If this isn't a setup fight, I don't know what is. The UFC gave Josh Emmett every opportunity imaginable to be successful and you know what, for a few years there, he was. Between 2019 and 2023 he had a 5 win streak that catapulted him up the rankings. But since then, he is just an old dude looking for a big knockout. At this point in his career Josh is a little too old and too slow to win this fight. Kevin hits hard as hell, has a great chin and will be at least twice as fast. We can pretend that Josh might have a chance with the wrestling, but he doesn't The most wrestling he has done in a fight since 2016 was against Lerone Murphy and that was a very one sided loss. Kevin lights up Josh here and is immediately ranked.

Josh Emmett

Josh Emmett is a wrestler with legit power in his hands. He has 12 knockdowns in 17 UFC fights and that includes losses. You'll see he averages a little more than one takedown per fight which on the surface is pretty low considering he is such a high level wrestler. The reality is that Josh Emmett is dangerous and has high level experience combined with high level skills. The problem is he's getting a little older. He is coming off the 98 second submission loss to Youssef Zalal.

Kevin Vallejos

Kevin Vallejos is a powerful striker who sends a beautiful 1-2. If you kick, he catches it and then bombs an overhand with the other hand. He is very comfortable on his feet, very dangerous and has impressive speed considering his power. He has a few submissions but he does have some grappling holes. He can be heavy on his front leg, but so far no one has exploited it. He is coming off the KO win over Giga Chikadze where he was more measured than usual early but found a spinning backfist in the second.