One to Watch: Daron Cruickshank vs Paul Felder

With Dana White originally hailing from Boston, Massachusetts, it's clear the city has a special place in the heart of the UFC president. This is replicated in the fight cards held in Beantown, which are often teeming with enthralling contests that have some real, meaty context behind them.

In this case, UFC Fight Night 81, held in Boston's TD Garden, will see the returning Dominic Cruz attempt to win back the UFC bantamweight title he never lost against current champ TJ Dillashaw, as well as the eagerly anticipated return of Anthony Pettis against former Bellator stalwart Eddie Alvarez after he had lost his lightweight championship to the ever-improving Rafael Dos Anjos at UFC 185 back in March.

But, with those two aforementioned barnburners taking all the limelight, there are a few fights that are staying well under the radar including Ben Saunders vs Patrick Cote and Daron Cruickshank vs Paul Felder. The latter bout is the UFC Fight Pass preliminary fights headliner before the main card gets going. Due to this, it's easy to overlook a fight with so much potential.

Both men may be coming off losing streaks of two fights each, but Cruickshank and Felder's respective all-action fighting styles help ensure this contest to be one of the most entertaining the whole event has to offer.

Felder, a native of Philadelphia, has dropped two decision losses in his last two fights—the first against brilliant Brazilian striker Edson Barbosa and the latter coming against British bruiser Ross Pearson in a controversial split decision.

Despite facing off against dangerous opponents, Felder took those two aforementioned fights on short notice which could explain why he came up short on those occasions as he was outworked and outpaced by his fresher opponents.

However, it appears "The Irish Dragon" has learned his lesson, saying: "I was literally in an ice bath and drinking a beer after eating mom's mashed potato, and I get a call from my manager saying, 'You want to fight in four or five weeks?' So I took it, no excuses. But I didn't feel like myself."

Meanwhile, "The Detroit Superstar" Cruickshank has succumbed to rear naked choke losses in his last two efforts in the Octagon against lightweight prospect Beneil Dariush and James Krause—after having his previous fight against KJ Noons called a No Contest as a result of suffering multiple inadvertent eye pokes in a fight he was arguably winning.

After receiving those eye pokes from Noons, Cruickshank suffered a torn tear duct to his left eye: a permanent injury doctors described as only ever occurring from traumatic incidents such as a dog attack or a car accident.

With both fighters suffering setbacks in their last two outings, this fight does have the context of "loser leaves town" behind it with the UFC becoming increasingly cut-throat when it comes to releasing competitors from its roster. However, these are two fighters who are worth keeping around for their striking abilities alone—no matter the end result of Sunday night's fight.

Their records speak for themselves in this regard. Felder's 10-2 record has seen him win seven fights by knockout, with his last one coming by way of a vicious spinning back fist against Team Alpha Male product Danny Castillo.

Cruickshank is no different. His 16-7 record is littered with nine KO wins with a variety of kicking techniques—a product of his experience as a 2nd degree taekwondo black belt. His most spectacular win came against fellow Ultimate Fighter contestant Mike Rio, finishing the fight with a devastating wheel kick, punctuated with precise punches.

So, if you're making the effort to watch the fights on Sunday night, make sure you catch Cruickshank and Felder attempt to secure their UFC futures as in front of the raucous Boston crowd.