bang.