Kennedy NzechukwuvsMarcus Buchecha

Kennedy Nzechukwu is riding a wild rollercoaster right now. The African Savage moved up to heavyweight and looked scary as hell, knocking out Chris Barnett with a nasty body knee at UFC 308, then sleeping Lukasz Brzeski with punches at UFC 310. But then came Nashville in July when Valter Walker caught him in a heel hook just 54 seconds in, and that's a rough way to lose. Now he's back trying to get that momentum going again as the UFC closes out 2025. Marcus Buchecha is still hunting for his first UFC win.

This dude's a legendary Brazilian jiu jitsu champion who just fought Martin Buday in Abu Dhabi back in July, losing a unanimous decision in his octagon debut. Coming from the grappling world, everyone wants to see if his ground game translates when punches are flying. He's got the credentials on the mat, but MMA striking is a whole different beast. Here's the thing about this matchup. Nzechukwu's a southpaw striker who can crack, but that Walker loss showed he can get caught if things hit the mat.

Buchecha's whole game is built around getting fights to the ground, but Buday showed he's still figuring out the MMA striking game. Kennedy's got the experience edge with multiple UFC heavyweight scraps under his belt, while Buchecha's still learning what it's like when guys are trying to take your head off instead of just grappling. Both fighters need this win badly to close out the year on a positive note and carry some momentum into 2026.