5 great UFC fights to look forward to in March

#4: Paddy Pimblett vs. Rodrigo Vargas – UFC Fight Night 204

Paddy Pimblett could become a superstar with a win over Rodrigo Vargas in London

The UFC’s return to London on March 19th is set to be headlined by a major heavyweight bout between prospect Tom Aspinall and veteran contender Alexander Volkov. While that fight sounds like an excellent one, it arguably isn’t the most intriguing one booked on the card.

That award goes to the lightweight clash between Paddy Pimblett and Rodrigo Vargas. Sure, neither ‘The Baddy’ nor ‘Kazula’ are currently close to a title shot or even ranked in the top ten, but once the show comes around, it’s likely that this fight will garner all the attention.

Simply put, Pimblett is one of the brightest prospects to hit the promotion in some time, with his natural charisma and ability on the microphone drawing obvious comparisons to Conor McGregor’s early days in the octagon.

Can ‘The Baddy’ actually fight, though? Judging by his debut win over Luigi Vendramini, the answer is yes. Sure, he took way too many punches than he probably should have done – but he also displayed vicious finishing skills to take out his Brazilian foe in the first round.

Vargas is probably another step up for the Liverpudlian prospect – he’s 1-2 in the octagon, but one of those losses came via DQ after he knocked out Brok Weaver with an illegal knee. Essentially, ‘Kazula’ is a highly dangerous and aggressive fighter in all areas.

However, that aggression may well play into Pimblett’s hands, allowing ‘The Baddy’ to continue his rise to stardom. If he can pull out a big win in front of his countrymen, then his hype train may become hard to slow down – making this one of March’s most intriguing fights.

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#3: Curtis Blaydes vs. Chris Daukaus – UFC Fight Night 205

Curtis Blaydes may still be the most dangerous opponent for the likes of Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane

With respect to the clash between Tom Aspinall and Alexander Volkov in London, next month’s most intriguing heavyweight bout is set to headline the Fight Night event on March 26th. The fight will see Curtis Blaydes face off with Chris Daukaus.

Blaydes suffered a devastating knockout loss at the hands of Derrick Lewis in the early part of 2021, but while the defeat derailed his title hopes temporarily, he bounced back well in September by outpointing Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

Thanks to his awesome wrestling skills and heavy hands, at his best, ‘Razor’ may well still be the biggest threat to the division’s top two fighters – champion Francis Ngannou and former interim champ Ciryl Gane.

However, if he wants to get close to a title shot, he’ll need to overcome a tricky opponent in Daukaus. The Philadelphia-based heavyweight is coming off his own knockout loss to Lewis, but prior to that, he’d reeled off four wins in the octagon, all via stoppage.

Quite how he’ll deal with Blaydes’ powerful takedowns is a massive question mark, but it’s safe to say that he possesses the kind of punching power that could give ‘Razor’ a lot of problems on the feet, making this one a tricky fight to pick.

Overall, then, with the winner likely to move directly into title contention, this is one heavyweight bout in March that can’t be missed.