We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC 248 event in Las Vegas, featuring Adesanya-Romero and Weili-Jedrzejczyk title fights.
We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC 248 event in Las Vegas.
Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Thursday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will be part of the UFC 248 event staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. UFC 248 takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
Make your picks for all five main card fights inside:
The lineup has been set for what promises to be an explosive night of action in Las Vegas.
UFC 248 will feature a championship doubleheader showcasing four elite competitors from all over the world.
Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya of New Zealand will put his title on the line against Yoel Romero, from South Florida by way of Cuba, in the main event.
The melting pot that is UFC 248 takes place March 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
Both Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) and Zhang (20-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) will look to remain undefeated in the UFC.
The finalized UFC 248 lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
Champ Israel Adesanya vs. Yoel Romero – for middleweight title
Champ Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for strawweight title
[autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Drakkar Klose[/autotag]
[autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag]
[autotag]Max Griffin[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Alex Oliveira[/autotag]
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)
[autotag]Shane O’Malley[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jose Quinonez[/autotag]
[autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Mark Madsen[/autotag]
[autotag]Saparbek Safarov[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag]
[autotag]Gerald Meerschaert[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Deron Winn[/autotag]
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 6:15 p.m. ET)
[autotag]Polyana Viana[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Emily Whitmire[/autotag]
[autotag]Jamall Emmers[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Movsar Evloev[/autotag]
[autotag]Danaa Batgerel[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Guido Cannetti[/autotag]
Some of the most significant in-fight moments and records in UFC history have occurred and been etched in stone over the past decade.
The past decade of UFC action has seen a lot unfold, and it is arguably the most important in the organization’s history from in terms of evolution.
Only within this era have statistics truly come to the forefront. After so many years of fights, the groundwork for what’s viewed as meaningful and the history attached has finally been laid out. The athletes and techniques have evolved, too, meaning new methods of causing damage and finishing fights are attempted and pulled off with a higher rate of frequency.
That evolution is apparent in the history books, because some of the most significant moments and records in UFC history have occurred over this past decade.
Let’s dig into the archives.
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EVENT FEATS
Sajik Arena in South Korea
The UFC held 363 events in 159 difference venues across 26 countries over the past decade.
“UFC 243: Whittaker vs. Adesanya” in October 2019 had the highest announced attendance in company history at 57,127.
“UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor” in November 2016 sold a largest live gate in company history at $17.7 million.
“UFC Fight Night 121: Werdum vs. Tybura” in November 2017 had the most total fight time of any event in company history at 3 hours, 4 minutes and 18 seconds.
“UFC Fight Night 55:: Rockhold vs. Bisping” in November 2014 had the least total fight time of those events at 1 hour, 3 minutes and 51 seconds.
The UFC canceled four events over the decade: UFC 151 in September 2012; UFC 176 in August 2014; UFC Fight Night 97 in October 2016 and UFC 233 in January 2019.
Michael Bisping def. Luke Rockhold at UFC 199
“UFC Fight Night 55: Rockhold vs. Bisping” and “UFC 224: Nunes vs. Pennington” in May 2018 each featured 11 stoppage results, the most for any card in company history.
“UFC on FOX 7: Henderson vs. Melendez” in April 2013, “UFC Fight Night 45: Cerrone vs. Miller” in July 2014, “UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping 2,” in June 2016 and “UFC 218: Holloway vs. Aldo 2” in December 2017 each featured eight knockout results, the most of the decade.
“UFC on FUEL TV 10: Werdum vs. Nogueira” in June 2013 featured eight submission results, the most for any card in company history.
Seven events each featured 10 decision results, the most for any card in company history.
“UFC Fight Night 134: Shogun vs. Smith” in July 2018 and “UFC on ESPN 4: Dos Anjos vs. Edwards” each featured nine consecutive decision results, the longest streak on a card in company history.
“UFC Fight Night 79: Henderson vs. Masvidal” in November 2015 and “UFC 222: Cyborg vs. Kunitskaya” in March 2018 each featured five split-decision results, the most for any card in company history.
