UFC 300 arrives with champions up and down the card

There are fighters up and down the 300th pay-per-view card for the Ultimate Fighting Championship who remind fans of the ruthless and often twist-filled reality of mixed martial arts. In the 13 bouts for UFC 300, there are 12 competitors who have held a UFC belt at some point in their careers, which is a great selling point to hawk a pay-per-view (for $79.99 in the United States with an ESPN+ subscription) and also a timely indication of how tough it is to win a championship and to squeeze it for all the stardom it can bring.Alex Pereira, the defending light heavyweight champion, worked his way to headline status in a heavier division after setting himself up as a foil to Israel Adesanya, one of the sport's biggest stars. Zhang Weili had to recover from dual losses in 2021 to solidify her as the sport's most prominent fighter from China, and now faces Yan Xiaonan's bid for her belt and bragging rights in their home country.Justin Gaethje and Max Holloway became fits for the BMF belt — the affectionately (and profanely) titled informal strap that seems to be mostly an excuse to give fan favorites five rounds to entertain instead of three — by building reputations for action-packed striking (and very little defense). Even the first fight on the card — not the pay-per-view, the earliest preliminary card — features the former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo moving to bantamweight for Cody Garbrandt, the former champion there who has been trying for years to get his career rolling again.Here's a look at the full card for UFC 300: Main card (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+ PPV)Alex Pereira (9-2-0) vs. Jamahal Hill (12-1-0), men's light heavyweight championship, five roundsZhang Weili (24-3-0) vs. Yan Xiaonan, women's strawweight championship, five roundsJustin Gaethje (26-4-0) vs. Max Holloway (25-7-0), BMF belt, men's lightweight, five roundsCharles Oliveira (34-9-0) vs. Arman Tsarukyan (21-3-0), men's lightweight, three rounds Bo Nickal (5-0-0) vs. Cody Brundage (10-5-0), men's middleweight, three roundsPrelims (8 p.m. ET, ESPN and ESPN+)Jiri Prochazka (29-4-1) vs. Aleksandar Rakic (14-3-0), men's light heavyweight, three roundsCalvin Kattar (23-7-0) vs. Aljamain Sterling (23-4-0), men's featherweight, three roundsHolly Holm (15-6-0) vs. Kayla Harrison (16-1-0), women's bantamweight, three roundsSodiq Yusuff (13-3-0) vs. Diego Lopes (23-6-0), men's featherweight, three roundsEarly Prelims (ESPN+) Jalin Turner (14-7-0) vs. Renato Moicano (18-5-1), men's lightweight, three roundsJessica Andrade (25-12-0) vs. Marina Rodriguez (17-3-2), women's strawweight, three roundsBobby Green (31-15-1) vs. Jim Miller (37-17-0), men's lightweight, three roundsDeiveson Figueiredo (22-3-1) vs. Cody Garbrandt (14-5-0), men's bantamweight, three rounds

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