Saturday night at the Meta Apex, the UFC hosts a Fight Night headlined by No. 9 Mario Bautista vs. No. 11 Vinicius Oliveira. No. 6 Amir Albazi takes on No. 8 Kyoji Horiguchi in a three-round Flyweight contest in the co-main event of this card. This is the first UFC Fight Night of 2026 and is the promotion’s third event on Paramount+.
Here are my best bets for Saturday’s UFC Fight Night: Bautista vs. Oliveira.
Vinicius Oliveira Moneyline (+124)
Bautista enters this fight off a loss to Umar Nurmagomedov, but won eight straight fights before that. Oliveira is 4-0 in the UFC and hasn’t lost a fight since July 2022. Bautista averages more significant strikes (5.58 vs. 5.28), but Oliveira is better on the ground. Oliveira is better defensively on the feet while landing more takedowns (1.67 vs. 1.48) on the ground.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Bautista is the favorite at -148 as Oliveira is a +124 underdog in this contest. In this bout, Oliveira is the less proven fighter, as Bautista has more UFC experience. But Oliveira has a ton of potential as he is a well-rounded athletic fighter. Although he has won his last three fights by decison, Oliveira still has 18 wins by knockout or submission in his career. Oliveira possesses more power than Bautista does, and if “LokDog” is aggressive, he has an excellent chance to pull off the upset in this contest.
Kyoji Horiguchi To Win By Decision (-130)
In November 2025, Horiguchi returned to the UFC and immediately picked up a big victory. Horiguchi submitted Tagir Ulanbekov in the third round and is now ranked in the top 10 at 125 pounds. From 2013 to 2026, Horiguchi competed in the UFC, then left the organization to compete in Rizin and Bellator. Horiguchi is on a seven-fight unbeaten streak and hasn’t lost a fight since April 2022. In this contest, Horiguchi is the better all-around fighter, as he has continued to evolve his arsenal since his first UFC stint.
Horiguchi is -345 as Albazi is a +275 underdog on DraftKings Sportsbook. Since Horiguchi is a big favorite, let’s look at a different way to back him. Even though he won his previous fight by submission, his two previous wins came by decision. Even though Albazi hasn’t fought in quite some time, he is still more talented than Horiguchi’s last opponent, Ulanbekov. Also, three of Horiguchi’s last five contests have gone to the judges’ scorecards.