Henry Cejudo def. Marlon Moraes at UFC 238
“UFC 238: Cejudo vs. Moraes” in June 2019 featured a total of 1,818 significant strikes landed, a single-event record for the company.
“UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta” in April 2018 featured seven fighters who landed 100 or more significant strikes, a single-event record for the company.
“UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping 2” in June 2016 featured 15 knockdowns, a single-event record for the company.
“UFC 189: Mendes vs. McGregor” in July 2015 was the only event in company history to feature two knockouts stemming from flying knee strikes.
“UFC 228: Woodley vs. Till” in September 2018 was the only event in company history to feature two kneebar submission results.
“UFC 217: Bisping vs. St-Pierre” in November 2017 marked the only event in history to feature three title changes.
Neil Magny is finally set to make his return to the octagon when he takes on Li Jingliang at UFC 248.
[autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag] has cleared his name and is finally set to make his return to the octagon.
Magny (21-7 MMA, 14-6 UFC) will take on [autotag]Li Jingliang[/autotag] at UFC 248 on March 7, MMA Junkie verified the matchup after an initial report from Combate.
Magny (17-5 MMA, 9-3 UFC) tested positive for the banned substance Di-Hydroxy-LGD-4033 prior to his scheduled bout with Vicente Luque in May, forcing him to pull out of the fight. After being put on a provisional suspension for four months, Magny was exonerated and cleared to to return. Magny’s case was spotlighted by the UFC when the company announced changes to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency-administered drug testing program as pertains to unintentional ingestion of small amounts of banned substances in tainted supplements.
He hasn’t competed since his fourth-round knockout loss to Santiago Ponzinibbio in November 2018.
China’s Jingliang has won his past three in a row, most recently taking out the streaking Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in August, putting a halt to his seven-fight win streak. He has won seven of his past eight bouts.
The current UFC 248 lineup includes:
Champ Zhang Weili vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk – for women’s strawweight title
Neil Magny is looking to return to action in February and likes the idea of a fight with Gilbert Burns.
WASHINGTON – [autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag] has been called out by practically the entire UFC welterweight roster and is happy to respond to one of the most recent requests.
Magny (21-7 MMA, 14-6 UFC), who’s been forced to sit out due to a U.S. Anti-Doping Agency suspension, recently has gotten his name cleared and is targeting a return in February.
Magny was scheduled to face Vicente Luque in May before testing positive for the banned substance Di-Hydroxy-LGD-4033, forcing him out of the bout. He was put on a provisional suspension, and four months later in September, he was exonerated.
Also in September, [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] continued to surprise at welterweight by stepping in on short notice and defeating Gunnar Nelson via unanimous decision in Copenhagen.
Following his win, Burns called out Magny, and with both guys looking for a fight, Magny is game for the challenge.
“Right now I think running it back with Luque makes the most sense, but after his fight with ‘Wonderboy,’ I’m sure he’s going to need some time to recover, so if his teammate, Gilbert Burns, wants to step up and finally get in the cage with me, that would be ideal,” Magny said.
“If I’m being honest, he did great since moving up to 170. He’s called me out a few times after winning his fights, so I think it’s time to put up or shut up with Gilbert Burn. So getting that fight lined up would be a great start for me going into 2020.”
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Magny, who’s known for his activity, once tying the record for most UFC wins in a calendar year at five, has been forced to sit out for over a year due to his suspension. He’s coming off a knockout loss to Santiago Ponzinibbio and has used this time off to re-invent himself.
“One positive I did take away from the time off, if I looked at my last two losses in my career, I was game planned well against,” Magny said. “Like my opponents and their coaches, they did their homework. They knew exactly what to do to go in there and beat me, and they obviously executed against me, so having this year off, it really gave me some time to sit back and work on my game and evolve as a fighter.
“So the fighter I’m going to be in my next fight is something that people haven’t seen before. It’s a different side of me. It’s working with a couple new coaches and that kind of thing, so I’m bringing out new tools, bringing new things to the table, and looking to be a completely different fighter than guys have seen in the past.”
