NEW FIGHTS ADDED TO UFC 235 INCLUDING FRANKIE SAENZ VS. MARLON VERA

Last week, we have news that UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was cleared by the Nevada State Athletic Commission to combat Anthony Smith. The UFC made that struggle official on the weekend, along with the March 2 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada is currently a go with all the GOAT looking to defend his name in the primary event.
Besides the confirmation of Jones vs. Smith, a couple other struggles for UFC 235 were also revealed over the weekend, and I’ll give my initial thoughts on these brand new matchups in today’s MMA odds and ends.
Frankie Saenz vs. Marlon Vera Because of an injury to Thomas Almeida, veteran Frankie Saenz is stepping up on short notice to resist the surging Marlon Vera at a bantamweight bout at UFC 235. Ariel Helwani of ESPN broke the news. Saenz (13-5) is 5-2 overall from the UFC and is coming from back-end decision wins over Henry Briones and Merab Dvalishvili. At one stage it seemed like he can get cut by the UFC after suffering a three-fight losing skid, but he has bounced back nicely since then. At age 38, this can be the last chance he has to make a title run.
Vera (12-5-1) is only 6-4-1 in the UFC but he’s fought a high level of competition inside the Octagon and his album does not do justice to the kind of fighter he is. Vera is coming off of back-to-back stoppage wins Guido Cannetti and Wuliji Buren and at age 26 is beginning to really come into his own as a fighter. No doubt Vera is going to be looking to keep this fight with Saenz around the feet while Saenz will be searching for the takedown. Although Saenz is a crafty veteran and will likely make this fight more competitive than the lineup will imply, it’s difficult to go against the younger Vera and I expect him to be a sizeable favorite to get the win.
Charles Byrd vs. Edmen Shahbazyan, UFC 235
Middleweights Charles Byrd and Edmen Shahbazyan are set to battle at UFC 235 too. This battle is official according to the UFC. Byrd (10-5) had a terrific UFC debut last spring when he filed John Phillips at the first round at UFC Fight Night 127. He was a gambling favorite for his next battle against Darren Stewart at UFC 228, however following a strong first round he faded badly and was brutally knocked out. At age 35, Byrd looks to be more of a gatekeeper rather than a late-blooming contender that some believed he might be following his successful stint on the Contender Series.
Shahbazyan (8-0) was undefeated heading to his UFC debut with all his wins coming from first-round knockout, but struggled in a split decision win over the above Stewart. He’d get the nod and at age 21 should learn a lot from that struggle, but he showed a lot of holes from Stewart a veteran like Byrd could exploit. I would still need to favor Shahbazyan somewhat just due to the age gap and the knockout power, but I have a feeling that this struggle is going to be more competitive than many want to think.
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