Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The main event for UFC on ESPN 15 is official as Pedro Munhoz and Frankie Edgar make weigh
The main event for UFC on ESPN 15 is official as Pedro Munhoz and Frankie Edgar make weigh
Check out the results from the UFC on ESPN 15 weigh-ins in Las Vegas.
LAS VEGAS – MMA Junkie is on scene and reporting live from Friday’s official UFC on ESPN 15 weigh-ins, which kick off at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
The weigh-ins take place at the UFC host hotel in Las Vegas. The UFC Apex hosts Saturday’s card, which streams on ESPN+.
Among those weighing in are headliners [autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) and [autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag] (23-8-1 MMA, 17-8-1 UFC), a former lightweight champion who is set to make his bantamweight debut after years competing at featherweight.
Complete UFC on ESPN 15 weigh-in results include:
MAIN CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 8:30 p.m. ET)
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN/ESPN+, 5:30 p.m. ET)
How is Pedro Munhoz vs. Frankie Edgar going to unfold at UFC on ESPN? MMA Junkie breaks down the bantamweight headliner.
How is Pedro Munhoz vs. Frankie Edgar going to unfold at UFC on ESPN? MMA Junkie breaks down the bantamweight headliner.
Pedro Munhoz- Frankie Edgar a ‘living legend’ | UFC on ESPN 15 pre-fight interview.mp4
Pedro Munhoz- Frankie Edgar a ‘living legend’ | UFC on ESPN 15 pre-fight interview.mp4
Pedro Munhoz is relishing the most special moment of his career so far.
[autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag] is relishing the most special moment of his career so far.
At UFC on ESPN 15, Munhoz (18-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) gets his first opportunity to headline a UFC card when he takes on former UFC champ Frankie Edgar (23-8-1 MMA, 17-8-1 UFC) on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The show airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.
It’s taken 14 UFC fights for Munhoz to get a main event, but it appears the wait was worthwhile. He gets to welcome Edgar, a former lightweight champion and three-time featherweight title challenger, down to 135 pounds for the first time. Moreover, “The Answer” is a surefire UFC Hall of Famer, as he’s the only fighter in company history to have spent more than seven hours in the octagon.
Munhoz said it’s an honor to fight Edgar, whom he’s been watching since years before he became a UFC fighter.
“Frankie is a guy who used to have my attention because it was not a jiu-jitsu guy fighting a boxing guy,” Munhoz told reporters, including MMA Junkie, during Wednesday’s UFC on ESPN 15 virtual media day. “It was a well rounded guy. Now I have the opportunity to fight a living legend like that in a main event. It’s one of the biggest fights of my life. … This is one of the biggest fights of my career, but I do believe every fight is the biggest fight of my career. My fights previously prepared me for this.”
[lawrence-related id=545653]
Munhoz originally was scheduled to fight Edgar in a three-round bout on July 16 in Abu Dhabi. The Brazilian tested positive for COVID-19, though, and the matchup was postponed. He admits it was a difficult time, because he wasn’t the only person in his household who contracted coronavirus. Munhoz said he’s come out of the other end, though, and is prepared to compete.
“In that moment I just tried to be grateful,” Munhoz said. “Nothing worse could’ve happened to me and the family. We all got sick, we all tested positive for COVID. But all grateful none of us had to go to the hospital. We got a little bit sick, but it’s something we could work through, and we’re happy to be here today.”
Munhoz gets the main event spot at a time when he can make a lot of noise in the bantamweight division. All signs point to champion Per Yan defending against Aljamain Sterling next, then there are a number of other key 135-pound matchups on the horizon.
With the right kind of performance, Munhoz said he can put himself right in the mix and even thinks jumping to the front of the line is possible.
“I do believe that I did my homework,” Munhoz said. “Saturday is a good test to see where I am. I want to make a big statement, and I want to be next for the title shot.”
[vertical-gallery id=387903]
The best facts and figures about UFC on ESPN 15, which features a Pedro Munhoz vs. Frankie Edgar main event.
The best facts and figures about UFC on ESPN 15, which features a Pedro Munhoz vs. Frankie Edgar main event.
Dan Hardy breaks down the bantamweight main event bout between Pedro Munhoz and Frankie Edgar ahead of fight night at UFC on ESPN 15.
UFC on ESPN 15 features an important bout at the sharp end of the bantamweight division as Brazil’s [autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag] takes on former UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag] in the night’s main event.
Munhoz (18-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) is looking to bounce back to form after losing out on the scorecards to fellow contender Aljamain Sterling at UFC 238 last June. Prior to that defeat, “The Young Punisher” was riding a three-fight win streak, including a knockout win over former champion Cody Garbrandt in a wild slugfest at UFC 235.
Now he’s set to face Edgar, who is looking to earn himself a shot at bantamweight gold and, potentially add his name to the short list of fighters to have captured UFC titles in two weight classes.
Edgar (23-8-1 MMA, 17-8-1 UFC) will finally make his bantamweight debut after his initial booking against Cory Sandhagen, then three successive bookings to face Munhoz, fell by the wayside. Now the pair are finally set to face off in the main event on Saturday night at the UFC Apex.
