Preview: UFC Nashville Prelims

Lightweights

Mitch Ramirez (8-2, 0-1 UFC) vs. Mike Davis (11-3, 4-2 UFC)

ODDS: Davis (-1000); Ramirez (+650)

The second fight out of the gate at UFC Nashville features a pound-for-pound level clash of nicknames if nothing else, as “The Fight Stalker” and “Beast Boy” sound like fictitious handles out of a video game that didn’t want to license any actual IP. Beyond that, however, Ramirez vs. Davis looks like a serious mismatch. A late starter in MMA, Ramirez didn’t start stalking fights professionally until he was almost 27, and while he had solid success in western regional shows, his 2023 DWCS outing against Carlos Prates showed an enormous gulf between Ramirez and the future welterweight contender.

Ramirez made it to the UFC two fights later and in the more appropriate 155-pound division, but against Thiago Moises, the talent gap was still glaring, as Moises, who is not generally thought of as a killer on the feet, completely destroyed Ramirez with eight or nine leg kicks. Ramirez is an aggressive striker with decent power, but lack of standout athleticism, poor defense and the struggle to make any adjustments as Moises progressively sawed his front foot off seem to indicate a low ceiling in the UFC.

None of that is good news heading into the matchup with Davis. “Beast Boy” came up short in his most recent outing against Fares Ziam, but it was a much closer affair than the 30-27 scores implied, and it did little to change the scouting report. Davis is a fluid athlete with the ability to finish the fight wherever it goes, even in his opponent’s wheelhouse; witness Davis easily arm-triangling judoka Natan Levy, or going shot-for-shot with decorated kickboxer Viacheslav Borshchev in his two fights previous to the Ziam loss.

While Davis can be caught on the feet or outgrappled by the right foe, and lost to Ziam at least partly because he let his foe control the pace, range, and location of the fight, Ramirez is unlikely to do any of those things. Ramirez is a hard hitter, but no more so than Borshchev or Gilbert Burns, and outside of being a fast starter, he does not generally control close fights. Meanwhile, Davis’ diverse and potent offensive arsenal lines up well with Ramirez’s known liabilities. The pick is Davis by second-round knockout.



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Ramirez vs. Davis
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