UFC 255 viewers guide: Can both flyweight champs - Figueiredo and Shevchenko - fend off challenges?

7:48 AM ET

When Alex Perez appeared as a contestant on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2017, he went in thinking it was his last chance in MMA.

At that time, Perez was more than six years into his pro career. That’s a long time for someone to fight on the regional circuit and never get an invitation to the big show. Especially someone with a good record — Perez was 17-4 when he made his UFC debut. He lives in California and had fought in promotions that have a history of sending talent to the UFC.

Perez, who will challenge Deiveson Figueiredo for the men’s flyweight title in the main event of UFC 255 on Saturday in Las Vegas, had a couple of shots at the UFC before making it there.

He suffered a loss to Adam Antolin in 2015 in the Tachi Palace Fights promotion, after which Antolin got an invitation to appear on “The Ultimate Fighter” reality TV show. Had Perez won that fight, he believes that invitation would have gone to him.

A couple of years later, the “Dana White: Lookin’ for a Fight” series showed up at an event in San Diego where Perez was fighting. He won that night, but he said it was one of the worst performances of his career. White never approached him or offered him a contract.

So when Perez fought Kevin Gray on the Contender Series in 2017, he believed it was probably his last shot at a UFC contract. And if he wasn’t going to be in the UFC, he didn’t think he’d fight for much longer.

Yet he did not put pressure on himself. Before that fight — which Perez won via submission in the opening round — he’d never felt better.

“I remember being in the back, and my corners, you could tell they were pretty nervous,” Perez said. “I was like, ‘Man, I have no idea why they are nervous. I’m confident. I’ve put in the work.’ Don’t get me wrong, there are always nerves before a fight, but it wasn’t like, ‘Oh, my God, I have to do this.’ I was just having fun, and when I’m having fun, I’m at my best.”

The reason Perez believes he was so calm that night — before a fight that would determine the rest of his career — is experience. He’s been fighting professionally since 2011, and before that he wrestled in high school and college. Perez learned a long time ago to worry only about what he can control.

Perez cannot fully control whether he wins a UFC championship on Saturday, but he has done everything he can to put himself in position to do so. Perez is a bit of an unknown going into this title fight, but he shouldn’t be overlooked. It’s taken him a long time to get here, and his presence is well deserved.

Men’s flyweight championship:
Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Alex Perez

By the numbers

84: Percentage of Figueiredo’s career victories (19) in which he got a finish (16). He has had nine knockouts and seven submissions.

5.31: Significant strikes landed per minute in the UFC by Perez, the highest rate among active male flyweights.

8: Knockdowns in the UFC by Figueiredo, the most ever in the men’s flyweight division. He also stands second among 125-pounders with 1.37 knockdowns per 15 minutes inside the Octagon in his career, behind only Perez (1.51).

5:57: Average UFC fight time for Perez, in minutes and seconds. It’s the shortest in men’s flyweight history. Figueiredo is sixth, at 9:44.

2.91: Submissions per 15 minutes in the UFC by Figueiredo, the most all time among male flyweights and second most among active fighters in any weight class, behind only Mackenzie Dern‘s 3.09. Two of his past three fights have ended in submissions. He has attempted 17 submissions in the Octagon, just one fewer than all-time leader Louis Smolka.

Sources: ESPN Stats & Information and UFC Stats

A look back

Five vs. five

Deiveson Figueiredo’s most recent results
Win: Joseph Benavidez (TechSub1, July 19, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Joseph Benavidez (TKO2, Feb. 29, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Tim Elliott (Sub1, Oct. 12, 2019; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Alexandre Pantoja (UD, July 27, 2019; watch on ESPN+)
Loss: Jussier Formiga (UD, March 23, 2019; watch on ESPN+)

Alex Perez’s most recent results
Win: Jussier Formiga (TKO1, June 6, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Jordan Espinosa (TechSub1, Jan. 25, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Mark De La Rosa (UD, March 30, 2019; watch on ESPN+)
Loss: Joseph Benavidez (TKO1, Nov. 30, 2018)
Win: Jose Torres (KO1, Aug. 9, 2018)

Dom & Gil’s film study

Dominick Cruz breaks down Figueiredo’s stand-up skills:

Gilbert Melendez analyzes the Perez grappling game:

And the winner is …

When it comes to fight predictions, you’ve gotta go with your gut sometimes, right? No one is debating whether Figueiredo should be favored here. He looked absolutely nasty in back-to-back fights against Joseph Benavidez earlier this year. He’s probably the hardest-hitting guy in the division. He’s physical. He has a terrific ground game to go with his devastating stand-up. He’s the full package. But I think Perez is the full package, too. I think he’s confident, he’s a good wrestler and he has multiple ways to finish. And my gut says he’ll get it done. Perez via submission, fourth round.