2 fighters that stood out at UFC Vegas 88, 1 who failed to deliver

BEST: Mike Davis and Jaqueline Amorim stood out at UFC Vegas 88

Mike Davis and Jaqueline Amorim both entered the UFC with hype behind their names but faltered early in their promotional runs for different reasons. For Davis, injuries and inactivity have been his downfall despite having success in the few bouts he appeared in while Amorim would lose in her octagon debut to Sam Hughes as a large favorite.

Davis entered his UFC Vegas 88 matchup against Natan Levy once again as a big favorite and backed up his number with a dominant performance captivated by a second-round submission. The eye-opening win was his fourth straight and arguably most complete performance to date, potentially setting himself up for a ranked opponent in his next appearance.

Since losing to Gilbert Burns in his UFC debut on short notice, Davis has increased his output in four straight fights with wins over Thomas Gifford, Mason Jones, Viacheslav Borshchev, and Levy. Davis took home a Fight of the Night post-fight bonus in his UFC Fight Island 8 bout with Jones and has now showed off an improved wrestling and submission arsenal in his last two performances.

Amorim walked out as an underdog to Cory McKenna but would quickly prove the oddsmakers wrong with a submission win in just 1:38. Although an awkward ending, Amorim would ultimately take home an extra $50,000 with an additional Performance of the Night bonus.

The win for Amorim was not surprising as a former Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion and widely considered one of the best female grapplers of her era. Fans primarily had questions about her cardio and MMA potential following the loss to Hughes, but the Brazilian has now put together consecutive wins in dominant fashion.

Entering the fight with McKenna, Amorim last beat Montserrat Ruiz at UFC Vegas 78, receiving a 10-8 score in each of the first two rounds before finishing the fight with ground-and-pound in the final frame. Through nine professional MMA fights, Amorim now has seven first-round finishes all by submission.

In two talent-rich divisions, Davis and Amorim both proved their potential as possible rising contenders.