The Argentine featherweight has been on the prospect radar since he pushed Jean Silva to a decision on Season 7 of Dana White’s Contender Series in the fall of 2023. He returned a year later and dispatched Cam Teague and ran his winning streak to three while claiming a spot on a roster, entering this year as one of the most intriguing first-year talents in the UFC.
Vallejos has earned wins in each of his first two outings, finishing SeungWoo Choi in his debut before edging out Danny Silva in his sophomore outing in August, and returns for the third start of his rookie campaign this weekend against veteran Giga Chikadze.
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It hasn’t been as clean as some would have hoped or anticipated for “El Chino” through his first two appearances, as his bout with Silva was more competitive than most expected, both because the bar has been set extremely high for Vallejos, but also because Silva is an underrated talent as well. It was a good showing, and every victory counts, but there were certainly some that came away from the outing wondering if they need to recalibrate where expectations for the 16-1 featherweight going forward.
But here’s the thing: Vallejos turned 24 yesterday, and he’s already got two UFC wins under his belt, a bunch of championship experience at the regional level to lean on going forward and is still guy that took the 11th-ranked Fighting Nerd to the scorecards as an unbeaten 21-year-old.
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Saturday’s clash with Chikadze should provide a great deal of clarity regarding where the DWCS grad is at in his development and what to expect from him in Year 2. Despite entering on a two-fight skid and having dropped three of four, “Ninja” is the most seasoned foe Vallejos has faced and is more than capable of ending his rookie campaign on a sour note.
Regardless of how things shake out this weekend, the promising Argentian featherweight is someone to follow long-term; the foundational pieces are there, youth is on his side, and with the right coaching, experience, and time to develop, he could eventually grow to be a contender in the 145-pound weight class.
