UFC 327 Has a Massive Card Update Leaving More to Be Desired
After yesterday’s news of the Men’s Flyweight Championship bout between challenger Tatsuro ‘The Best’ Taira and Men’s Flyweight Champion Joshua ‘The Fearless’ Van, the UFC announced five new bouts to the card earlier this morning. UFC 327 is looking to be a card full of fights, but fight fans are wondering the purpose of these bouts. There are only a select few that have real meaning in title pictures. The rest seem as if they’re either filler or reset bouts for fighters on a skid. Let’s go over the new fights to figure out their purpose in the card.
Curtis Blaydes vs. Josh Hokit
No, there isn’t a mistake. Former NFL player and current unranked UFC heavyweight Josh Hokit has been booked to take on fourth-ranked heavyweight Curtis ‘Razor’ Blaydes, and it’s positioned to take place right before the Men’s Flyweight Championship bout. This has to be the most eye-opening matchup on the entire card. While Hokit is undefeated in his MMA career at 8-0, with three wins in the UFC, this doesn’t necessarily mean he deserves a fight with a top-five heavyweight, especially one that has been a top contender for nearly a decade. This could also be a byproduct of the lack of depth in the UFC’s Heavyweight Division. Blaydes has only lost to former heavyweight champions and title contenders while beating everyone else in the division. This is clearly meant to see if the hype behind Hokit is real. This isn’t an ideal matchup for Blaydes and could negatively impact his decorated career if he loses. The UFC seems to have run out of ideas for the once illustrious division.
Dominick Reyes vs. Johnny Walker
This is a top-15 light heavyweight contender bout for two grizzled veterans. Dominick ‘The Devestator’ Reyes hasn’t seen the judge’s scorecards since his title fight against Jon ‘Bones’ Jones in 2020. Reyes has won three of his last four bouts, and he looks to continue to build momentum to get another crack at the light heavyweight gold. Johnny Walker has one win in his last four bouts, with a TKO victory over Zhang ‘Mountain Tiger’ Mingyang at their Fight Night last August. Both men came into the UFC nearly a decade ago with a lot of hype and fanfare behind them. This could have title implications in the long run should the winner of this fight go on a momentous win streak against top-10 contenders in the division. Given both fighters’ recent fight history, however, this is only a slight chance; don’t expect this fight to go to the judge’s scorecards.
Azamat Murzakanov vs. Paulo Costa
The sixth-ranked light heavyweight and undefeated Azamat ‘The Professional’ Murzakanov welcomes former UFC middleweight title contender Paulo ‘The Eraser’ Costa into the Light Heavyweight Division. ‘The Professional’ has left a path of destruction behind him since his debut, finishing six of his seven fights in the UFC by KO/TKO. ‘The Eraser’ looks to refresh his career in a new division after residing in the Middleweight Division for nearly a decade. A man who once sniffed UFC gold, Costa could use his speed and existing bulk to carve a new home in the Light Heavyweight division. Many fight fans are wondering if he can adapt to the division’s power and strength increase. This is one of the most interesting fights on the card, as this could set up a title eliminator match for the winner against a top-five light heavyweight later in 2026.
Cub Swanson vs. Nate Landwehr
If there was one person in the UFC who fights because they love to fight, it’s Cub Swanson. Since his debut in 2011, he hasn’t had a title shot, yet he has been one of the most active, consistent, and longest tenured fighters in the company. At the ripe age of 45, Swanson has won two of his last four bouts. He either finishes or gets finished spectacularly. Nate ‘The Train’ Landwehr is looking to bounce back as he has lost three of his last four bouts. While ‘The Train’ is trying to station himself in the top-15 of the Featherweight Division, Swanson is looking for another bonus and spectacular fight. Expect this bout to either headline the prelims or open the main card.
Kyle Daukaus vs. Vicente Luque
Kyle Daukus welcomes Vicente ‘The Silent Assassin’ Luque into the Middleweight Division. Daukus is looking to course correct his UFC career. He has a submission and a knockout finish in his last two appearances. This is the first time in his UFC career that he has consecutive wins, and he looks to continue to build that momentum. Across the cage is ‘The Silent Assassin’, who was once a top-five-ranked UFC welterweight. He has moved up to middleweight in response to losing three of his last four bouts at welterweight. Like Costa, it is unknown whether ‘The Silent Assassin’ can handle the power and strength increases. This isn’t the most exciting matchup, but some fight fans are curious to see how Luque does in a new division.
Fight fans are excited for the upcoming UFC 326 and the buildup to UFC 327. While bookers have stuffed most of the card for UFC 327, it feels as if we’re missing one marquee non-title bout and one more title fight. That would generate more money for the UFC and have the MMA community in a positive uproar. Fight fans don’t anticipate Taira vs. Van to main event the card as the men’s Flyweight Title since a Flyweight Championship bout hasn’t main evented a numbered UFC event since UFC 255. We hope the UFC will book one or two important matchups to round off a potential banger card.
