Kevin VallejosvsGiga Chikadze

Giga Chikadze is trying to claw his way back after a rough stretch. The Georgian kickboxer hasn't won since he beat Alex Caceres back in August 2023, and he's dropped three straight since then - decisions to Calvin Kattar, Arnold Allen, and most recently David Onama in April. That Kattar fight was brutal, a full five-round war where Giga landed 129 strikes but just couldn't get Calvin out of there. Now he's facing Kevin Vallejos, who's riding some serious momentum. Vallejos is coming in hot with back-to-back wins.

He just beat Danny Silva by decision in August, and before that he starched SeungWoo Choi in the first round with ground and pound in March. That Choi finish was nasty - put him away in just over three minutes. The Argentine switch-stance fighter is looking to make it three in a row and really announce himself in the featherweight division. Here's the thing - Chikadze's still got that dangerous striking from his kickboxing days. When he knocked out Edson Barboza back in 2021, everyone thought he was about to break into the top five.

But Vallejos has shown he can finish fights and he's not afraid to mix it up. Giga needs this win badly to stop the slide, while Vallejos is trying to prove he belongs with the division's strikers. This is a crossroads fight for both guys. Chikadze's trying to remember what winning feels like, and Vallejos wants to show that finishing Choi wasn't a fluke.