Ahead of their bout, former UFC welterweight title challenger and UFC analyst Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy invites us into “The War Room” as he takes a deep dive into the matchup and offers his technical pointers ahead of the fight. Check out his pre-fight assessment via the video above.
UFC on ESPN 15 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN+.
The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.
The UFC has released the official fight poster for its Aug. 22 event, with a bantamweight matchup headlining the card in Las Vegas.
[autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag] is finally set to make his 135-pound debut.
Edgar, the former UFC lightweight champion, will drop down to bantamweight for the first time in his career when he takes on [autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag] in the UFC on ESPN+ 33 main event, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
The pair were initially scheduled to fight on July 15 at UFC on ESPN 13, but the fight was scratched after Munhoz tested positive for COVID-19.
After 19 pro fights at lightweight, Edgar (23-8-1 MMA, 17-8-1 UFC) dropped down to featherweight in 2013. He picked up notable wins over the likes of Chad Mendes, Cub Swanson (twice) and Yair Rodriguez, but fell short in claiming the featherweight title on three attempts. After back-to-back losses to Max Holloway and Chan Sung Jung, Edgar decided to make the move down.
Munhoz (18-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Aljamain Sterling in June 2019. Prior to that, he won three straight, including a knockout over former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt.
Also included in the poster is the co-main event, which features an intriguing stylistic clash between middleweights [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (13-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) and [autotag]Uriah Hall[/autotag] (15-9 MMA, 8-7 UFC).
Check out the official poster for the UFC’s Aug. 22 event below:
THIS FIGHT COMBO IS ELITE 😱
Mark your calendars for August 22nd. #UFCVegas7 pic.twitter.com/rGEkVzpGSM
— UFC (@ufc) August 5, 2020
The latest lineup for UFC’s Aug. 22 card includes:
The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.
[vertical-gallery id=436122]
Frankie Edgar’s twice rebooked bantamweight debut against Pedro Munhoz will now take place on the main card of UFC 252 in Las Vegas.
The bantamweight clash between [autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag] and [autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag] has been rebooked once again, with the pair now set to face off in Las Vegas in August.
The two 135-pound contenders were twice scheduled to meet on Saturday at UFC 251, but the matchup was later pushed back to the UFC’s midweek “Fight Island” Card on Jul. 15. However, that booking didn’t survive, either, when it was revealed the Munhoz (18-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) had tested positive for COVID-19 prior to traveling to Abu Dhabi.
At the time, Edgar (23-8-1 MMA, 17-8-1 UFC) tweeted a message of support for his rival and promised him that he’d be waiting to face him once the Brazilian had recovered from the illness.
Now the pair have been booked on their third fight card, with the duo now set to do battle at bantamweight at UFC 252. The event is set to take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Aug. 15. The matchup was officially announced during the UFC 251 broadcast on Saturday night.
Edgar is looking to rediscover peak form after dropping to bantamweight following an unsuccessful attempt to capture the featherweight title.
“The Answer” suffered three losses from his last four outings at 145 pounds as he fell to defeat against Brian Ortega, then-champion Max Holloway and Chan Sung Jung.
Now Edgar is set to try his luck at 135 pounds as he bids to position himself for a shot at the title, and the chance to become a two-division UFC champion.
His first bantamweight test will come against Munhoz, who saw a three-fight win streak come to an end against top contender Aljamain Sterling at UFC 238 last June.
The Brazilian has lost just twice since 2015 and will view his fight with Edgar as an opportunity to insert himself into the title conversation at 135 pounds.
With the addition, the confirmed UFC 252 lineup includes:
MAIN CARD
PRELIMINARY CARD
The coronavirus has scrapped another bout on “Fight Island,” and it’s a big one.
[autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag] is the latest UFC fighter to test positive for the novel coronavirus.
The Brazilian bantamweight contender is out of his July 15 co-main event bout with [autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag] taking place on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi as part of the UFC’s “Fight Island” series. Munhoz’s removal came after it was first reported by MMA Fusion that he tested positive for COVID-19 prior to Monday’s charter flight from Las Vegas to Abu Dhabi. The news was subsequently confirmed by UFC broadcast partner ESPN.
Munhoz did not reply to a text message from MMA Junkie requesting comment. According to ESPN, the UFC is trying to find a replacement opponent for Edgar, who is looking to make his bantamweight debut.
[lawrence-related id=532320,531871,526696]
Munhoz (18-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) is the third fighter to be removed from the “Fight Island” events due to COVID-19. Gilbert Burns, who was supposed to fight in the main event of UFC 251, and Anderson dos Santos also were pulled from their bouts after testing positive for the coronavirus.
Munhoz hasn’t competed in a year, with his last bout being a decision loss to Aljamain Sterling in June 2019. The defeat snapped a three-fight winning streak, which included a knockout victory over former UFC champion Cody Garbrandt.
Meanwhile, Edgar’s much anticipated 135-pound debut is in limbo. The former UFC lightweight champ is coming off a knockout loss to Chan Sung Jung last December.
The latest UFC “Fight Island” 1 lineup includes:
[vertical-gallery id=532257]
