The Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) world is electrified for the much anticipated Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 259 Pay-Per-View event on Saturday, March 6, at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card is highlighted by a whopping three title fights that include four current UFC champions and a multitude of top contender bouts across many divisions.
It will be a night for many die-hard fans to clear their schedules and keep their eyes glued to the television screen to watch some of the world’s best go head to head.
The main event features Israel Adesanya, the king of the 185-pound middleweight division, moving up to 205 and challenging Light Heavyweight Champion Jan Blachowicz. Fighting under the Nigerian flag but growing up in New Zealand for most of his life, Adesanya has a chance to become the fifth two-division simultaneous champion in UFC history, joining Conor McGregor, Daniel Cormier, Henry Cejudo, and Amanda Nunes. “The Last Style Bender” is a perfect 20-0 in his MMA career and would reach rarefied air with a win over Blachowicz, cementing his place in UFC immortality.
Meanwhile, Blachowicz is coming off a spectacular performance against Light Heavyweight Dominick Reyes at UFC 253 in September, winning by second-round technical knockout (TKO) at the Flash Forum in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. The Polish mixed martial artist won the vacant Light Heavyweight Title in that fight after UFC legend Jon Jones decided to test the waters at heavyweight. Blachowicz will be defending his belt for the first time, and a win over Adesanya would be a stamp on a potential UFC Hall of Fame career. He is 27-8 in his MMA career and coming into the fight red hot, winning eight of his last nine bouts.
Adesanya is an elite striker and kickboxer with 15 knockouts (KOs) in his career but doesn’t have the wrestling or jiu-jitsu credentials that most UFC champions have. Blachowicz has an arsenal of weapons, including a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, that has helped propel him to nine wins by submission in MMA. He also has a lethal standup game with his signature “Polish power,” earning eight KO victories in his career. This five-round fight poses an interesting stylistic matchup between the two champions, and fans across the globe have mixed predictions as to who they think will come out on top.
The co-main event is headlined by women’s Featherweight Champion Amanda Nunes who takes on the 145-pound division’s top contender Megan Anderson. Brazilian mixed martial arts royalty, Nunes is considered one of the best female combat sports athletes of all time. She first touched UFC gold in the 135-pound women’s bantamweight division, where she defeated former champion Miesha Tate by first-round submission at UFC 200 in 2016. Nunes, 32, still reigns as champion in that division, defending her belt five times. She is 20-4 in her MMA career and has won her last 11 fights, her last loss coming in 2014. A win against Anderson will give her two Featherweight Title defenses and the first as a new mother.
Anderson is a fresh contender in the 145-pound division and on a two-fight win streak, her last victory coming by TKO in the first round. Other than Nunes and Featherweight Felicia Spencer, there are very few women in the UFC who fight at this weight class, making it difficult to predict where the future of this division goes after March 6. Anderson, 10-4 in her MMA career, is a former Invicta FC Featherweight champion and has recorded finishes in all but two of her victories, six coming by KO and three coming by submission. She is also the tallest woman on the UFC roster, standing at six feet tall.
A black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Nunes has outstanding grappling and submission skills, but prefers striking in the stand-up, with 13 of her wins coming by KO. In addition to being a two-division champion, Nunes is number one on the women’s pound-for-pound rankings. Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Holly Holm has fought both women and is no stranger to upsets, like her stunning second-round TKO victory over longtime champion Ronda Rousey at UFC 193, but believes that Nunes will get her hand raised in the end.
“I truly feel that Amanda is going to win the fight,” Holm said to MMA Junkie. “But some things that might give her a challenge than some of the other girls [she has faced] is that Megan’s reach is long [and] her legs are long. She’s got a different style. I think Amanda will be able to adjust to that and still be able to perform. But anything can happen.”
Nunes is the heavily betted favorite over Anderson, but the height and reach advantage of the Australian will be a fascinating factor in this fight.
The first five-round title fight on the UFC 259 main card is between UFC Bantamweight Champion Petr Yan and the number one contender Aljamain Sterling. A polished boxer with quick hand speed, Yan always finds a way to knock his opponents down and finish fights with brutal ground and pound. His skill set was put on full display at UFC 251 this past July, dismantling bantamweight contender and former Featherweight Champion José Aldo by fifth-round TKO for the vacant 135-pound title. The Russian is the youngest active UFC champion at 28 years old and looking to defend his belt for the first time.
Sterling, 31, is the real deal and proved that in his first-round submission victory over Bantamweight Cory Sandhagen at UFC 250 this past June less than a minute and a half into the fight. Nicknamed the “Funk Master” for his unconventional wrestling style, Sterling is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and has eight submissions to his name, four coming in the UFC. The New York native has won five consecutive bouts and seven of his last eight coming into March 6 against Yan. Sterling is 19-3 in MMA and was a two-time NCAA Division III All-American wrestler at SUNY Cortland, which kick-started his combat sports career.
Former two-time UFC Bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw weighed in on the fight, giving a slight edge to Yan but not 100% convinced on his prediction.
“I think it’s a tough fight for Yan because of the style of [Sterling],” Dillashaw told Mike Swick on the “Real Quick with Mike Swick” podcast. “I think Yan’s the better, more well-rounded fighter. He’s got more of the skills and more aspects of fighting. But Sterling’s wrestling is very aggressive.”
Yan is a slight betting favorite coming into UFC 259, but the contrasting styles of both competitors make it a fun matchup to watch. Expect the fighter who dictates the pace in the bout to take home the gold.
The rest of the Pay-Per-View card preceding the three title fights is stacked, with many familiar faces hoping to climb in their respective division’s rankings with a win. The number 14 ranked lightweight Islam Makachev makes his long-awaited return back to the octagon against lightweight Drew Dober. The Russian up-and-coming prospect hasn’t fought in a year and a half because of COVID-19 traveling restrictions and injuries but is primed to be a perennial contender for the title soon with a good showing in Las Vegas. Makachev is best friends and training partners with undefeated UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomdev and sports a six-fight winning streak in the UFC. Nurmagomedov believes Makachev has what it takes to be a champion at 155 because of how dangerous he is. “A lot of guys like top five, top six, top seven, don’t wanna fight him because it is a risk for them,” he said. “Right now, Islam’s position is very hard, but after one or two fights, everything is going to change.”
The top five light heavyweight contenders open the Pay-Per-View lineup as former title challenger Thiago Santos faces Aleksander Rakić. Santos is coming off back-to-back heartbreaking losses, most recently against the number one light heavyweight contender Glover Teixeira in November by third-round submission. Rakić has had consecutive wins at 205 and would be one of the top contenders along with Teixeira to face the winner of the main event, Adesanya v. Blachowicz for the Light Heavyweight Belt.
The Prelims, not on Pay-Per-View, also have some exciting fights with big names from the promotion. Former Flyweight Title challenger Joseph Benavidez matches up against Askar Askarov in a top-three contender fight at 125-pounds. The winner of that fight will definitely get a crack at a title shot after the rematch between UFC Flyweight Champion Deiveson Figueiredo and number one contender Brandon Moreno.
In the featured prelim, former two-time Bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz takes on bantamweight Casey Kenney in what should be a high-intensity showdown to move up the 135-pound rankings. Cruz, 35, is a legend in the UFC but has been derailed by a slew of injuries, only fighting once in the last four years. Kenney is a dangerous prospect in the Bantamweight division and a victory over Cruz would be a signature win in his career.
UFC 259 can’t come soon enough, and the MMA world is buzzing over a mouth-watering lineup that could be full of surprises.
