In a historic short-notice Ultimate Fighting Championship match, Jesse Butler will step in to take on Jim Miller this Saturday at UFC Vegas 74 in Las Vegas. The gap in Octagon experience between the two fighters is expected to be significant, with Miller having far more UFC bouts under his belt compared to newcomer Butler.
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Jim Miller’s Previous Opponents and Record
Jim Miller (35-17, 1 NC) was initially slated to face Ludovit Klein at UFC on ESPN 46 in May. A few weeks before the match, Jared Gordon stepped in to replace Klein against Miller. However, news broke on Thursday that Gordon was forced out of the fight, leading to the promotion finding another replacement in Jesse Butler (12-4). Miller is currently looking to rebound from his first loss in a few years, where he suffered a defeat to Alexander Hernandez in February. This loss ended a three-fight win streak for the 39-year-old veteran, who had previously secured a trio of finishes over Erick Gonzalez, Nikolas Motta, and Donald Cerrone in less than nine months. Miller leads the UFC in fights (41) and wins (24) and is expected to continue competing until 2024.
Jesse Butler’s Entry into the UFC
Typically a featherweight, Louisiana’s Butler will enter the UFC on a five-fight win streak. His last three appearances came under the Fury Fighting Championship banner, where he defeated Dimitre Ivy, Masio Fullen, and Anselmo Luis Luna Jr. in 2021, 2022, and 2023, respectively. The Kron Gracie West Monroe product has a 75% finish rate, with two-thirds of his pro victories coming via tapout. With Miller’s 41 UFC appearances to Butler’s zero, this fight will showcase the greatest discrepancy in organizational experience.
UFC on ESPN 46 will take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on June 3, with flyweights Kai Kara France and Amir Albazi headlining the event. The co-headliner will feature a bout between Alex Caceres and Daniel Pineda. Other main card fights include a flyweight scrap between Tim Elliott and Victor Altamirano, a women’s flyweight collision between Karine Silva and Ketlen Souza, and a 170-pound stylistic clash between Abubakar Nurmagomedov and Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos.