UFC Fight Night 42 Adds Three Bouts For May 10 Card In Cincinatti
The UFC hasn’t returned to Cincinnati, Ohio, since 2007, but that’s about to change this May. UFC Fight Night 42 has been booked for May 10 at Cincinnati’s U.S. Bank Arena, and the promotion has wasted little time in adding three bouts to the card.
The first is a heavyweight tilt between surging Australian Soa Palelei and the debuting Ruan Potts. Palelei recently made short work of noted striker Pat Barry at last December’s UFC Fight Night 33 in Brisbane. The impressive victory gained “Hulk” a ten-fight win streak, but he shouldn’t look past Potts. He’s a former EFC Africa champion who should be a force to be reckoned with. If he’s not, the “Hulk” will undoubtedly smash him inside the first round.
The second announced bout is a middleweight affair between Ed Herman and Rafael “Sapo” Natal. This is a rescheduling of a fight that was supposed to go down at UFC 167. That is, until Michael Bisping got hurt and Mark Munoz needed an opponent for UFC Fight Night 30. In stepped Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida, leaving a vacant spot opposite Kennedy at UFC Fight Night 31’s main event.
Natal filled that void, eating a huge left hook from Kennedy that had him splayed on the canvas towards the end of the first round. The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) veteran Herman hasn’t fared much better as of late, most recently dropping a decision to a returning Thales Leites at UFC 167.
The Colorado-based veteran has seen better days, dropping three out of his past four trips to the octagon (although his UFC 150 decision loss to Jake Shields was changed to a no contest after Shields failed the drug screen). He needs a win in the worst way but he’ll have his hands full with the dangerous ‘Sapo.’
The final announced bout is a welterweight struggle between Ben Wall and Justin Salas. Previously undefeated Wall received a rude awakening in his UFC debut, losing to Alex Garcia via technical knockout. Salas didn’t fare much better in his last bout, submitting to a rear naked choke from Thiago Tavares at UFC Fight Night 32 in Brazil. He’s lost two out of three and could be headed back to the regional circuit if he fails to defeat Wall.
So the UFC is going back to Cincinnati, but they aren’t exactly giving Ohio MMA fans much to get excited about, at least not yet. What it seems like is they are trying to figure out which fighters to cut, and a loss at UFC Fight Night 42 will greatly help that cause.
Is this just another FOX Sports 1 card destined to tank in the ratings, or is the best yet to come?
