Athletes
Fighters on the Rise | UFC Fight Night: Burns vs Morales
Focusing In On A Trio Of Ascending Talents Set To Compete On Saturday Evening
For the first time in six weeks, the action from inside the Octagon will emanate from the UFC APEX this Saturday, as the mixed martial arts leader returns home following events in Miami, Kansas City, Des Moines, and Montreal.
Headlined by a fascinating welterweight matchup between Top 10 stalwart and former title challenger Gilbert Burns and unbeaten rising star and Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Michael Morales, this weekend’s slate offers a strong mix of familiar names, promising newcomers, and ascending talents looking to continue building on recent successes.
Saturday's Full Fight Card Preview
Here’s a closer look at three of those up-and-coming athletes you should be paying extra attention to on Saturday in the latest edition of Fighters on the Rise.
Nursulton Ruziboev
The middleweight division has been undergoing a great number of changes over the last several months, with veterans sliding back and new names emerging as contenders, and after a one-fight foray to welterweight, Ruziboev returned to the 185-pound ranks earlier this year and re-established himself as an emerging person of interest.
Nursulton Ruziboev Knocks Out Eric McConico In Round 1 | UFC Seattle
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Nursulton Ruziboev Knocks Out Eric McConico In Round 1 | UFC Seattle
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Standing six-foot-four and brandishing undeniable power, Ruziboev dominated Eric McConico in Seattle towards the end of February, out-striking the MMA Lab product in the opening round before quickly dispatching him 33 seconds into the middle stanza. The win not only put the native of Uzbekistan back in the win column, but also elevated his record to 3-0 inside the Octagon when competing at middleweight, with each of those wins coming inside the distance.
Fighting out of Marquez MMA in Philadelphia, “Black” has all the makings of someone that could be a threat to creep into the rankings and ruin some nights in the future. His size, length and power make him a dangerous matchup for anyone, and working in a room that includes fellow middleweights Joe Pyfer and Andre Petroski, as well as welterweight mauler Sean Brady, ensures that he’s getting high-level training and coaching every step of the way.
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This weekend, he makes his second start of the year opposite Dustin Stoltzfus, a Dana White’s Contender Series grad who has enjoyed a little more success as of late, but overall has struggled to find consistency inside the Octagon. While he enters off a first-round stoppage win over Marc-Andre Barriault and has earned wins in three of his last five, the Pennsylvania-born, German-based middleweight is just 3-5 under the UFC banner since earning his contract with an injury-stoppage win over Pyfer in the summer of 2020.
Ruziboev’s drop to welterweight always felt odd, and while he managed to go the distance against surging contender Joaquin Buckley last spring in St. Louis, this is clearly the right division for him and where he has the best chance to make real headway. If the tall and rangy finisher can collect another impressive victory this weekend, he should garner another step up in competition later in the year and start generating a little more buzz as he works his way forward in the division.
Melquizael Costa
Already 2-0 this year, Costa hustles right back into action on Saturday evening in what should be a highly entertaining scrap with fellow “frequent fighter” Julian Erosa.
The 28-year-old Brazilian arrives in Las Vegas riding a three-fight winning streak and looking for his fourth victory in the last 12 months, having posted a third-round submission finish over Shayilan Nuerdanbieke last June before registering wins over Andre Fili and Christian Rodriguez already this year. In total, Costa is 4-2 in the UFC, but, like Ruziboev, he’s unbeaten when competing in his natural weight class, as each of his twin setbacks have come when he’s stepped up to lightweight on short notice.
Costa is part of the ever-growing group of fighters that showed promise in their debut loss up a division, and have since made hay in more familiar and favorable surroundings. He’s worked to pull back on the aggression just a little, leaning on his grappling a little more and accepting the opportunities that are presented to him, rather than pressing to create openings. His submission win over Fili was an illustration of how quickly he can pounce on a mistake, while his victory over Rodriguez highlighted the growth he’s shown since those early UFC appearances.
Stepping in with Erosa is a lateral move in terms of the level of competition he’s faced as of late, but the Xtreme Couture representative has similarly been rolling and surely has no interest in slowing down. After submitting Rodriguez last summer in Denver, the 34-year-old former Ultimate Fighter contestant returned to action a few weeks back in Miami, running through Darren Elkins to earn his third straight win and push his record to 8-3 since returning to the UFC during the pandemic.
This is a perfect test for Costa at this moment, as Erosa is a chaos agent and someone that has the potential to draw opponents into his style of fight, which is usually a low-hands, heavy-volume brawl. If the streaking Brazilian can remain measured and find a way to extend his winning streak while halting Erosa’s run of success, we could see him standing opposite someone with a number next to their name in the back half of the year.
HyunSung Park
There are a wealth of promising names currently pushing forward in the flyweight division, and this weekend, Park will look to once again establish himself as someone to watch in the thriving 125-pound weight class.
The 29-year-old from South Korea won the flyweight tournament on the first season of Road to UFC, earning finishes in all three bouts, and then earned a second-round stoppage win over Shannon Ross with a gnarly liver shot in his official promotional debut towards the end of December 2023. A knee injury left him sidelined for the whole of last year, and a weight cutting miscue by his opponent scuttled his initial return engagement in February, but this weekend, Park will finally make the walk to the Octagon for the second time in a clash with Carlos Hernandez.
HyunSung Park Tallies TKO Win In Round 2 | UFC Fight Night: Song vs Gutierrez
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HyunSung Park Tallies TKO Win In Round 2 | UFC Fight Night: Song vs Gutierrez
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Unbeaten in nine professional bouts, Park is one of those competitors that isn’t elite anywhere, but is skilled everywhere, and possesses excellent finishing instincts. After fighting to a decision in his pro debut, the Team MMA Story member has earned stoppages in each of his last eight outings, split evenly between submissions and KO/TKOS and covering all rounds.
This weekend’s matchup with Hernandez is a good return test for the promising flyweight prospect, as the Dana White’s Contender Series grad trains with an elite camp at Valle Flow Striking, has already logged six appearances inside the Octagon, and is the type of scrappy veteran that will test Park at every turn.
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Flyweight is having a moment right now and there are an abundance of competitors trying to make a push towards the rankings, but Park is definitely one to keep a close eye on, especially this weekend. Another finish will increase the amount of attention on him, and with the right matchup next time out, could lead to his making a push for a place in the Top 15 before the year is out.
UFC Fight Night: Burns vs Morales took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 17, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!