Deiveson Figueiredo is the UFC Abu Dhabi fighter to watch

Former two-time UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo moved up to bantamweight in December and is 2-0, including a win over a former champion. Figueiredo will face former title challenger Marlon "Chito" Vera at UFC Abu Dhabi. Figueiredo wants to add another title to his resume as his run at flyweight is over and Vera is the perfect opponent for him as he is coming off a loss to bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley at UFC 299.

UFC Abu Dhabi will feature a bantamweight matchup between contenders Cory Sandhagen and Umar Nurmagomedov. The co-main event, originally between a returning Nick Diaz and Vicente Luque, was scrapped due to travel issues. Top prospect Shara "Bullet" Magomedov will face veteran Michal Oleksiejczuk instead. Figueiredo and Vera will serve as the featured bout.

Figueiredo started his career 15-0, joining the UFC in 2017 and going 6-1 with the organization before getting a flyweight title shot. Figueiredo holds wins over former ONE champion Jarred Brooks, current flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja, and the Ultimate Fighter 24 winner Tim Elliott.

Figueiredo challenged Joseph Benavidez for the vacant title at UFC Norfolk, but Figueiredo, a fight in which he won, missed weight and was ineligible to win the title. At UFC Fight Island 2, Figueiredo and Benavidez ran it back with Figueiredo claiming his first flyweight title. After defending his title against Alex Perez, Figueiredo would face Brandon Moreno four straight times, with two of those fights winning fight of the night honors, going 1-2-1 and winning back the flyweight title. After losing to Moreno at UFC 283, Figueiredo opted a move up to bantamweight.

Figueiredo made his bantamweight debut at UFC Austin against Rob Font and then would finish former bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt at UFC 300. Figueiredo opened the groundbreaking card with a second-round finish of Garbrandt, who was on a two-fight win streak after returning to his former division. Figueiredo, who is ranked at No. 6, will now face the No. 4-ranked Vera.

Figueiredo has been seen training with UFC Hall of Famer and former lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov ahead of this fight, whose cousin Umar is fighting in the main event. Figueiredo is statistically better on the ground than Vera, and if he can pressure "Chito" using his strikes to set up takedowns, it could be a long night for the former title challenger.

Deiveson Figueiredo fights Marlon 'Chito' Vera at UFC Abu Dhabi

Vera challenged for his first title in March and is a 23-fight veteran, going on three separate win streaks during his time with the UFC. Vera holds the record for most division finishes, total fight time, and submission attempts while being in the top five in total strikes landed, significant strikes landed, knockdowns landed, fight night bonuses, wins, submission wins, and KO/TKO wins. Vera holds some of those wins over current bantamweight champion O'Malley and former champions Frankie Edgar and Dominick Cruz and is now looking to add another former champion in Figueiredo to his resume. Vera faced O'Malley in a rematch for the title after their first fight ended with a controversial finish, as Vera was outclassed throughout five rounds, but showed his toughness.

Figueiredo and Vera match up well together. Both are black belts in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, but I would give Vera the slight edge in striking due to his height and reach advantage with Figueiredo being the smaller fighter. Vera has a 70% takedown defense but struggles with guys who pressure and stick and move, something Figueiredo has been known for in the past. Though this could be a fight where Vera can have more success than his last, Figueiredo looks to be getting better in every fight since moving up and I think that continues here. Figueiredo can be a dark horse for the bantamweight title and jump up the rankings with a win over the accomplished Vera.