The best and worst from UFC Fight Night 153: Gustafsson vs. Smith

#2 Worst: Is the UFC spreading itself too thin?

Acceptable but forgettable fights like Christos Giagos vs. Damir Hadzovic are becoming too common in the UFC

Last weekend saw a rare break from the UFC, with no show from MMA’s largest promotion, but based on last night – and the last handful of Fight Night cards – perhaps more breaks and fewer shows are needed.

I know the UFC has a quota of ESPN+ shows to fill, but despite fixing a lot of the problems that they had during the Fox Sports 1 days – mainly the slow pacing – it still feels like the promotion is spreading itself too thin right now.

Most of these Fight Night cards have some good/great fights and finishes spattered within them, but what tends to link them all is a feeling that none of them are properly memorable.

The UFC now has so many interchangeable, mid-level fighters – think Christos Giagos, Daniel Teymur and Lina Lansberg from last night - who are perfectly decent to watch that everything tends to merge into one, meaning genuinely outstanding performances like Aleksandar Rakic’s tonight – or Michel Pereira’s a couple of weeks ago – can easily become lost in the shuffle.

There’s no real way to solve this issue as long as the demand from ESPN+ for UFC shows is there, but with the interest levels in the sport seemingly lower than they’ve been in a few years, a ton of acceptable but forgettable fights like last night’s won’t help the UFC’s cause.