Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Jake Hadley makes his highly anticipated promotional debut this weekend, stepping with dangerous Brazilian Allan Nascimento in this exciting flyweight matchup.
The undefeated Hadley caused quite a stir last fall on the annual talent search series, missing weight for his bout with Mitch Raposo. He dominated the former TUF 29 contestant, securing a second-round submission win, but seemed destined to be told “Sorry” at the end of the night because of his miscue on the scale.
White inked the former Cage Warriors champ to a contract nonetheless, and now the flyweight from Birmingham looks to show that decision was the right one by picking up a win this weekend.
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Nascimento gave Tagir Ulanbekov all he could handle — and arguably more — in his promotional debut at UFC 267, going move-for-move and attack-for-attack with the talented Russian on the canvas. He landed on the wrong side of a questionable split decision verdict but proved he’s more than capable of handling himself amongst the best flyweights in the world, and would like nothing more than to spoil Hadley’s debut on Saturday.
This is a terrific initial test for the 8-0 Hadley, as Nascimento is someone who should, in theory, be able to match his efforts on the canvas. The Brazilian has considerably more experience, but the British newcomer is an intriguing prospect with considerable upside, so expect a competitive fight that answers a great many questions about where each man stands in the division.