Fight Coverage
Matchup To Watch | Nathaniel Wood vs Morgan Charriere
Breaking Down The First Fight Of The Main Card Between Featherweights Nathaniel Wood And Morgan Charriere At UFC London: Edwards vs Brady
A high-profile matchup between two exciting featherweights opens the main card for UFC London this weekend, as Nathaniel Wood is slated against Morgan Charriere.
The division is at an unknown spot with champion Ilia Topuria vacating the belt that has led former champion Alexander Volkanovski to match up against Diego Lopes in just under a month’s time.
Neither of these fighters are necessarily at the title-contention phase of their careers yet, but things can move fast for either of these fighters following this bout. Whoever wins would surely expect to face ranked competition in their next fight.
Before these two show-stopping featherweights clash on Saturday night, let’s take a closer look at the matchup.
Nathaniel Wood
Nathaniel Wood Fight Week Interview | UFC London
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Nathaniel Wood Fight Week Interview | UFC London
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Wood enters 2025 after securing a unanimous win in his only bout in 2024. In his last five fights, he boasts a 4-1 record, with the only blemish coming against Muhammad Naimov.
It seems like yesterday when Wood made his debut against Johnny Eduardo, where he kicked off his UFC career in spectacular fashion. Wood won Performance of the Night honors with a D’Arce Choke in the second round, and it felt like he officially arrived.
Order UFC 314: Volkanovski vs Lopes
This fight will be Wood’s biggest challenge to date, and it may just be the difference between an upcoming ranked fight or not. The bout comes in familiar confines, and the last time Wood fought in London, he walked away with a win over veteran Andre Fili. “The Prospect” hopes to replicate those results on March 22.
Morgan Charriere
While Charriere’s time in the UFC has been limited, it has been nothing short of exciting. With only three fights in the UFC, Charriere holds a 2-1 record with two TKO wins. The 29-year-old France native is a first-round machine, with eight finishes in the opening frame.
Before coming to the UFC, Charriere had also beaten William Gomis, who was recently undefeated in the UFC until earlier this month. Charriere is mostly known for his striking skills, but he does have three submission wins, including his heel hook on Gomis.
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Charriere has also built a reasonable social media presence with over 7.5 million views and 138k subscribers on YouTube alone. Charriere wants to make a lasting impression not just with his hands, but also with his fans, and that is exactly what he will be vying for this weekend.
Something’s Got To Give
The first thing that comes to mind must be the grappling exchanges and how Charriere can deal with Wood once the fight gets there. While Charriere is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu purple belt, Wood holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and has actively competed in grappling the past two years.
It will be very interesting to see if either one of them can get the fight to the ground, where both can see success. Charriere’s takedown defense is a sturdy 83 percent, but Wood’s ability to mix the martial arts is going to be a key for the Brit.
Full UFC London Fight Card Preview
Another area of importance is the standup game, where Charriere is coming off a TKO finish and holds a knockdown average of 1.23 compared to Wood’s .31. Wood lands more significant strikes per minute but has not recorded a KO in the Octagon yet, so as far as power, the Frenchman appears to have the clear advantage, although one could also point out Wood’s strength of schedule as to why he has yet to replicate his knockout rate in the UFC.
Both fighters are looking to make it back-to-back wins, and oddly enough share a 69-inch reach with Charriere being the slightly taller fighter by two inches. In the end, one thing is true; you don’t want to miss this fight.
UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs Brady took place live from O2 Arena in London, England on March 22, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!