Chael Sonnen – Syndication Server

UFC 314: How to watch Alexander Volkanovski vs. Diego Lopes, start time, Miami fight card, odds, more

Here’s what you need to know to watch UFC 314 on pay-per-view, ESPN and ESPN+.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

The UFC is back in South Florida this week with UFC 314 in Miami.

Here’s how to watch UFC 314 with the newly vacant featherweight title on the line at the top of the card.

Broadcast and streaming info

UFC 314 has a main card that starts at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view via ESPN+. The preliminary card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, and early prelims stream on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET.

Longtime UFC correspondent [autotag]Megan Olivi[/autotag] will conduct pre and post-fight interviews backstage with some of the athletes on the UFC 314 card, as well as report additional real-time updates for the event.

[autotag]Dan Hellie[/autotag] will host the official UFC 314 weigh-in show on Friday at 9 a.m. ET/6 a.m. PT.

He’ll be joined by UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag], former UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag] and [autotag]Laura Sanko[/autotag].

Former interim UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Dustin Poirier[/autotag], two-time UFC title challenger [autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] and light heavyweight [autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] will serve as desk analysts on the UFC 314 post-fight show and throughout the card, when necessary.

[autotag]Brett Okamoto[/autotag] will serve as desk host with [autotag]Jon Anik[/autotag] joining the desk post-fight.

Anik will serve as the leading man on the mic from cageside at UFC 314.

He will command play-by-play alongside color commentators, former two-division UFC champion Cormier and [autotag]Joe Rogan[/autotag].

[autotag]Din Thomas[/autotag] will also contribute to the broadcast as a coach-analyst.

(Mike Bohn—MMA Junkie)

Main event: Alexander Volkanovski

Record: 26-5 MMA, 13-4 UFC
Opponent: Diego Lopes (27-6 MMA, 6-1 UFC)
Division: Featherweight
Key wins: Yair Rodriguez, Max Holloway (three times), Chan Sung Jung, Brian Ortega, Jose Aldo
Misc.: It’s been a rough past couple years for the former champ, but he still finds himself right back in a title fight. He lost two lightweight title shots to Islam Makhachev – the second of which came on short notice. Then he lost his featherweight title to Ilia Topuria. But Topuria is headed to lightweight and vacated the belt, so who better than to have a crack at it than the ex-champ, the UFC brass figured.

Main event: Diego Lopes

Record: 27-6 MMA, 6-1 UFC
Opponent: Alexander Volkanovski (26-5 MMA, 13-4 UFC)
Division: Featherweight
Key wins: Brian Ortega, Dan Ige, Sodiq Yusuff, Pat Sabatini
Misc.: Lopes’ win over ex-title challenger Ortega this past fall put him in perfect position to get the call when Topuria moved up and the featherweight belt became open.

Alexander Volkanovski vs. Diego Lopes, UFC 314 news conference

Co-main event: Michael Chandler

Record: 23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC
Opponent: Paddy Pimblett (22-3 MMA, 6-0 UFC)
Division: Lightweight
Key wins: Tony Ferguson, Dan Hooker, Benson Henderson (twice in Bellator), Patricky Freire (twice in Bellator), Eddie Alvarez (2011 in Bellator)
Misc.: Has lost four of five, but remains a fan favorite for his willingness to sacrifice blood and perhaps future coherence in the name of entertainment. For that reason, title contention remains ever-present with a win. But a loss to Pimblett would push him toward that on-the-way-out territory experienced by Tony Ferguson, Donald Cerrone and others – fun at the dance, sure, but no longer a candidate for prom king.

Co-main event: Paddy Pimblett

Record: 22-3 MMA, 6-0 UFC
Opponent: Michael Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC)
Division: Lightweight
Key wins: King Green, Tony Ferguson
Misc.: Former Cage Warriors champion has been perfect since his arrival to the UFC, and all four of his stoppage wins in the promotion have come with post-fight bonuses attached.

UFC debut: Patricio Freire

Record: 36-7
Opponent: Yair Rodriguez (19-5 MMA, 10-4 UFC)
Division: Featherweight
Key wins: Adam Borics, A.J. McKee, Emmanuel Sanchez, Michael Chandler
Misc.: Former two-division Bellator champion “Pitbull” Freire finally arrives in the UFC. He’s regarded as the best fighter in Bellator history – and even challenged for the bantamweight title there less than two years ago, meaning he has the potential to play around in three divisions.

