Song has made slow and steady progress up the bantamweight ranks since debuting towards the end of 2017. Still only 28 years old, the explosive Chinese standout has the chance to follow up his victory over Henry Cejudo last February with the biggest victory of his career on Saturday night.
Yan and Dvalishvili are even at one win each, and most assume a trilogy bout will happen, but even if that is the case, the winner of this one will be the clubhouse leader for the next shot. Bantamweight is brimming with talent, and every fight carries real divisional significance, so expect both men to be at their sharpest when they step into the Octagon at UFC 324.
Waldo Cortes Acosta vs Derrick Lewis
Following a breakout campaign in 2025, Waldo Cortes Acosta looks to establish himself as a legitimate contender in the heavyweight division in a showdown with the most prolific knockout artist in UFC history, Derrick Lewis.
MORE UFC 324: Hernandez Comfortable | Crucial Bantamweight Stretch | Johnson’s Hard Way | UFC 324’s Best Finishes | Charles Johnson’s Storm | Paddy Pimblett on UFC Unfiltered | No Slowing Cortes Acosta | Derrick Lewis Is Different
A member of the Dana White’s Contender Series Class of ’22, Cortes Acosta has gone 9-2 overall since reaching the biggest stage in the sport, ascending to No. 5 in the rankings. The Dominican slugger elevated his standing in November, following up a first-round stoppage victory over Ante Delija with a similar result in a short-notice appearance in Doha, Qatar, three weeks later.
Lewis has earned 16 of his 20 UFC victories by knockout and rolls into UFC 324 having won three of his last four inside the distance, including a 35-second stoppage win over Tallison Teixeira in Nashville last July. The 40-year-old “Black Beast” may be a joker outside of the Octagon, but he has remained a fixture in the title picture for nearly a decade and is more than capable of halting the rise of “Salsa Boy.”
