It just takes a near-flawless performance on the part of his opponent to do so. Tuivasa Celebrates UFC 254 Win By ... Wetting His Bed? There’s a lot of room for him to grow in the striking department, but what’s already there is scary. See you Saturday, Maniacs. Following a main event loss to Donald Cerrone in 2016, Alex Oliveira (22-8-1) went 6-1 (1 NC) in his next eight, taking home three post-fight bonuses in the process. The event is closed to fans, but the fights still will take place and will be broadcast with essential personnel on site. Here’s an interesting factoid for you: Alvey, the notorious power-puncher, has only scored one knockout since 2016. Georges St-Pierre would never ask Khabib to return to fighting. On the one hand, Villanueva is a natural Light Heavyweight (at best) who earned most of his wins against weak-to-middling opposition. As disappointing as Tuivasa’s recent efforts have been, Struve remains as profoundly hittable as ever, and if there’s one thing Tuivasa doesn’t lack, it’s killer instinct. Against talented strikers, Claudia Gadelha has occasionally faltered. Heavy punches bump the Korean slugger to 3-0 in the Octagon. setTimeout(function () { bsaProContainer.fadeIn(); }, number_show_ads * 1000); But can Pena get the fight to the ground? This is about as binary a match up as you’re likely to see. By: Farah Hannoun and Nolan King. UFC Fight Night predictions: Experts split on Anthony Smith's chances of bouncing back. Conor McGregor, Jon Jones and more react to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s sudden retirement at UFC 254. UFC seeking a replacement. Attempting to view Saturday’s main event strictly in the context of the matchup itself is a fool’s errand. The Venezuelan bruiser lands the flashier, more telling kicks to make up for his struggles in boxing exchanges. The entire event will air on ESPN and ESPN+, with the six-fight preliminaries starting at 6 p.m. If neither finds a finish in round one, expect this to become a bit of a slog in the second half. Even though The MMA Gods are anything but sentimental, Harris wins one for Aniah here. He faces a nearly half-foot reach disadvantage. } “The Menace” will have a three-inch reach advantage. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 2 p.m. Andrei Arlovski (28-19) snapped a four-fight winless streak last July with an upset of Ben Rothwell in their rematch, securing his third professional victory since 2015 in the process. 1 fighter. 13 seed, Sijara Eubanks (4-4) dominated all comers on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 26 before weight-cut difficulties forced her out of the Finale. Share via:... Share via: Share Tweet LinkedIn WhatsApp Pinterest More Fight fans can mark next April 23 on their calendars for the next edition of the Professional Fighters League (PFL). To check out the latest and greatest UFC Fight Night: “Smith vs. Teixeira” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. “Overkill” improves with every fight, but her wrestling remains a question mark, and against a relentless grappler like Gadelha, that area hasn’t evolved enough yet to stop Gadelha from imposing her will. UFC Fight Night predictions: Experts split on Frankie Edgar vs. Pedro Munhoz Frankie Edgar, right, will compete at bantamweight for the first time on Saturday, looking to snap a two-fight … He has since won three straight under the Island Fights banner and gone 1-1-1 in bare knuckle boxing. A close win against a dangerous fighter like Vera is exactly what Song needs to further his development. It’s hard to argue that UFC 254 isn’t worth the price of admission. Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff Writer 8d Bellator MMA lightweight prospect Aaron Pico has booked his next fight against John de Jesus on Nov. 12, according to multiple sources. As of this writing, the oddsmakers have this the closest fight on the card, with each man sitting on -110 odds. Please check your email for a confirmation. Sign up for our newsletter and get every update delivered to your inbox! The Octagon’s most dominant champion faces his most dangerous challenger yet when Khabib Nurmagomedov takes on knockout machine Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 this weekend (Sat., Oct. 24, 2020). UFC’s COVID-19 Safety Protocol For UFC 249 Revealed! His eight stoppage wins include five by submission. She has knocked out and submitted three opponents apiece. Prediction: Morales via unanimous decision. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. His return to 155 saw him face Stevie Ray in Singapore, where he lost a majority decision. Justin Gaethje: If Conor McGregor wants to ‘bounce out and get the belt,’ I’m here, Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Justin Gaethje full fight video highlights. Yadong nearly is a 2-1 favorite, and he’s got a heavy 9-5 lead in the picks. He gives up 10 inches of height and 9.5 inches of reach to “The Skyscraper.”. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+. Rakhmonov was flash KO’d early in a 2018 comeback win over Faridun Odilov, which should give the ultra-powerful Oliveira some hope. His other streak — that of not being knocked out since Jan. 2017 — ended four months later at the hands of Jairzinho Rozenstruik. But if he does, a superfight between GOAT contenders could still be on the table. Overeem is the same way, having made a career of analyzing his opponent’s weaknesses before crushing them with a precision flurry. He returned this past January to choke out prospect Ode Osbourne and secure his third post-fight bonus in the process. Watch: UFC 254 Countdown - Khabib Vs. Gaethje Full Episode, UFC 254 Poster Revealed For Khabib Vs. Gaethje, Khabib Nurmagomedov Red Eagle Hoodie With Foil, Sean “Sugar” O’Malley Multi-Graphic T-Shirt, Black UFC Fan Gear Pride Fighting T-shirt, Adesanya Vs. Whittaker Is ‘The Fight That Makes Sense’. It’s hard to envision Benitez controlling the standup against a taller, rangier, heavier foe with a similar wheelhouse. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. Please check your email for a confirmation. In his last appearance, he had blue-chip up-and-comer Sodiq Yusuff badly hurt in the early going, only to fall to a counter right late in the first. “Boom” has the durability and volume to keep up with Azure’s haymaker-heavy striking offense, strong takedown defense, and a signature guillotine that makes any Azure level change a risk. Sam Alvey (33-14) successfully kicked off his UFC light heavyweight campaign by beating Marcin Prachnio and Gian Villante, extending his ongoing run to 7-2 in the process. Add in the fact that Saturday’s headliner will cap off the third UFC card in one week as the promotion resumes operations following a series of coronavirus pandemic-related cancellations and postponements in March and April, and you get the sense that a lot of demons will be exorcised when the show comes to a close in Jacksonville. One can only imagine the emotional weight he’ll carry with him on fight night and how much just getting the chance to get back to doing what he loves might lighten that load. ET. if ( number_hide_ads > 0 ) { With Khabib Nurmagomedov retired, UFC will soon have a vacant 155-pound title. (Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.) When: Saturday, May 16. The only person who seemingly has an issue with Khabib being dubbed the new pound-for-pound No. UFC on ESPN 11 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. MMAmania.com’s Patrick Stumberg kicks off the truncated fight week with a complete undercard preview below.