UFC Fight Night: Bader vs. Saint Preux

Ryan Bader (18-4) vs. Ovince Saint Preux (16-5)

Ryan Bader and Ovince Saint Preux look to make some noise in the light heavyweight class as they face each on Saturday in Bangor, ME.

"Darth" Bader enters this match on a 5-2 surge, which includes a two-fight winning streak, with his most recent victory coming against Rafael Cavalcante on June 14. In that match, Bader was able to win by decision with a dominating performance, holding sizable advantages in both significant strikes (53-10) and takedowns (7-0). The winning streak comes after Bader was knocked out in the first round by Glover Teixeira on September 4, 2013. Bader has taken on some of the best fighters in the sport, but has been unable to get victories against opponents like Lyoto Machida, Tito Ortiz and Jon Jones. The 31-year-old from Tempe is currently ranked No. 8 in the light heavyweight class, and has a big chance to move up the rankings in the class. However, that will not be an easy challenge as he faces an opponent in Saint Preux, who is currently ranked No. 10 in the class. Saint Preux enters this match on absolute fire, winning his past five fights. In his last bout against Ryan Jimmo on June 14, he showed how talented he is with a second-round submission by way of Kimura. During Saint Preux's winning streak, he has shown the versatility to win a fight in many different ways, winning by knockout, as well as by submission and technical decision. Hailing from Knoxville, the 31-year-old has a big chance to make some serious noise in the class. While Bader is the favorite, SAINT PREUX has the biggest opportunity of his career on Saturday, and will use his versatility to help get that signature win.

Saint Preux has 16 victories in his career, with half of them coming by way of knockout. However, he has shown the ability to win in other ways, posting four wins by both submission and decision. Ten of his victories have been first-round finishes, and he has won 13 of his past 14 matches. Both of these fighters are nearly identical when it comes to landing significant strikes (2.95 for Bader, 2.94 for Saint Preux), but Saint Preux is much more accurate when attempting those strikes (56%), compared to 44% for Bader. However, he must be careful to avoid taking shots from his opponent, as he defends against only 49% of his opponent’s attempts, while Bader defends 71% of his opponent’s attempts. If he is able to keep this fight on the ground, he has the striking to compete against Bader. However, if this match is taken to the mat, Bader will have a big advantage.

Bader has 18 victories in his career, with eight of them coming by decision. He also has seven wins by knockout and three by way of submission, and eight of his victories have been first-round finishes. Bader’s biggest advantage in this match will be his ability to do work on the ground, as he owns a takedown average of 3.54, compared to 1.94 for Saint Preux. However, he does have a struggle when it comes to landing his takedown attempts, completing only 45% of his attempts (Saint Preux converts on 60%). If Bader is able to take this fight to the ground, he must be able to capitalize. Both of these guys are in tremendous shape, so whichever fighter will be able to gain momentum early in this matchup should be able to get the win. Both of these fighters weigh 205 pounds with Saint Preux holding a slim one-inch height advantage.