UFC Edmonton Preview: Joaquin Buckley Faces Mike Malott in Top 10 Welterweight Clash

t's a huge clash in the welterweight division as Mike Malott challenges Joaquin Buckley for a spot in the top 10 rankings.

The last time the UFC visited Edmonton was just under two years ago, when Brandon Moreno ended a two-fight losing streak, defeating Amir Albazi by unanimous decision.

Rogers Place will host two deadly finishers in the main event, both looking to make a statement.

The last Canadian event, UFC Winnipeg, delivered plenty of exciting action, including a stunning comeback KO win from Jai Herbert, but can this upcoming fight night fulfil the same expectations?

A return to the win column is the main priority for Buckley, who is currently coming off back-to-back unanimous decision losses.

'New Mansa' established himself as a leading 170-pound contender with an incredible six-fight winning streak in the space of 19 months.

This included knockout victories over recognised welterweights Colby Covington, Stephen Thompson and Vicente Luque.

However, his winning run ended after a battle against former UFC Welterweight Champion Kamaru Usman at UFC Atlanta, before losing again at UFC 328 against Sean Brady.

The 32-year-old prefers to strike against his opponents, and his record proves that, with 21 of his MMA triumphs ending by KO/TKO.

Buckley is more than capable of claiming his redeeming moment, but he has the challenge of facing his opponent in enemy territory to maintain his number 10 spot in the rankings.

One of Canada's current biggest stars in the UFC is thriving with a four-fight winning streak, which could extend to five this weekend.

This will be Malott's seventh consecutive appearance in his home country, and he has suffered only one loss in eight bouts with the organisation.

The Niagara Top Team fighter has looked unstoppable ever since redeeming his UFC 297 loss to Neil Magny, which has led him to become a 170-pound contender.

The 34-year-old has scored two knockouts during his impressive run, coming against Charles Radtke and Gilbert Burns, as well as a respectable decision victory over Kevin Holland.

With 14 wins in his career, the Burlington-born mixed martial artist has earned six knockouts and six submissions, with nine of those finishes coming in the first round.

It will take some doing to follow in the footsteps of the legendary Georges St-Pierre, but a win against Buckley could give Canadian fans hope of seeing a third UFC champion from their country.

In the co-main event of UFC Edmonton, Erin Blanchfield faces Jasmine Jasudavicius in a three-round flyweight bout.

The number four contender impressed at Madison Square Garden in her last fight by submitting Tracy Cortez in the second round at UFC 322.

Blanchfield previously appeared in the co-main event of Edmonton's last UFC Fight Night, earning a crucial unanimous decision win over Rose Namajunas.

Jasudavicius returned to winning ways in her most recent bout, scoring a unanimous decision triumph against Karine Silva at UFC Winnipeg.

The Canadian will have the crowd on her side to help boost her to victory and move up two places in the women's 125-pound rankings.

The winner will hope to become the next challenger to the newly crowned UFC Women's Flyweight Champion, Natalia Silva.

Kyle Nelson competes on home territory once again and will take on intimidating UFC debutant Cristian Perez.

After suffering a 24-second knockout loss to Terrance McKinney, Nelson is searching for redemption, while Perez prepares for his UFC debut following a second-round TKO win on Dana White's Contender Series just two months ago.

Marc-Andre Barriault goes head-to-head with Kyle Daukaus in what promises to be an exciting contest in the middleweight division.

Both men are aiming to return to the win column, with Barriault coming off back-to-back decision defeats, while Daukaus tries to bounce back from his TKO loss to Bo Nickal at UFC Freedom 250.

A preliminary card contest which is likely to end with a stoppage is a bout featuring UFC debutants Javad Mahjoub and Joel Faglier.

Both men are undefeated, have only gone the distance once, and have a combined total of eight first-round finishes.