UFC president: This is the moment ‘that can change everything’ for Brad Tavares

(This story appears in today’s edition of USA TODAY.)

With Anderson Silva’s near-seven-year reign over the UFC’s middleweight division a thing of the past, the growing list of 185-pound contenders hoping to vie for a title shot has never been more intriguing.

Wednesday’s “UFC Fight Night 35: Rockhold vs. Philippou” event features a key main event between middleweights Luke Rockhold and Constantinos Philippou, but the co-feature also boasts one of the 185-pound division’s most unheralded young prospects – one on the verge of title contention.

“The Ultimate Fighter 11? semifinalist Brad Tavares (11-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) meets fellow striking specialist Lorenz Larkin (14-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) at the FOX Sports 1 broadcast event (5 p.m. ET), which takes place at Arena at Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Ga.

“For a guy like Brad Tavares, he’s finally made it to the co-main-event position, and these are those moments that can change everything for a guy,” UFC President Dana White tells USA TODAY Sports and MMAjunkie. “If he goes in and wins, and wins impressively over Lorenz Larkin, it’s … huge for his career.”

Tavares entered the UFC as a relative neophyte to the sport, earning his spot on “TUF 11? just five fights into his professional career. Eventual show winner Court McGee eliminated the Hawaiian in the semifinal round of the reality series’ 32-man tournament, but Tavares was still offered a UFC contract and has made the most of his opportunity, earning six wins in his seven UFC appearances to date.

But Wednesday’s event marks Tavares’ opportunity to step out of the shadows since his previous UFC appearances were largely relegated to UFC preliminary cards.

“I’ve been doing this for seven years now, and I still feel like I’m growing,” Tavares says. “Every camp, I’m still learning more. I still love the sport, and I still feel like there’s so much more for me to know, but I definitely feel I can compete with anybody in my division.”

It’s an interesting time in the UFC’s middleweight division. With Silva losing twice to now-champion Weidman, not to mention nursing a badly broken leg, his future remains uncertain. Vitor Belfort is up next for the belt, but the rest of the division is wide open, and now seems to be as good of a time as any to make a run toward the top of the class.

“You’ve got Chris Weidman, who beat the champ twice,” White says. “You’ve got Vitor Belfort coming next. You’ve got Lyoto Machida lined up in there too, and (Ronaldo) ‘Jacare’ Souza. Anderson wants to come back. It’s fun. It’s an exciting time in the middleweight division.”

If nothing else, the Tavares vs. Larkin matchup appears likely to prove a crowd-pleasing scrap. Both are strike-first fighters who are willing to trade in the pocket while hunting for a knockout. If there’s been a criticism of Tavares’ game, it’s his defensive wrestling, though the 26-year-old doesn’t believe that will prove an issue in this particular matchup.

“I like Larkin’s style since he tries to mix it up,” Tavares says. “He tries to get creative. There are a few things that I’ve seen him do in past fights that I don’t think will work against me. If you give him the opportunity and the space to do what he wants to do, he’s going to do it. But If I implement my game plan, then I don’t think he’ll be able to get off his offense.”

Tavares enters the fight as a slight underdog, according to oddsmakers, but as White points out, sometimes that public doubt can make a strong performance that much more memorable.

“You look at a guy like Alexander Gustafsson,” White said. “When we made that fight with Jon Jones, the fans and the media were complaining and saying that Alexander Gustafsson didn’t deserve the shot, that Jon Jones was going to walk right through him. Then look at the fight. Gustafsson became a superstar after that fight.

“One fight can change everything for you. For Brad Tavares on Wednesday night, this could be that fight for him.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 35, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.