Preview: UFC 281 Prelims

Order UFC 281 "Adesanya vs. Pereira" exclusively on ESPN+

Lightweights

Ottman Azaitar (13-0, 2-0 UFC) vs. Matt Frevola (9-3-1, 3-3-1 UFC)

ODDS: Azaitar (-115), Frevola (-105)

Azaitar’s UFC career has certainly been a ride. Born in Germany and representing his Moroccan heritage, Azaitar came to the UFC as a highly touted prospect out of the Middle East and lived up the hype quickly, scoring brutal first-round knockouts of Teemu Packalen and Khama Worthy. Things work for Azaitar much better than they should, as he does not look like a particularly imposing physical threat or a hard puncher, but people go down when he hits them; and based on his few regional fights to go any length of time, it appears that “Bulldozer” can carry that power into the later rounds. Azaitar’s career came screeching to a halt early in 2021. Ahead of his slated matchup against Frevola in Abu Dhabi, Azaitar and his team were caught violating COVID-19 safety protocols, allowing someone to sneak into his room and drop off what was claimed to be a bag of potatoes. Azaitar was apparently briefly released from the promotion before the UFC re-signed him, and the fight with Frevola is slated to happen nearly two years later. Frevola brings entertainment to the cage for better or for worse. Once Long Island’s “Steamrolla” builds up some momentum, he is prone to mixing in pressure striking and wrestling in a manner that brings non-stop action. However, it is that momentum-building that has been the catch. Frevola has been immediately caught cold a few times throughout his career, most notably in a 2021 loss to Terrance McKinney that lasted just seven seconds. If he can survive the early going, this could turn into some absolute madness, but the surest bet seems to be Azaitar closing the show by connecting with some early power. The pick is Azaitar via first-round knockout.

Jump To »
Carneiro vs. Riddell
Reyes vs. Spann
Blanchfield vs. McCann
Petroski vs. Turman
Azaitar vs. Frevola
Kowalkiewicz vs. Juarez
Choi vs. Trizano
Jackson vs. Arce
Ulberg vs. Negumereanu