UFC 314 main card betting odds

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

Alexander Volkanovski -150 vs. Diego Lopes +125 – for vacant featherweight title
Michael Chandler +135 vs. Paddy Pimblett -160
Bryce Mitchell +260 vs. Jean Silva -325
Patricio Freire +165 vs. Yair Rodriguez -200
Nikita Krylov -200 vs. Dominick Reyes +165

UFC 314 prelim betting odds

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)

Dan Ige +130 vs. Sean Woodson -155
Virna Jandiroba -150 vs. Yan Xiaonan +125
Chase Hooper -700 vs. Jim Miller +500
Darren Elkins +285 vs. Julian Erosa -360

UFC 314 early prelim betting odds

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)

Sedriques Dumas +160 vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk -190
Su Mudaerji -220 vs. Mitch Raposo +180
Tresean Gore +260 vs. Marco Tulio -325
Nora Cornolle -175 vs. Hailey Cowan +145

UFC 314 preview videos

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 314.

Chael Sonnen: Alexander Volkanovski ‘fighting for his career’ at UFC 314

Chael Sonnen sees UFC 314 as more than just another title shot for Alexander Volkanovski. It’s a do-or-die situation.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] sees UFC 314 as a do-or-die situation for [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag].

Volkanovski (26-4 MMA, 13-3 UFC) meets Diego Lopes (26-6 MMA, 5-1 UFC) for the vacant featherweight title in Saturday’s main event at Kaseya Center from Miami (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN/Disney+, ESPN+). While Volkanovski has an opportunity to reclaim the UFC featherweight title, a loss could also be detrimental to his career.

“Volkanovski’s name popping up with the right kind of loss, and I’m talking about if he gets laid out or he gets stopped, which is Lopes’ greatest path to victory by the way, people are going to be calling for retirement,” Sonnen said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier. “That’s going to give him four losses out of his last five. It’s going to be over a number of years, spreading over a couple of different weight classes.

“I don’t take a pride in that, but when I’m trying to look at it and analyze it, and think about who’s got the pressure, and pressure matters. Guys like you and I talk about pressure all the time, but we forget to explain it. The reason why that matters is pressure creates fatigue, and in a sport that’s built around exhaustion, you don’t want to be the one to get tired first. I think that Volk is not only fighting for a world title, I think he’s fighting for his career.”

Volkanovski will look to rebound after back-to-back knockout losses to UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria. After losing his featherweight title to Topuria, who later vacated the belt, Volkanovski opted to take more than a year off to recover.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 314.

Chael Sonnen: ‘Ass-whooping’ would await Conor McGregor in UFC comeback fight

Chael Sonnen explains why he doesn’t see the point in UFC star Conor McGregor fighting again.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] doesn’t see the point in UFC star [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] fighting again.

More questions arose about McGregor’s fighting future after the former UFC dual champion admitted that his focus is currently on politics, where he plans on running for Irish presidency.

McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) hasn’t competed since breaking his leg in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021, and Sonnen warned that a comeback likely won’t go well for him. In fact, he doesn’t see a single ideal matchup for “The Notorious” to return to.

“What part of it would he come back for? We’re told by him that he doesn’t need the money. We can see that his time is occupied,” Sonnen said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier. “I mean, a lot of fighters got to cling to the sport because they have nothing else to do. He’s got a beating standing in front of him. We can go ’55, we can go ’70, we can make up a weight class, there is not an athlete under contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship located in Southern Nevada that he can beat.

“I don’t even mean that to be a jerk. When they bring him back, they put him in a main event, and all of a sudden you’re asking him to do five rounds. We’ve got a guy who can’t breathe for a full round. This is just a reality. There’s nothing to come back for. The golden rule of life my mother would tell me when I was a little boy: ‘Put yourself in their shoes. What would you do?’ And there’s no reason to come back. There’s an ass-whooping waiting for you, apparently life is good without it. He can still make headlines without it.”

McGregor was slated to fight Michael Chandler at UFC 303 last June but withdrew after breaking his pinky toe. He has not been booked for a fight since.

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Chael Sonnen advises Alex Pereira against Magomed Ankalaev rematch

Chael Sonnen thinks Alex Pereira immediately rematching Magomed Ankalaev is a bad idea.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] immediately rematching [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] is a bad idea.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in the UFC 313 main event earlier this month at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

All signs are pointing to Pereira getting an opportunity to avenge his loss to Ankalaev next, but Sonnen warns him against that option. “Poatan” stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedowns, but was outstruck and controlled in the fight.

