UFC Fight Night: Leon Shahbazyan vs Levan Chokheli Preview & Prediction
A welterweight clash between another two debutants pits submission specialist Leon Shahbazyan against heavy-handed finisher Levan Chokheli on the Las Vegas prelims.
Leon Shahbazyan vs Levan Chokheli facts
What time are Leon Shahbazyan and Levan Chokheli expected to walk out?
Where is UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Horiguchi? Meta Apex, Enterprise, USA
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Horiguchi? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC Fight Night 279
What TV channel is UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Horiguchi on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – Paramount
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Horiguchi? UK – TNT Sports can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and HBO Max / USA – Paramount+ & UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Horiguchi main card
Manel Kape vs Kyoji Horiguchi (Flyweight)
Ion Cutelaba vs Navajo Stirling (Light Heavyweight)
Hyder Amil vs Christian Rodriguez (Featherweight)
Melsik Baghdasaryan vs Murtazali Magomedov (Featherweight)
Andre Fili vs Vinicius Oliveira (Featherweight)
UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Horiguchi prelims
Andre Lima vs Kevin Borjas (Flyweight)
Beatriz Mesquita vs Melissa Mullins (Women's Bantamweight)
Allan Nascimento vs Mitch Raposo (Flyweight)
Gaston Bolanos vs Michael Aswell Jr. (Featherweight)
Leon Shahbazyan vs Levan Chokheli (Welterweight)
Karol Rosa vs Luana Santos (Women's Bantamweight)
Shane Collins vs Otari Tanzilovi (Featherweight)
Leon Shahbazyan: “S.O.G” finally gets his octagon walk
Leon Shahbazyan (12-4) reaches the UFC seven years after his first crack at it slipped away, the older brother of middleweight Edmen and a product of Glendale Fighting Club. Leon is a neck-hunter through and through, 11 of his 12 wins have come by submission, six of those by guillotine, and he rides a four-fight first-round submission streak into his debut. He’s a threat off his back as well as on top. The flip side is his durability, all four of his losses have come by stoppage. Also, this is his first welterweight bout since 2021.
Levan Chokheli: Power-punching Georgian out to prove the chinny question wrong
Levan Chokheli (14-3, 1NC) arrives as a fearsome finisher, 11 of his 14 wins come by knockout off a regional run littered with sub-minute demolitions. A three-year Bellator stint saw the record of 4-3 but he managed to announce himself to the wider world via a viral front-kick KO over Sabah Homasi. At Bellator he was exposed by being outwrestled by Kyle Crutchmer, submitted by Goiti Yamauchi, and knocked out by Lorenz Larkin. He rebuilt himself with a KO over Alexandre Goncalves in 2025. He starts fast, swings with power, and loves a scrap.
Leon Shahbazyan vs Levan Chokheli prediction
This is a striker VS grappler puzzle, and the path for each man is obvious. Chokheli holds the edge on the feet – more power, better head movement, and the fast-starting aggression that has given Shahbazyan trouble before. Leon stands tall and upright, works behind long kicks and single shots with little head movement, and relies on his reach to stay out of range rather than other defensive manoeuvrers. Against a quick, powerful starter like Chokheli, it’s worrying, especially dropping to welterweight on a chin that’s already been cracked four times.
There is the other side though. Shahbazyan’s got a strong guillotine game, and Chokheli does shoot takedowns. The blueprint to beat him on the mat already exists. If the Georgian swings wild, chases Leon to the floor, or shoots a sloppy takedown, he could find his neck in the clasp of Leon. The smart play would be to trust his hands and refuse to grapple, there’s no reason to risk it when he’s the better man standing.
The likeliest outcome is Chokheli’s pace and power overwhelming a slow-starting Shahbazyan before the grappling ever becomes a factor.
Prediction: Levan Chokheli to win by KO/TKO in round one.
