While Machado Garry has long been tabbed as a future title challenger, Buckley is arguably the hottest 170-pounder outside of the top-5. “New Mansa” first burst onto the scene with an unforgettable knockout of Impa Kasanganay in October 2020 and spent his first two years on the roster in the middleweight division. Along the way, he put together a 5-4 record, including four performance bonuses. After suffering back-to-back losses to Nassourdine Imavov and Chris Curtis to close 2022, the St. Louis-native opted to move down to the welterweight division.
Buckley immediately thrived at 170 pounds and tallied five wins in five outings in the weightclass, including knockout wins over Vicente Luque and, most recently at UFC 307, Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. The 30-year-old called out former welterweight king Kamaru Usman after his stunning finish in Salt Lake City, but a fourth win in 2024 and third over a top-15 welterweight would do wonders for his title shot hopes in 2025.