Gastelum officially moves back up to middleweight, where he’s gone 7-6 with one no contest in 14 UFC appearances at 185 pounds. Last time out, a weight management issue prompted his welterweight bout with Daniel Rodriguez to be moved up a division during fight week, so there is extra pressure on the former Ultimate Fighter winner to have things dialed in and deliver a strong performance here. Before the main card kicks off in the flyweight division, the prelims come to a close with a quality scrap between Edgar Chairez and CJ Vergara. Chairez has gone 1-2 with one no contest in four UFC starts to date, turning in game efforts every time out. A member of the DWCS Class of ’21, Vergara makes his eighth UFC start here, looking to halt a two-fight skid and bring his record inside the Octagon back to level. Jose Daniel Medina welcomes Ateba Gautier to the Octagon for the first time in this battle of DWCS grads in the middleweight division. Bolivia’s Medina earned praise for his resilience from UFC CEO Dana White in his 2023 Contender Series loss, then showed that same grit and tenacity in his August loss to Zachary Reese. Cameroon’s Gautier collected an impressive second-round finish and UFC contract last season, moving to 6-1 overall while extending his winning streak to five. Featherweights coming off quality wins earlier in the year square off here as Christian Rodriguez takes on Melquizael Costa. “CeeRod” continued his “Prospect Killer” ways by bouncing Austin Bashi from the ranks of the unbeaten in January, giving him four UFC wins over undefeated emerging names. Costa took full advantage of an Andre Fili miscue last month in Seattle, clamping onto a guillotine choke to collect his second straight submission win and third victory in his last four fights. Currently stationed at No. 11 in the strawweight rankings, Godinez enters on a two-fight slide, having dropped consecutive decisions in bouts with Virna Jandiroba and Mackenzie Dern. After losing her promotional debut last June, Polastri got things moving in the right direction last time out with a split decision victory over fellow DWCS grad Cory McKenna.