Preview: UFC on ABC 2 Prelims

Heavyweights

Yorgan De Castro (6-2 | 1-2 UFC) vs. Jarjis Danho (5-1-1, 1 N/C | 0-1-1 UFC)
Odds: De Castro (-300), Danho (+250)

This should provide some unranked heavyweight action, for better or for worse. De Castro's an odd fighter, but for a bit there it looked like his approach might work. The Cape Verdean puts his squat frame to good use by chopping his opponents down with leg kicks, and he's proven to have some fast hands against defensively open opponents; his UFC debut saw Justin Tafa charge in and eat an absolutely brutal knockout punch. But things have turned south in De Castro's last two fights. De Castro couldn't do much with the much larger and more athletic Greg Hardy, and his bout against Carlos Felipe turned into a sweaty mess where Felipe was much more willing to throw offense and move forward. De Castro looks to stop his skid against Germany's Danho, who's a complete mystery at this point; Danho was a raw prospect entering the UFC to begin with, and it's now been over four and a half years since his last bout against Christian Colombo. Danho moves well for a man his size and has some strength and knockout power, but his two UFC bouts in 2016 exposed his inexperience; Danho only had about a round of good cardio in him at the time and didn't react particularly well when his opponents could throw effective offense. Danho could be a much more comfortable fighter or in much better shape now, but it's hard to bank on much of anything given his long layoff. If he shows up in anything like his old form, De Castro should be able to overcome some early trouble - or cut him off at the pass to begin with via those leg kicks - and win some slow-paced rounds late. The pick is De Castro via decision.

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