Noche UFC’s third iteration is upon us. Saturday afternoon and evening, San Antonio’s Frost Bank Center serves as the setting for the second of three UFC Fight Nights on the September schedule.
Live coverage of this week’s show begins at 3 pm ET/ noon PT on ESPN+ with the prelims. Main card action follows at 6 pm ET/ 3 pm PT from San Antonio. If there are no adjustments to be made to the itinerary between now and the weekend, the final version of Noche UFC features a slate of 14 fights.
Live coverage of this week’s show begins at 3 pm ET/ noon PT on The welterweight final of The Ultimate Fighter 33, initially slated for UFC 319 last month in Chicago, was rescheduled to the Sept. 13 show in San Antonio after Rodrigo Sezinando was unable to make the walk due to injury. His fight against Danil Donchenko will take place on this week’s prelims.
Intercontinental Downtown Los Angeles LOS ANGELES, CA- JANUARY 17: Diego Ferreira steps on the scale for the official weigh-in at Intercontinental Downtown Los Angeles for UFC311 Makhachev vs Tsarukyan 2 : Official Weigh-ins on January 17, 2025 in Los Angeles, CA, United States. Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages Louis Grasse / SPP PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxBRAxMEX Copyright: xLouisxGrassex/xSPPx spp-en-LoGr-lrg2501170077617_UFC311
Noche UFC Featured Prelim: Alexander Hernandez vs. Diego Ferreira
At the top of the prelims for Noche UFC on Saturday afternoon is a contest in the lightweight division. Alexander Hernandez (17-8 MMA, 9-7 UFC) meets up with Diego Ferreira (19-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC.) All fights mentioned herein are an advertised maximum of three rounds at five minutes per round.
Hernandez will be making the walk late Saturday afternoon having posted a record of 3-2 in his last five fights. He’s on a three-fight winning streak and just entered the fabled Octagon last month when he defeated Chase Hooper (16-4-1 MMA, 8-4 UFC) during UFC 319 in Chicago with two seconds remaining on the first-round clock.
He’ll be facing a short turnaround going into Noche UFC on Saturday. Can he get his fourth win in a row?
Across the way, Diego Ferreira has gone 2-3 in his last five fights. Back on Jan. 18, he dropped a unanimous decision to Grant Dawson (23-2-1 MMA, 11-1-1 UFC) in UFC 311 from Inglewood, CA. He was slated to fight King Green last month during UFC 319 before that fight was scrubbed amid the latter sustaining an injury.
Ferreira has been a streaky fighter of late inside the cage and he’s been on a downswing recently, so can he get back to the win column?
Noche UFC Co-Featured Prelim: Jose Daniel Medina vs. Dusko Todorovic
Immediately beforehand, the Noche UFC co-featured prelim features action in the middleweight division when Jose Daniel Medina (11-5 MMA, 0-2 UFC) battles Dusko Todorovic (12-6 MMA, 3-6 UFC.) Medina enters with a record of 2-3 in his last five fights.
The start to his UFC tenure hasn’t been a bed of roses, however. He’s lost three in a row and is currently winless in the promotion. Last March, he was on the receiving end of a first-round knockout (knee) from Ateba Gautier (8-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC.)
While Medina’s UFC career is in its early days, he can’t afford to get behind the 8-ball any further. His opponent is struggling in his own right.
Meanwhile, Dusko Todorovic will be making his 10th walk to the Octagon on Saturday night. In his past five contests, he’s gone 1-4. Back on May 29, Todorovic came out on the wrong end of a unanimous decision against Zach Reese (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) at the UFC Apex facility.
Crunch time for Dusko Todorovic is now. Another defeat would mark seven for him and he could find himself out of a roster spot.
Noche UFC: Claudio Puelles vs. Joaquim Silva
Also on Noche UFC’s prelims on Saturday afternoon, the lightweights square off as Claudio Puelles (12-4 MMA, 5-3 UFC) meets Joaquim Silva (13-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC.) The former will be making the walk sporting a record of 3-2 in his last five fights dating back to 2021.
He’s dropped two fights in succession, including a split decision defeat at the hands of Fares Ziam (17-4 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in February of last year. Puelles has had more than a year away from the cage. What kind of ring rust does he have heading into Noche UFC?
In the other corner, the latter has a mark of 2-3 in his last five bouts. On the first Saturday in May of 2024, Drakkar Klose (16-3-1 MMA, 10-3 UFC) handed him a unanimous decision defeat during UFC 301. Who will emerge victorious in their return to competition?
Final Thoughts
Which prelim or prelims are you looking forward to on Noche UFC? Let us know in the comments.