Sonnen sees a rematch likely going the same way.

“I’m a very big Alex Pereira fan, on a personal level, but also his work inside the cage,” Sonnen told Submission Radio. “I’ve got to tell you, there is nothing within that first fight – whether illness, injury, or a combination of both – there was nothing about that first fight that would lead a reasonable analyst to believe you’re going to have a different outcome in the second fight. … That first fight was 4-1. It was four rounds to one. It really was not overly competitive. There were some really well things done by Pereira, such as stopping the takedowns. We didn’t know that he had this ability. It was a pretty slow pace and there wasn’t a lot done.

“I’m just suggesting there was nothing we saw that would make us think that even at a slow pace, even at a drawn down action-packed night or lack thereof, there’s nothing to believe that Rounds 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are going to be any different. Whatever it is that Pereira is supposed to have learned in that job experience, why would we not believe an equal amount would be learned by Ankalaev? Whatever we’re supposed to believe that Pereira gained to do a better job next time, why do we not believe that Ankalaev also? Ankalaev is the one that had his takedowns stuffed. So in theory, he’s the one that would have felt and known where the adjustments are to get the big guy off his feet. And once he gets him on the ground, I can’t imagine that’s where the judges are going to see it his way.”

Sonnen says history proves that Pereira could still land big opportunities off of a loss – but off of two?

“It is a surprise and I think it’s a risk,” Sonnen said. “The way we got Pereira to 205 pounds is contrary to what people remember. Most people’s minds have played a trick on them. People believe Pereira got to 205 because he cleaned out 185, and that is not accurate. He got beat. When he got beat at 185, and he no longer has the belt, he no longer has to stay as the head of the division. He is free like anyone else to go anywhere that he wants. So if we wanted to get him to heavyweight, it wasn’t by beating Ankalaev, thus cleaning out 205.

“It would’ve been to get him beat, which we did. Our opportunity to bump him up to be able to take on the winner of a (Jon) Jones vs. (Tom) Aspinall or any scenario, be a backup fighter … the way to do it has already been done, and I’m not certain we should not have taken full advantage. The fight was close. He stopped the takedowns. It added to the story. Let it go. There was nothing embarrassing about it. But if you rematch and you drop two straight, particularly if it’s dominant, that’s where some embarrassment does set in.”

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Chael Sonnen finds it ‘annoying’ that Khamzat Chimaev is yet to be booked for UFC title fight

Chael Sonnen doesn’t understand why Khamzat Chimaev vs. Dricus Du Plessis hasn’t been booked yet.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] doesn’t understand why [autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] hasn’t been booked yet.

Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) was touted as the No. 1 middleweight contender after running through former champion Robert Whittaker for a first-round submission at UFC 308 this past October.

Middleweight champion Du Plessis’ most recent title defense came in a rematch win over Sean Strickland at UFC 312. However, prior to the fight, Du Plessis (23-2 MMA, 9-0 UFC) admitted that he would have rather fought Chimaev instead.

So Sonnen wants to know why hasn’t that fight been booked yet?

“He was a media darling like only two others had ever done: Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey,” Sonnen told Submission Radio of Chimaev. “The third media darling of our industry: He was shopping, he was buying groceries with a cart, and this did hundreds and thousands of views on YouTube. He was driving through traffic with Darren Till – it did over a million views on YouTube. This guy could not go wrong. The world loved him, and the one accidental piece of marketing that they happened to be given is that he was fighting every other week, at a different weight class, against anybody he wanted with no complaint.

“Now it’s the exact opposite. You can’t get an interview with him. We don’t even know for sure what country he’s living in. It really is a peculiar thing. He’s very clearly the No.1 contender and there’s somebody in that region of the world with some influence that very much wants to make sure that that happens, but why isn’t it happening? DDP would like to know when this is happening. The whole rest of the division have acknowledged that Chimaev has earned the right, but when?”

Sonnen thinks Chimaev’s title-fight should be announced as soon as possible to give clarity for the rest of the division.

“It’s getting to a point that it’s annoying,” Sonnen said. “Any time a guy, particularly a non-champion, holds up an entire division, we have a problem. … You’re going to crush the drive of the entire room.”

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Why Chael Sonnen considers it ‘a real insult’ to ask Islam Makhachev to fight Ilia Topuria

Chael Sonnen doesn’t think it’s fair to put UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in the same predicament again.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] refuses to believe that UFC champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] is avoiding [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag].

Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) previously said he wasn’t interested in defending his lightweight title against another featherweight in Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who is vacating his belt for a move up to 155 pounds.

Makhachev’s manager also said he’d like to see Topuria earn his shot at the title by fighting a top contender. But considering two of Makhachev’s four title defenses came against ex-featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski, Sonnen says it isn’t fair to put him in that predicament again.

“My first sense is that’s fake news, and it’s a real insult to Islam,” Sonnen said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier. “I don’t believe that Islam’s scared to fight anybody. I think the evidence of that fact would be the fact that he switched opponents and took on ‘Money’ Moicano with no training camp, no preparation, just because it’s the right thing to do, and made sure that the golden rule was followed, which is the show must go forward.

“I don’t believe it to be any more than a rumor. I also think it’s a little bit insulting to be the one to have to ask Islam, ‘Will you fight a ’45 pounder’ considering that would make the third ’45 pounder that Islam was forced to face. And the only thing Islam has ever told us is that he himself would like to change weights. So, if he himself is not allowed to do the one thing that they’re asking him to do three times over, I’m light on that. I don’t think it happens.”

Cormier, a longtime training partner of Makhachev’s, agrees with Sonnen.

“Fighting Alexander Volkanovski, who at the time was No. 1 pound-for-pound – you remember when their first fight happened? It was whoever wins will be considered the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world,” Cormier said. “Because Islam is (No.) 2, Alex was 1.

“Islam beats him, but it was very close, and then we had this weird (moment) where Alex and Islam were No. 1 pound-for-pound. For a while it was like two No. 1s and Islam was like, ‘Wait, give me what you said I was going to get,’ and then the world then said, ‘Why do you want that? You beat a ’45 pounder.'”

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Chael Sonnen: ‘The narrative that Alex Pereira can’t wrestle is over’ after UFC 313

Chael Sonnen is still hopeful that Alex Pereira could pose Jon Jones problems after UFC 313.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] is still hopeful that [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] could pose [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] problems after UFC 313.

Pereira (12-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) lost his light heavyweight title to Magomed Ankalaev (21-1-1 MMA, 12-1-1 UFC) by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Had Pereira won, many thought a super fight against UFC heavyweight champion Jones would be on the horizon. While that’s off the table for now, Sonnen thinks that despite losing, Pereira shut down a criticism about his game when he stuffed all 12 of Ankalaev’s takedown attempts.

“You don’t get very far when you start talking about Alex Pereira vs. Jon Jones,” Sonnen said on his YouTube channel. “You just don’t get there because we know that Jon can throw him down and beat him up. Like, that’s just something that Jon does so well. He can throw people down and then beat them up.

“Well, you go watch this fight, and you go, ‘Hey, you know what? It turns out that old Alex Pereira isn’t so easy to take down.’ Alex Pereira really showed some stuff. That entire narrative that he can’t wrestle and he can’t defend is now gone. Ankalaev revealed his plan and that was to take him down – his plan failed.”

However, Daniel Cormier disagrees. He thinks Pereira’s loss to Ankalaev showed that he’d have trouble dealing with the strength at heavyweight.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.

Chael Sonnen confident Khamzat Chimaev is UFC 312 title-fight backup

Does it make sense for the UFC to fly Khamzat Chimaev to Sydney without him serving as the backup to Dricus Du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland?

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] believes [autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag] will serve as the backup fighter for UFC 312.

Dricus Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) defends his middleweight title against Sean Strickland (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC) in a rematch, which headlines Saturday’s event at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. The main card streams on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

With UFC 311 losing its main event just one day prior, Sonnen doubts the promotion would risk another title-fight headliner being jeopardized. Islam Makhachev was scheduled to defend his lightweight title against Arman Tsarukyan last month, but Tsarukyan pulled out after weigh-ins, leaving Makhachev to face Renato Moicano instead.

UFC 312 does not feature any middleweight matchups outside of the main event.

“I think Chimaev’s the backup fighter,” Sonnen said on his YouTube channel. “I don’t believe that Chimaev is just the No. 1 contender. I don’t believe that the proximity of this fight is something that you would not book Chimaev, who allegedly has Western travel issues.

“I don’t think you would do that without bringing him. I’m confident that Chimaev will be there, I’m confident he will be in attendance, so why if you’re flying him out would you not put him on the scale the day before? I’m asking. I don’t know that answer.”

Chimaev, who steamrolled former champion Robert Whittaker for a first-round submission at UFC 308, recently obtained a United Arab Emirates passport.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 312.

