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The fifth UFC PPV event of the 2023 calendar year will be coming to Miami this Saturday, April 8th. The “Magic City” hasn’t seen a UFC fight in nearly 20 years since UFC 42, and they will surely not be disappointed with this return card. A headlined fight that has been one of the most anticipated rematches in quite some time—Pereira vs. Adesanya 2.  Dana White and UFC matchmakers decided to also sprinkle in some big-time bouts throughout the card that could easily have made their own fight night (Burns vs. Masvidal, Font vs. Yanez). Let’s dive into a breakdown of some of these intriguing fights and what we can be looking for Saturday night.

Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya 2

Why not start with the fight we all are waiting for? No need to hold it off any longer. Is Adesanya the better all-around fighter? Yes. Has Adesanya shown that? Yes. Is Pereira still 3-0 against Adesanya in MMA? Also, yes. That has to be a huge mental mountain to climb for Adesanya that cannot be understated. When a guy has your number it’s always in the back of your mind. For Adesanya to finally come out victorious and regain his middleweight belt, he is going to have to implement more grappling into this fight. Standing and striking with Pereira has not been a winning strategy. And as the most recent fight has shown, you can even be winning the fight but one mistake on the feet and Pereira will capitalize and 20 minutes of success will be for nothing. Although Pereira is already 35, with only four UFC fights to his name, he is only going to progress his skills in the octagon. I keep flip-flopping on who comes walks away with the belt, and I know I’m not the only one feeling that way. That just shows you how great of a fight this is going to be. Ultimately, I’m going to side slightly with Pereira in this one; however, I do not want to diminish how impactful and important Adesanya has been to the sport and all that he has accomplished. The man is one of the greatest to ever do it. 

Gilbert Burns vs. Jorge Masvidal

If you like an aggressive fighting style this fight will be the one for you. Heck, this fight will be for anyone really. The entertainment factor will be through the roof. Add on top of that the great storyline and title implications this fight has you have yourself a matchup that easily could have headlined its own card. It is well known to fight fans that the Miami blood runs strong through Masvidal. Born and raised, Masvidal looks to cement his thrown in the city. Burns, on the other hand, is looking to halt Masvidal’s storybook ending and stake his claim as the next title contender. We may be looking at Masvidal’s last fight in the UFC if he were to lose, as he has toyed with the idea in recent interviews. I believe Burns is one of the most underrated fighters in the sport. He has all the tools to be a world champion. He is coming off an impressive quick victory over Neil Magny while Masvidal has looked a little lost in his last few fights while also taking over a year off. All of this added up, I don’t see a way that Masvidal can pull off this upset. Burns is too locked in right now and is just the better fighter when it comes down to it. 

Chris Curtis vs Kelvin Gastelum

This is one fight I do want to touch on. This fight should be on the PPV card but somehow slipped down into the prelims. What excites me most about this fight isn’t exactly the matchup but more so one of the fighters in particular—Kelvin Gastelum. We are finally going to Gastelum back in action after nearly a year and a half and a couple of canceled bouts. I think people tend to forget that he was once a middleweight title contender. He has gone five rounds with some of the best—Whittaker, Cannonier, and Adesanya. Meanwhile, he still has hopes of regaining that status. A win over Curtis wouldn’t immediately jump him into the top 5 but if he does so in an impressive fashion he could see himself back in the top 10 and the UFC decision-makers might have some tough choices to make. 

Summary

If you’re a fight fan you’ve been long awaiting this card, and it’s finally here. If you aren’t exactly a hardcore fan yet and just want some Saturday night entertainment, well then this card should also be right up your alley. I’m looking forward to seeing some young faces make a name for themselves (Rosas Jr., Pyfer) while some old guns hope to fend off father time (Meerschaert, Masvidal). All in all, UFC 287 is going to be an action-packed card that with plenty of storylines being answered.