Athletes
Fighters on the Rise | UFC Kansas City
Shining A Spotlight On Three Ascending Talents Set To Compete On Saturday Night At UFC Fight Night: Machado Garry vs Prates
This weekend’s event at T-Mobile Center marks the UFC’s third trip to Kansas City, with all three of the ventures to the bi-state metropolis have come in the month of April.
The promotion’s first trek to the home of the men’s Big 12 conference basketball tournament and the PBR’s Kansas City Outlaws came in 2017 with an historic fight card that featured statement-making wins for Robert Whittaker and Rose Namajunas, and Demetrious Johnson equaling Anderson Silva’s record for the most consecutive successful title defenses with his main event win over Wilson Reis.
Two years ago, the Octagon returned to the Midwest sporting hotbed for an event headlined by Max Holloway and Arnold Allen that included a first-round stoppage win for Edson Barboza and a slick submission finish from Gillian Robertson on the prelims.
Full Kansas City Fight Card Preview
In addition to the victories already mentioned, those two previous cards served as breakthrough moments for a host of future champions, contenders, and promotional stalwarts alike, including Ketlen Vieira, Aljamain Sterling, Daniel Zellhuber, and Brandon Royval.
Here’s a look at three emerging competitors looking to have a breakthrough moment of their own this weekend as the UFC returns to “The Show Me State” on Saturday night.
Zhang Mingyang
The 26-year-old Chinese light heavyweight has a massive opportunity in front of him this weekend as he faces off with former title challenger and Top 10 stalwart Anthony Smith in what will be the last fight of the Nebraska veteran’s career.
Eight consecutive first-round stoppage wins earned Zhang an opportunity to compete in the first bout of the first season of Road to UFC, where he blew through Tuco Tokkos in less than four minutes, generating a great deal of buzz in the process. “The Mountain Tiger” was signed by the promotion as a result, but didn’t make his promotional debut until 19 months later.
RELATED: KC Co-Main Preview
The time away did nothing to slow his momentum, as Zhang continued his clobbering ways, dispatching Brendson Ribeiro with strikes in under two minutes at UFC 298 before collecting a second first-round finish in as many trips into the Octagon towards the end of last year in Macau. All told, Zhang has now won 11 straight by first-round stoppage, with all 18 of his career wins coming in the opening five minutes, and all but one of his 24 fights ending inside the distance.
Saturday marks a colossal step up in competition for the up and comer, moving from facing former LFA middleweight champ Ozzy Diaz to the battle-tested Smith, who will be fighting close to home and making his final walk to the Octagon this weekend. Though the results largely haven’t been there for “Lionheart” over the last couple of years, the 36-year-old has succeeded in this position recently, collecting a first-round submission win over then-unbeaten prospect Vitor Petrino at UFC 301, and he has the skills and savvy to halt Zhang’s ascent this weekend.
While some will surely want to downplay the weight and importance of a win over Smith should things shake out that way for Zhang, a third consecutive victory is always meaningful and significant in the light heavyweight division, and even more so if he handles his business in the manner he’s been accustomed to as of late.
He clearly has potent power and heaps of upside, so even if this is just another win that produces a step forward, it will be a clear indicator that the surging prospect is someone to keep close tabs on in the shifting 205-pound weight class.
David Onama
Onama touches down in Kansas City riding a three-fight winning streak and having amassed a 5-1 record inside the Octagon since his impressive short-notice debut loss up a division against Mason Jones in the fall of 2021.
The Ugandan has flashed Top 15 talents from the jump and continues to make strides when it comes to putting everything together inside the Octagon. While the power has always been obvious and his athleticism jumps off the television when you watch him compete, it’s only since aligning with the team at Factory X Muay Thai in Englewood, Colorado that “The Silent Assassin” has started looking poised to make good on his Top 15 potential.
He earned a second-round stoppage win over tough Brazilian Gabriel Santos, who has looked great since, two summers back, and posted decision wins over Jonathan Pearce and Roberto Romero last year to advance to 13-2 overall heading into this weekend’s clash with Giga Chikadze.
UFC JOURNEY: Ian Machado Garry vs Carlos Prates
The Georgian veteran has been a mainstay in the featherweight rankings for the last several years, earning victories over Cub Swanson, Edson Barboza, and Alex Caceres while landing on the wrong side of the results in bouts against Calvin Kattar and Arnold Allen. Injuries have limited the kickboxer to only three appearances in the last three years, but when he’s healthy and dialed in, Chikadze remains a dangerous out for anyone that shares the Octagon with him.
Onama could potentially force his way into the rankings with a win, as Chikadze enters stationed at No. 12, one spot ahead of Onama’s teammate, Youssef Zalal. There have been a bevy of bouts in the 145-pound weight class as of late that have resulted in the landscape of the division shifting dramatically, and Saturday’s assignment is a chance for Onama to maintain his winning ways and add his name to the collection of promising fighters pushing forward in the division right now.
Jaqueline Amorim
One fighter that isn’t getting enough attention right now in the strawweight division is Amorim, who enters Saturday’s pairing with fellow Brazilian Polyana Viana riding a three-fight winning streak, with each of those victories coming via stoppage.
The 29-year-old was an IBJJF World Champion in both the gi and no-gi as she worked her way to black belt before earning a second-place finish at the IBJJF World No-Gi Championships in 2016 and a third place finish at the IBJJF World Championships the following year. She made the transition to mixed martial arts full time in 2020, registering six straight wins to earn a call to the Octagon, where she was outhustled by Fortis MMA grinder Sam Hughes in her promotional debut.
Since then, the American Top Team representative has posted a ground-and-pound win over Montserrat Conejo Ruiz and submission finishes of Cory McKenna and Vanessa Demopolous to advance to 9-1 for her career. Her expertise on the ground makes her an absolute menace for anyone that gets drawn into grappling with her, and she will only continue to get better as he keeps working with all-star cast of coaches and training partners available to her at ATT.
A fight like this is a perfect opportunity to see what kind of focus, preparation, and execution Amorim brings to the table, and should she keep things moving forward, she will have a case for a place in the Top 15, and a matchup with someone sporting a number next to their name at the very least. She’s been far more effective and efficient since her debut loss, and this weekend marks another opportunity to track her development and get a further read on where her ceiling may lie.
UFC Fight Night: Machado Garry vs Prates took place live from T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri On April 26, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!