Chael Sonnen: Islam Makhachev’s desire to change weight classes isn’t about UFC second title

Chael Sonnen believes there is an underlying reason why UFC lightweight champ Islam Makhachev wants to move weight classes.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] believes the true reason UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] has been talking about chasing a second title in a higher weight class has nothing to do with accolades or building a legacy.

Soon after defeating short-notice opponent Renato Moicano in the first round at UFC 311, Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) said he would move up to middleweight to challenge current champion Dricus Du Plessis. Moving from 155 pounds to 185 is a huge jump in weight, but it would be the next logical step for Makhachev since he will not fight current welterweight champ Belal Muhammad.

“Islam’s got to talk about (Alex) Pereira at 205, and he’s got to talk about Dricus at 185,” Sonnen told MMA Junkie. “And that’s weird, and that’s not anything that anybody will take serious, but he has to do that because his friend has the belt at 170.

“There’s really no teams out there, there’s just guys that say they belong to a team, and that includes the NFL and NBA. Those guys are whores. You put down a bigger check than somebody else, they’re put your jersey on. The only team, real team, is Khabib’s and they have a code and they have an honor. You’re just not going to see a fight with Islam and Belal. But the No. 1 thing that Islam wants, and the No. 1 reason he keeps bringing things like this up – it’s not a challenge, it’s not a new world title. He wants out of the weight class.”

After hitting championship weight of 155 pounds at official weigh-ins the day before the fight, Makhachev gained 23.5 pounds, weighing-in at 178 pounds on the night of UFC 311. That’s just slightly under what he claims is his walk around weight of around 180.

If Makhachev were to move up to challenge Du Plessis, he knows it would take time to bulk up and add muscle to his frame, but he believes he could get the job done.

Sonnen is of the belief that Makhachev’s calls to change divsiions is a plea for help of sorts, and one that could lead to an early retirement if not acknowledged by the UFC.

“The biggest problem Islam has is a thing that beat his coach twice and that ultimately retired – Khabib did not retire because he didn’t want to fight Conor (McGregor) a second time,” Sonnen said. “The UFC showed him the wrong numbers. Every time they had a meeting, they showed more commas and more zeroes. That was the wrong number. If they would have made the weight class 170, they would have got Khabib for one more fight. They’re going to run into that same problem with Islam eventually.

“The No. 1 reason a combat athlete retires – they tell you it’s because their contract’s up, they tell you because they’ve had enough, they tell you because it’s too told – the No. 1 reason, No. 1, any combat athlete retires: they don’t want to make that weight anymore. They don’t want to beat the scale. Everything that goes into that. That is a 24/7 lifestyle to get those calories off to beat that damn scale.”

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Chael Sonnen says Colby Covington will be part of his ‘TUF 33’ coaching staff

Chael Sonnen will have a UFC star in his coaching staff for Season 33 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] will have a UFC star in his coaching staff for Season 33 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

Sonnen coaches “TUF 33” opposite side his friend and podcast co-host, Daniel Cormier. The season debuts May 27 and will feature men’s flyweights and welterweights.

Sonnen has coached “TUF” on two occasions, but for his third time, he’s bringing along former interim UFC welterweight champion [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag]. He revealed his entire coaching staff.

“The head coach will be Clayton Hires,” Sonnen told MMA Junkie. “Clayton Hires is my coach. He’s my mentor. He is not my assistant ever. He will be the boss. I will have on the jersey: ‘Clayton’s Team.’ It will consist of me, it will consist of ‘Cowboy’ Steve. He’s going to do what generally Mike Dolce would do in terms of helping these guys with their weight, their nutrition, their strength and conditioning.

“I would never do an ‘Ultimate Fighter’ without bringing the greatest grappler, Vinny Magalhaes – the last man to beat Gordon Ryan I might add, and he beat Gordon easily. That’s just the truth. It was either 7-0 or 7-1. It was not even close. Vinny never got credit for that. Last human being to defeat Gordon Ryan. And Colby Covington – Colby is going to to come in.”

Sonnen opened up on Covington’s impact in the training room.

“Colby is such a wonderful mentor to people,” Sonnen sa8d. “This is what people don’t know about him. He does all of this on the side. He gives back, he goes to camps, he goes to college wrestling rooms, he goes to the training sessions, whatever it might be. He has mentored and coached many people. But Colby doesn’t want people knowing that he’s a nice guy, so I’m not going to ruin his gimmick. But he’s going to do a fantastic job.”

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