The Road to UFC tournament is back for another year and aims to give top prospects a chance to impress the UFC brass in an attempt to earn a contract with the company. The show’s premiere takes place on May 22 and 23, and streams live on UFC Fight Pass from the UFC Performance Institute Shanghai in China.
- Jack Becker (13-5, Tristar Gym, Australia)
- Deni Daffa (6-1, Bengkulu Infight Camp, Indonesia)
- Yannick Yuji Ephoeviga (11-0, Tribe Tokyo MMA, Japan)
- Dom Mar Fan (6-2, Team Compton Training Centre, Australia)
- Daichi Kamiya (6-0, Brave Gym, Japan)
- Sang Uk Kim (11-3, HAVAS, South Korea)
- Jae Hyun Park (7-3, Korean Zombie MMA, South Korea)
- Yawei Ren (8-3, Haoyue Fight Gym, China)
The biggest favorite in any of these Road to UFC tournaments at any weight class is going to be Yannick Yuji Ephoeviga. Quite frankly, he could have gone straight to the UFC and been successful. Instead, he will fight in this tournament and likely run the thing with extreme prejudice. He is the Shooto Champion in his native Japan and owns a nasty TKO win over former Bellator contender Emmanuel Sanchez. He’s the surest bet of all Road to UFC.
A guy who is flying under the radar that could be a problem in this tournament is Daichi Kamiya, an undefeated submission grappler from Japan. He is 4-0 under the Pancrase banner, which is impressive, but the most impressive feat for Kamiya is his twister victory over prospect Raymart Quintana, which really put him on the map. This is a guy nobody will want to grapple with.
Deni Daffa is another One Pride MMA veteran from Indonesia getting their shot on Road to UFC. They have not been highly successful thus far, though Daffa is a finisher with three knockouts and three submissions in six wins. He was tapped out by former Road to UFC fighter Hans Angga, who was tapped out in the quarterfinals of his Road to UFC tournament a couple years ago. There are a number of guys who appear to be bad matchups for Daffa, thus him being the longshot.
Jack Becker is another guy who would be considered a favorite if Ephoeviga wasn’t the uncrowned champ in this tournament. Becker is a Tristar Gym rep who holds Eternal MMA gold, a high honor. He’s fought a number of notable and respected opponents to mixed results, showing he can hang with strong competition. He’s well-rounded too, so I expect him to make the semifinals at the very least, and possibly the finals.
Dom Mar Fan is an Eternal MMA veteran best known for his two fights with now-UFC fighter Quillan Sallkild, who was previously a top Australia prospect before coming to the world’s largest promotion. Fan lost both of those fights, getting outgrappled and tapped by Sallkilld both times. He’s definitely going to be a tough out in this tournament given his experience and vigor.
Sang Uk Kim is a former AFC Champion who has competed twice for Road to UFC. He submitted Kazuma Maruyama in his first bout with Road to UFC, but was promptly bested by eventual Road to UFC winner Rong Zhu in his follow-up effort. Those fights were encouraging for Kim, as he looks to navigate another tournament. However, a fellow fighter in the tournament with Kim, Jae Hyun Park, already owns a victory over Kim.
Jae Hyun Park is a disciple of the legendary Chan Sung Jung, aka the Korean Zombie. He is under good counsel, which is why he’s become one of the more attractive prospects in South Korea and an AFN Champion in South Korea. He notably owns a win over the previously aforementioned Sang Uk Kim, which is his biggest win to date. He’s also fought for Road to UFC once already, where he was bested by Shin Haraguchi.
Finally, Yawei Ren is a knockout artist that will bring some excitement to the cage. The Chinese fighter has faltered thus far when stepping up in competition, but could be a guy that flies under the radar in this tournament. His time to prove he’s grown past those loses is now.