Preview: UFC Paris Prelims

Lightweights

Kaue Fernandes (10-2) vs. Harry Hardwick (13-3-1)

Odds: Fernandes (-180); Hardwick (+140)

The UFC makes lemonade out of lemons here, as Cage Warriors featherweight champ Hardwick steps up on less than a week’s notice to replace Fares Ziam against Fernandes. While the newcomer might not get the same love from the Paris crowd as native son Ziam would have, he is one of Europe’s best fighters in his weight range and would likely have gotten a good look from the UFC within the next year anyway.

Fernandes joined the UFC as a mildly interesting Brazilian prospect a couple of year ago, then leveled up to “very interesting” with a massive upset of Guram Kutateladze in March. He is a rangy lightweight with a diverse striking arsenal including some fast, powerful kicks that he willingly throws to all levels. Fernandes’ lone UFC loss saw him get outwrestled and generally manhandled by Marc Diakiese, indicating that he might be vulnerable to similar bullying in the future, but against Kutateladze, who excels at Diakiese-style grindfests, he managed to stay upright and busy enough to win all three rounds.

Hardwick is very unlikely to try and embrace any kind of grind on Saturday anyway. In what feels like a theme for this undercard, both fighters in this matchup favor the same kind of fight; in this case, a fast-paced kickboxing match that moves quickly from phone-booth range to exchanging kicks on the outside. Hardwick will certainly give up some size and bulk to Fernandes, but he is a lanky featherweight who should not be at too much of a disadvantage in reach. At his best “Houdini” is a good MMA boxer with power in both hands who throws in combination. He has a solid kicking game of his own, even if he isn’t quite the head kick sniper Fernandes is.

Again, this matchup is a case of the UFC doing its best to salvage a fight and ensure that Fernandes’ training camp wasn’t for nothing, and by that standard it succeeds spectacularly. Hardwick is probably going to drop back down to 145 pounds after Saturday, and should have some staying power in his true weight class, but in this matchup he will give up reach and power without enjoying much of a speed advantage. Expect Fernandes to carry all three rounds in a fun, fast-paced scrap, though a late TKO would not be out of the question, especially if the Brazilian starts landing big kicks early.



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