Preview: UFC Baku Prelims

The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday debuts in a new market and will do so with a healthy UFC on ABC 8 undercard this Saturday at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan. There’s a clear effort to provide some regional flavor, but that’s not at all present in the featured spot, where Oban Elliott and Seok Hyeon Ko—two welterweights who were unable to show up for work in May—are paired against each other in an odd bit of matchmaking. The most interesting bout of the bunch sees Tagir Ulanbekov look to defend his flyweight ranking against a late replacement and talented prospect in Azat Maksum, though Ismail Naurdiev gets a major opportunity in a middleweight clash with Jun Yong Park. Beyond that, heavyweight Hamdy Abdelwahab tries to stay undefeated, and two women’s bantamweight tilts should help sort out the lower reaches of the 135-pound weight class.

Now to the preview for the UFC on ABC 8 “Hill vs. Rountree” prelims:

Welterweights

Oban Elliott (12-2, 3-0 UFC) vs. Seok Hyeon Ko (11-2, 0-0 UFC)

ODDS: Elliott (-500), Ko (+380)

This may not represent the best matchmaking, but at least the UFC is salvaging things a bit by pairing Elliott with Ko after visa issues forced them off other cards. Elliott has been a pleasant surprise since his 2023 win on Dana White’s Contender Series, as “The Welsh Gangster” didn’t look like the type of fighter who would sustain success at the UFC level. Elliott put together solid but unspectacular wins over the course of a strong regional career, then looked much the same in his Contender Series victory. However, given that Elliott has both the gift of gab and some charisma, it wasn’t a shock that the UFC picked him up once his hand was raised. Elliott has stepped up his game in the year-plus since, showing himself to be an effective neutralizer with a knack for turning offense into defense, shutting down all three of his UFC opponents and knocking Bassil Hafez out in his last fight. This matchup against Ko serves as a step back, even if the UFC newcomer is dangerous enough to potentially cause the Welshman some problems. “The Korean Tyson” is in the same mold as a lot of prospects the UFC picks up nowadays—a decent athlete with some knockout power who hasn’t passed many major tests, suffering a few setbacks to better competition early in his career and winning a Contender Series fight that mostly highlighted his opponent’s weaknesses. Ko could be the type of fighter who improves greatly with some higher-level experience, but for now, he looks like an opponent that Elliott can stifle without much issue. The pick is Elliott via decision.

Jump To »
Ko vs. Elliott
Park vs. Naurdiev
Mullins vs. Zheleznyakova
Alekseeva vs. Sygula
Ulanbekov vs. Maksum
Abdelwahab vs. Usman