MMA Fighting Jan 23, 2021, 10:40am EST
If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.
Share this story
As Bruce Buffer would put it, this is the one you’ve all been waiting for.
We’ve had two events and 24 UFC fights in the past six days and yet still, you can sense that there’s another level of anticipation for Saturday’s UFC 257 card headlined by Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor. It’s a rematch six years in the making and even if it wasn’t, you’d still have two of the most compelling fighters in the business facing off.
MMA Fighting
Share this story
Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
Arman Tsarukyan and Matt Frevola will face one another at UFC 257 after a chaotic shuffle at Friday’s official weigh-ins.
The 157-pound catchweight bout has been officially added to Saturday’s card in Abu Dhabi following the removal of Tsarukyan and Frevola’s originally scheduled opponents, Nasrat Haqparast and Ottman Azaitar, respectively.
See the official statement here:
UFC is aware of a recent violation of the health and safety protocols involving Ottman Azaitar. As such, Azaitar has been removed from the safety zone and his upcoming bout against Matt Frevola has been canceled.
January 18, 2021
After an afternoon matinee and Wednesday’s early morning event, the UFC finally heads back to primetime on Saturday, Jan. 23, for UFC 257, the company’s first pay-per-view event of the year.
In the evening’s headliner, global superstar Conor McGregor returns to action after 12 months away from the cage. His opponent is Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier, who seeks to avenge a 2014 loss to the “Notorious” one when the two men met at featherweight. In that fight, McGregor required just a minute and 46 seconds to score a TKO stoppage of Poirier.
The McGregor bout was Poirier’s last fight at 145 pounds. His move up to lightweight has brought with it much success, including a 10-2 record and an interim championship following his UFC 236 victory over Max Holloway. Meanwhile, McGregor went on to claim the featherweight strap before following suit and moving up in weight. The Irishman defeated Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 to become the first simultaneous two-divisio
The Ultimate Fighter 23: Preview and Analysis of This Season’s Cast
The Ultimate Fighter 23 kicked off last week with the elimination rounds.
Sixteen fighters from the light heavyweight division and 16 fighters from the strawweight division faced off in front of UFC President Dana White and coaches Joanna Jędrzejczyk and Claudia Gadelha with the winner of each fight making it into the house.
Let’s get to know the prospects that advanced to the house.
Advertisement
Women’s Strawweights
Tatiana Suarez (1-0): Suarez comes into the house with a lone victory in her professional MMA career and two wins in her amateur career. The 25-year-old has a base in wrestling. She claimed four high school national championships and is a two-time world medalist in freestyle wrestling. She also holds a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Suarez defeated Chel-c Bailey via unanimous decision and was the first pick for Team Claudia. She is also one of the favorites to make the finals.