Nashville has played host to several memorable debuts, finishes, and fights over the years, with both Carlos Condit and Khabib Nurmagomedov stepping into the Octagon for the first time in Music City, with more recent highlights including Anthony Pettis knocking out Stephen Thompson, Diego Lopes blowing through Gavin Tucker, and Tatiana Suarez submitting Jessica Andrade. The potential for chaos and excitement feels high as we ready for the first event in a seven-week stretch that will feature stops in New Orleans, Abu Dhabi, Las Vegas, Chicago, and Shanghai, so sit back, buckle up, and enjoy the fisticuffs as we get things rolling this weekend.

The most experienced heavyweight on the roster steps in with a recent Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) graduate in Saturday’s fascinating main event as Derrick Lewis squares up with Tallison Teixeira. Lewis returns to action for the first time since stopping Rodrigo Nascimento last spring in St. Louis after his planned bout in Edmonton last November was scuttled at the 11th hour when he suffered a medical issue following his weight cut. The man with the most knockouts in UFC history remains a consistent presence in the heavyweight Top 15 and has not lost to an opponent stationed outside the Top 10 since the early days of his UFC tenure.

Simply put, Teixeira has been a wrecking machine thus far in his career, posting eight wins in as many starts while never allowing any of his opponents to stay in the fight for more than five minutes. After blowing through Arthur Lopes last season to earn his place on the roster, the towering Brazilian dispatched Justin Tafa in 35 seconds to win his debut, putting him on the fast track to contention after just one fight. This is a classic “veteran versus prospect” pairing and a position Lewis is exceptionally familiar with, having been stationed opposite promising up-and-comers many times throughout his career. The results in those bouts have been mixed, though he won the last one, and represents a colossal step-up in competition for the 25-year-old Lucas Martins trainee.

The co-main event features a similar type of pairing, but down a couple divisions as Stephen Thompson steps in opposite Gabriel Bonfim. “Wonderboy” is now 42 and enters Saturday’s contest on a two-fight skid, having dropped four of five overall. Now, each of those setbacks came against divisional standouts, including former champ Belal Muhammad, but it’s hard to overlook that the Top 15 fixture has just one victory since besting Geoff Neal in the final UFC bout of 2020. Bonfim touches down for his second appearance of the year, having posted the opposite results of his opponent to begin his UFC career. The 2022 DWCS grad has gone 4-1 in five appearances, posting two wins on either side of his lone setback, and enters off a second-round technical submission win over Khaos Williams back in February.

Tennessee’s own “Nate the Train” chugs his way into the Octagon for a home state showdown with Morgan Charriere in the main card’s first featherweight fixture. Born, raised and fighting out of Clarksville, which is about an hour northwest of Nashville, Landwehr makes his first appearance at home since arriving in the UFC at the outset of 2020. The all-action wild man (said with love) has gone 5-4 over his nine appearances, and looks to rebound from a stoppage loss to DooHo Choi when he makes the walk in this one. The 29-year-old Charriere has been hit-and-miss through his first four trips into the Octagon, alternating wins and losses; registering finishes in his victories, and going the distance in his setbacks. He was ultra-competitive with Chepe Mariscal, who remains unbeaten in the UFC, had moments opposite Nathaniel Wood last year, and should make for an outstanding dance partner for Landwehr in this one.