Holloway became the first person to successfully defend the BMF title by besting Dustin Poirier in his New Orleans swan song last July and now he looks to topple Oliveira for a second time as they square off in a hyper-important lightweight battle. After rebounding from his knockout loss to Ilia Topuria at UFC 317 with a stellar second-round submission win over Mateusz Gamrot in October, “Do Bronxs” aims to avenge his prior awkward loss to Holloway, claim the BMF belt, and keep himself fully in the lightweight title chase with another big win here. There is no way this fight isn’t wildly entertaining, regardless of how long it lasts and how it plays out. These are two of the biggest names in the sport right now and two of the best of their era. Both are extremely dangerous in their own ways, both have something to prove here and something bigger their chasing beyond this contest, and the only way to get there is through the other man.

Dober and Johnson have made 87 combined appearances during their careers, with 57 of those fights coming inside the Octagon. There have probably been instances with a greater number of combined starts and UFC appearances — Jim Miller versus Donald Cerrone at UFC 276 for instance — but not many, and it’s gonna be fun to finally see them share the cage together this weekend at T-Mobile Arena. There are few competitors that are more fan-friendly than Dober when it comes to their fighting style. He’s been to the scorecards once in the last three years (nine fights), almost exclusively throws hands, and generally ends up bleeding or making his opponent bleed. Johnson has made far more trips to the scorecards but is also constantly willing to engage and carries a real “could finish you or get finished” vibe into the Octagon every time he competes.

Adding to the “man, middleweight is really good right now” thoughts from the co-main event is the main card opener between these two Brazilian finishers that have already shared the Octagon once before. Rodrigues has won two straight, has gnarly power and excellent grappling, and vengeance on his mind given that Ferreira knocked him out the first time they met at UFC 283. Meanwhile, “The Hulk” has won three in a row, went the distance for the first time in a grinder with Marvin Vettori in July, but is still a step behind “Robocop” in the divisional ranks. You felt the weight of the explosive potential each man carries throughout the first meeting, which had a few periods of flurries and scrambles, but was largely one of those “anxiously waiting for something to happen” fights right up until Ferreira put a left hand on Rodrigues’ chin and knocked him out cold. Both have improved since then, so expect to feel the same nervous tension when they renew acquaintances on Saturday.

This is such a fascinating fight and a great way to close the prelims, as Garbrandt remains an established name, even if he’s not a contender at this stage, while Xiao is both a great dance partner and potentially disastrous opponent for “No Love” in this one. Garbrandt still has fast hands and some definite pop against the right guys, but the movement and dynamism that made him such a must-see fighter in his prime has largely evaporated. Xiao will give him every chance to get loose with his hands and dial up a knockout for old time’s sake, but he’s also shown plenty of durability and tenacity, which could be poison for the now 34-year-old former titleholder. We get one more glimpse at how the middleweight division has come a long way here as one of the more intriguing prospects in the 185-pound ranks squares off with another experienced hand in his second UFC start. Johnson is 7-0 and coming off a second-round submission win in his promotional debut last November. He has good size and athleticism, some clear pop given that he’s put guys out at heavyweight, and the kind of solid base and raw materials where you can see an avenue where he develops into a Top 15 fighter. Brundage is a solid test as a short-notice replacement as he’s got finishing abilities and far more experience, plus he’s up against it a little, entering on a 3-fight run without a victory.

This is a classic “what do we actually have here?” kind of matchups between a pair of graduates from UFC shoulder programs looking to start the year on a positive note. Turcios won the bantamweight tournament on TUF 29, beating Brady Hiestand, who has looked good when healthy. His first two losses in the UFC came against Aiemann Zahabi and Raul Rosas Jr., both of which are look much different now. Montes has a slick submission win on Season 8 of Dana White’s Contender Series, but hasn’t fought since, and fought the kind of slate on the regional circuit that makes it difficult to know exactly what he brings to the table until he’s in there against someone that provides a real frame of reference, as Turcios will here.