Tag: UFC 254

Robert Whittaker vs. Jared Cannonier prediction | UFC 254 breakdown

Check out the MMA Junkie’s Dan Tom’s analysis and predictions for the UFC 254 co-main event between Robert Whittaker and Jared Cannonier.

Check out the MMA Junkie’s Dan Tom’s analysis and predictions for the UFC 254 co-main event between Robert Whittaker and Jared Cannonier.

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Justin Gaethje prediction | UFC 254 breakdown

Check out the MMA Junkie’s Dan Tom’s analysis and predictions for the UFC 254 main event between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje.

Check out the MMA Junkie’s Dan Tom’s analysis and predictions for the UFC 254 main event between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje.

UFC 254 ‘Embedded,’ No. 3: Tai Tuivasa teaches ‘Nelk boys’ the shoey

Go behind the scenes with the third episode of “Embedded” leading up to UFC 254 headlined by Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Justin Gaethje.

The UFC returns to pay-per-view Saturday night, as UFC 254 closes out the company’s second “Fight Island” residency in the Middle East.

UFC 254 takes place at Flash Forum at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

One of the most highly anticipated fights of 2020 headlines the card, as lightweight champion [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC) takes on interim titleholder [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] (22-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in a unification bout. Additionally, former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler (21-5 MMA, 0-0 UFC), who recently signed a UFC contract, will be on hand as a standby main-event fighter in case either competitor needs to withdraw from the bout.

The third episode of “Embedded” follows the big-name stars at the top of the card. Here’s the UFC’s description:

Tai Tuivasa introduces the NELK Boys to shoeys. Daniel Cormier teases teammate Khabib. Justin Gaethje signs his name and chats with Dana White. Jared Cannonier and Robert Whittaker preview their pivotal bout.

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Dana White reveals trending numbers that qualify Khabib vs. Gaethje as UFC blockbuster

Khabib Nurmagomedov is a big deal, and Dana White says he’s got the data to prove it.

ABU DHABI – UFC president Dana White believes UFC 254 could be one of the biggest events in the promotion’s history and says he’s got the data to prove it.

While he revealed his expectations for Saturday’s pay-per-view event earlier this week, White has heard the doubters who simply can’t believe that [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC) vs. [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] (22-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) might wind up being one of the biggest fights ever. After Wednesday’s pre-fight news conference on Yas Beach, White seemed shocked that some are doubting his claim – especially considering what a global superstar Nurmagomedov has become in recent years.

“Apparently, people around the sport don’t realize what a superstar this kid is,” White told a small group of reporters, including MMA Junkie. “This thing is trending off the charts – on Monday. On Monday, it’s trending off the charts to be the biggest fight in UFC history. It’s trending on Tuesday to be the biggest fight in UFC history. Then today, we’ll get another update today.”

According to the UFC’s social media stats, Nurmagomedov is one of the top-three followed accounts across all networks, including an astounding 21.9 million followers on Instagram, 2.8 million on Facebook, and another 1.1 million on Twitter.

When discussing the UFC’s own social accounts, Nurmagomedov videos have generated more than 222 million views on Facebook, which officials say includes four of the top seven videos in company history. More than 100 million of those views came in 2020 alone.

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Just three days ahead of UFC 254, which airs on pay-per-view from Flash Forum on Yas Island, UFC officials said they have tracked media coverage for the card in more than 50 countries totaling more than 23 billion impressions.

“So how does a fight trend that big?” White asked. “When you look at these type of numbers and what’s going on, that’s how.”

But could it potentially be among the biggest fights in UFC history? After all, while the privately held promotion doesn’t publicize its pay-per-view numbers, UFC 229 – which took place in October 2018 and featured Nurmagomedov vs. fellow global superstar Conor McGregor – reportedly earned 2.4 million buys.

Different at UFC 254, the card is taking place overseas, which typically results in a negative impact in pay-per-view sales in the all-important U.S. market, especially when it takes place at a unique time – like this weekend’s 2 p.m. ET start.

Additionally, the pay-per-view is now available exclusively through the online platform ESPN+ rather than the myriad of providers that used to distribute the content during the pre-ESPN days.

White said that’s no longer the challenge it once was when the promotion first switched to ESPN+ pay-per-view in January 2019.

“People know how to stream, especially during the pandemic,” White said. “If you didn’t know how to f*cking stream, you learned how to f*cking stream. I mean, that’s all people are doing.”

Need more proof of Nuramgomedov’s global appeal?

According to White, the UFC lightweight champion is the most played athlete in the promotion’s video game, EA UFC 4. His fighter page on UFC.com is the most viewed athlete page on the site over the past two years. His UFC 242 bout with Dustin Poirier in September 2019 generated the largest social media traffic of any event for the year.

Today’s faceoff on Yas Beach did more than 1 million views within 30 minutes of being posted to Instagram, he said.

It’s an inexact science, but one White believes means big numbers could follow.

“Do I think it’s going to do over 2 million?” White asked. “I have no idea. But I can tell you this: The data is telling us it will.”

With parents at UFC 254, Justin Gaethje will secure mom’s retirement when bell rings

Both of Justin Gaethje’s parents made the trip to “Fight Island,” and he’s looking to repay them for their years of sacrifice so he could succeed.

ABU DHABI – Things are about to come full circle for the Gaethje family.

When he fights lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] will secure his mother’s retirement. This comes after his parents’ years of sacrifice, hard work and putting their children before themselves.

Both of Gaethje’s parents will be in attendance Saturday at Flash Forum after flying internationally – and business class – for the first time. Gaethje’s father recently retired after 37 years as a copper miner.

As soon as the opening bell rings, Gaethje (22-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) will be guaranteed a paycheck – and in turn, his mother will be afforded the comfort of retirement.

“If this fight starts, if that bell rings at the beginning, then I will secure that she will retire after this fight,” Gaethje said. “She’s been there for 35 years.”

Reflecting on his journey to UFC title contention, Gaethje is indebted to his parents’ financial support and selflessness. Gaethje attributes much of his success to the foundation they laid for him and his siblings.

“Every piece of money they had went into me and my brother and my sister, giving me the opportunities,” Gaethje said. “We were two hours from any city. Going school-clothes shopping was a vacation for us. We’d get up and go to wrestling tournaments. We had to drive two to three hours. Sometimes, we’d have to stay the night. They financially took hits every single time we did that. Nothing is better than being able to repay that.”

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While their presence is sentimental in nature, Gaethje won’t be thinking about his parents when the cage door closes. The only outside voice he’ll hear is his coach, Trevor Wittman, as he tries to do something 28 other fighters have failed at: handing Nurmagomedov (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC) his first loss.

“For them to be here, when I step in that octagon, nothing matters,” Gaethje said. “They’re not there. My coach, Trevor Wittman, is there. That’s the only voice that I can hear. That’s all that matters to me, but I’m very happy that they get to experience this.”

UFC 254 takes place Saturday at Flash Forum. The main card streams on pay-per-view after prelims on ESPN 2/ESPN+.