Preview: UFC Fight Night 199 ‘Lewis vs. Daukaus’

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Lightweights

NR | Mateusz Gamrot (19-1, 2-1 UFC) vs. #12 LW | Diego Ferreira (17-4, 8-4 UFC)

ODDS: Gamrot (-195), Ferreira (+168)

This is the last chance for Ferreira to redeem what has been a particularly disappointing 2021 campaign. Ferreira started off his UFC career well enough after his 2014 debut, winning three of his first five bouts and only losing to Beneil Dariush and Dustin Poirier. Ferreira then missed most of 2016 and all of 2017 due to a drug suspension, but he hit the ground running upon his 2018 return, scoring two finishes to set up what turned into a breakout 2019 run. Ferreira is skilled everywhere, playing his powerful striking and slick grappling off each other to make his opponent pick from some bad options—a formula that worked perfectly against Rustam Khabilov and Mairbek Taisumov, as he made each highly touted Russian look one-dimensional in what turned out as clear wins. That seemed to put Ferreira firmly in the category of underrated but dangerous fighters who have trouble getting fights, but Anthony Pettis surprisingly stepped up to face Ferreira right before the pandemic, giving the Brazilian the opportunity for a high-profile win that figured to set the table for bigger things. Instead, injuries kept Ferreira out of action for the rest of the year, and 2021 saw his momentum grind to standstill after losses to Dariush and Gregor Gillespie. Dariush proved to be a talented enough grappler to get the better of Ferreira once again, while Gillespie simply seemed to break him later in the second round of a high-paced affair. Inching up on 37 years old, Ferreira badly needs a win against Gamrot to stay relevant as any sort of potential lightweight contender. Poland’s Gamrot was a highly touted addition by the UFC in 2020—and rightfully so. “Gamer” came to the promotion with an undefeated record and two-division champion status in KSW, beating a strong level of competition on his way to the Octagon. That made his debut, a split decision loss to fellow newcomer Guram Kutateladze, extremely disappointing. Kutateladze is a talented prospect, but it was a surprise that Gamrot never turned the corner and fully took over the fight, instead engaging in a back-and-forth affair that went against him on the scorecards. Gamrot has remedied that in 2021, knocking out Scott Holtzman in April to get back in the win column before immediately taking down and submitting Jeremy Stephens in July. That finishing ability could serve Gamrot well in this pairing, but this still looks like Ferreira’s fight to lose if the Pole cannot get him out of the Octagon in short order. Gamrot is well-rounded, but he does not set the type of pace or have the level of grappling skill that has taken Ferreira out of his game thus far. In a close and well-matched fight, the pick is Ferreira via decision.

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