UFC 326: Ricky Turcios vs Alberto Montes Preview & Prediction
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Ricky Turcios moves up to featherweight to face Alberto Montes after a last minute cancellation bounced him from UFC 324.
Ricky Turcios vs Alberto Montes facts
What time are Ricky Turcios and Alberto Montes expected to walk out?
Where is UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2? T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, USA
Where can I get tickets for UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC 326
What TV channel is UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2 on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – Not televised
Where can I stream UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2? UK – TNT Sports can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and discovery+ / USA – Paramount+ & UFC Fight Pass
UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2 main card
Max Holloway vs Charles Oliveira (Lightweight)
Caio Borralho vs Reinier de Ridder (Middleweight)
Rob Font vs Raul Rosas Jr. (Bantamweight)
Drew Dober vs Michael Johnson (Lightweight)
Gregory Rodrigues vs Brunno Ferreira (Middleweight)
UFC 326: Holloway vs Oliveira 2 prelims
Cody Garbrandt vs Xiao Long (Bantamweight)
Donte Johnson vs Cody Brundage (Middleweight)
Ricky Turcios vs Alberto Montes (Featherweight)
Cody Durden vs Nyamjargal Tumendemberel (Flyweight)
Su Mudaerji vs Jesus Santos Aguilar (Flyweight)
Rafael Tobias vs Diyar Nurgozhay (Light Heavyweight)
Lee Jeong-yeong vs Gaston Bolanos (Featherweight)
Luke Fernandez vs Rodolfo Bellato (Light Heavyweight)
Ricky Turcios: The TUF 29 winner makes the move to featherweight after an exceedingly late notice fight cancellation at UFC 324
Poised to make his first appearance of 2026 after his bout with Cameron Smotherman at UFC 324 fell through, the stakes remain high for Ricky Turcios (12-5) heading into this one. Posting a record of just 1-3 since winning the TUF 29 finale against Brady Hiestand back in 2021, the eccentric American has had a tricky schedule throughout his time with the promotion, dropping results to the likes of Raul Rosas Jr. and Aimenn Zahabi along the way. An unorthodox striker, Turcios’ lack of pop on the feet means that he often struggles to impose himself in his fights, although he compensates well for this by putting an electric pace and high output on his opponents.
Alberto Montes: The Contender Series standout makes his long awaited debut after earning a contract all the way back in 2024
An ever-present threat on the ground, Alberto Montes (10-1) still has yet to make his UFC debut despite earning a contract with an anaconda choke submission over Carlos Calderon on the Contender Series back in 2024. However, "The Promise" is still on a three fight submission win streak that dates back to his sole career defeat, and boasts eight finishes in ten professional victories. Having also fought at bantamweight throughout his career, the 31 year old Venezuelan was slated to make his promotional debut against Roberto Romero last year, only for the match up to fall through due to an injury.
Ricky Turcios vs Alberto Montes prediction
While he's a clear favorite on paper, Montes' inactivity since earning a UFC contract gives cause for concern here. He's an extremely talented submission threat with serviceable striking, but he's still been out of action for more than a year. Turcios has been fighting solid levels of competition at bantamweight throughout that time, giving the well rounded Bernardo Sopaj a run for his money last time out.
Unfortunately for the TUF 29 winner, his lack of pop and accuracy on the feet could really hurt him here. To date, the only way to beat Montes has been to lay him out cold; Turcios has just four finishes in twelves professional MMA wins. Furthermore, if the American wasn't scoring KOs at bantamweight, it's hard to picture his power translating with effective results at 145 pounds.
It's also worth noting that Turcios was submitted just two fights ago by Raul Rosas Jr., exposing an Achilles heel in his game that Montes will gleefully exploit if he can get him on the mat. The Venezuelan is lethal from the front headlock position, snatching up anacondas and d'arce chokes with prolific ease. Furthermore, while he's not as flashy as Turcios in the striking department, he's arguably more efficient with his output and hits harder.
Throw in the fact that Turcios has 44% takedown defence and it's easy to see where this is going. Montes latches up a trademark front choke to earn his first UFC victory before the final horn sounds.
Prediction: Alberto Montes to win by submission
