Tag: UFC 260

UFC 260 pre-event facts: Stipe Miocic aims to enhance GOAT resume

The best facts and figures about UFC 260, which features a Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou heavyweight title main event.

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The UFC’s fourth numbered event of the year takes place Saturday with UFC 260, which goes down at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas with a main card that airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

A heavyweight championship rematch is featured in the event headliner. [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] (20-3 MMA, 14-3 UFC) will once again look to defend the title against [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) after winning their first encounter by unanimous decision at UFC 220 in January 2018.

For more on the numbers behind the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for 45 pre-event facts about UFC 260.

Video: Who is Jon Jones probably rooting for at UFC 260 – Stipe Miocic or Francis Ngannou?

The heavyweight title is on the line Saturday in a hard-hitting rematch at UFC 260, and our Spinning Back Clique panels weighs in.

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The heavyweight title is on the line Saturday in a hard-hitting rematch at UFC 260.

Champion [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] (20-3 MMA, 14-3 UFC) puts the belt on the line against [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) in the main event. The two fought a little more than three years ago at UFC 220, where Miocic won a lopsided unanimous decision.

Ngannou lost a second straight fight after that to Derrick Lewis, but since that skid has bounced back in about as impressive a way as can be imaginable. He has four straight first-round knockout wins – in an average time of about 40 seconds each, including over two former champions.

Miocic and Ngannou are a pretty clear-cut 1-2 atop the UFC’s heavyweight rankings. But lurking out there is [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag], the most dominant light heavyweight in history who has moved up a weight class and vacated his 205-pound title.

Presumably, Jones will get a title shot against the Miocic-Ngannou winner in his first heavyweight fight. But which of those two would he probably prefer to go after the title against?

We asked our panel on this week’s episode of “Spinning Back Clique” whether they thought Jones would like a Miocic fight or one with Ngannou. Check out the video above to hear Brian “Goze” Garcia, Farah Hannoun, Danny Segura and moderator Simon Head weigh in. You can also watch the complete episode below.

https://youtu.be/T96ZbOtaESI

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UFC 260 ‘Embedded,’ No. 2: Stipe Miocic shares plane with former almost-foe Ben Rothwell

The UFC’s heavyweight title is on the line Saturday night in a bout the promotion is billing the “biggest, baddest rematch.”

The UFC’s heavyweight title is on the line Saturday in a bout the promotion is billing as the “biggest, baddest rematch” when reigning champion [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] faces the hard-hitting [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag].

The bout is the UFC 260 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

Miocic (20-3 MMA, 14-3 UFC) and Ngannou (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) first met in 2018, in the main event of UFC 220. That night, Miocic dominated over the course of five rounds to prove himself the baddest man on the planet. But Ngannou has since strung together four consecutive knockouts to earn himself another crack. The highly anticipated rematch features the top two fighters in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie heavyweight rankings bidding for the UFC belt.

Ahead of the blockbuster matchup, the UFC’s traditional pre-fight series, “Embedded,” has returned. The second episode features Miocic and Ngannou at the start of fight week. Here’s the UFC’s description from YouTube:

Francis Ngannou takes a solo hike, finds a soccer partner, hits mitts and then gets a mani-pedi. Champion Stipe Miocic flies to Las Vegas alongside a fellow heavyweight.

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UFC 260: Make your predictions for Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou 2 (Updated)

We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC 260, featuring a heavyweight title rematch between champion Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou.

(Updated at 11:50 a.m. on March 23, 2021, to include Omar Morales vs. Shane Young fight and poll not included on original publication.)

We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC 260 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 260 main card staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. UFC 260 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

Make your picks for the fights below.

UFC 260 ‘Embedded,’ No. 1: Champ Stipe Miocic pulls one last shift at firehouse, gets no respect

The UFC’s heavyweight title is on the line Saturday night in a bout the promotion is billing the “biggest, baddest rematch.”

The UFC’s heavyweight title is on the line Saturday night in a bout the promotion is billing the “biggest, baddest rematch,” when reigning champion [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] faces the hard-hitting [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag].

The bout serves as the main event of UFC 260, which takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

Miocic (20-3 MMA, 14-3 UFC) and Ngannou (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) first met in 2018. in the main event of UFC 220. That night, Miocic dominated over the course of five rounds to prove himself the baddest man on the planet. But Ngannou has since strung together four consecutive knockouts to earn himself another crack. The highly anticipated rematch features the top two fighters in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie heavyweight rankings bidding for the UFC belt.

Ahead of the blockbuster matchup, the UFC’s traditional pre-fight series, “Embedded,” has returned. The first episode features Miocic and Ngannou in their final few days ahead of fight week. Here’s the UFC’s description from YouTube:

Champ Stipe Miocic works his second job and then does S&C. Francis Ngannou flows in the gym and then spices things up at home. Miocic feasts with his growing family.

MMA Junkie Radio #3142 with Randy Couture, UFC on ESPN 21 recap, more (noon ET)

Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with hosts “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here, and you can catch a live stream at noon ET.

Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with hosts “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here, and you can catch a live stream on SportsCastr beginning at noon ET.

On episode 3,142, the fellas welcome on former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion and current PFL commentator Randy Couture, as well as XFC president Myron Molotky. Plus, they’ll discuss the latest MMA news, including a look back at this past Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 21 card and a look ahead to the upcoming heavyweight title rematch between Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou at UFC 260.

Stream or download this and all episodes of MMA Junkie Radio over at OmnyStudio. You can also catch it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and more. A new episode of the podcast is released every Monday and Thursday.

How to watch UFC 260: Fight card, start time, betting odds, results, where to stream Miocic vs. Ngannou 2

Here’s how to watch the Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou heavyweight title rematch from UFC 260 in Las Vegas.

The UFC is back on pay-per-view Saturday with a big championship rematch at the top of the bill.

Here’s how to watch the [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] heavyweight title bout from Las Vegas.

Alexander Volkanovski ‘devastated’ his positive COVID-19 test led to UFC 260 cancellation vs. Brian Ortega

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski releases statement on UFC 260 cancellation.

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[autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] has shed some light on the postponement of his next UFC title defense.

The UFC featherweight champion said a positive COVID-19 test led to the cancellation of his championship bout against Brian Ortega, which was scheduled to take place March 27 at UFC 260 in Las Vegas. The bout was set to co-headline the pay-per-view event.

In a statement posted on his social media, Volkanovski said he’s “devastated” about the cancellation and hopes for a quick return.

Volkanovski (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC) is riding a 19-fight winning streak into his second UFC title defense attempt. Following six straight wins to kick off his UFC tenure, Volkanovski defeated then-champion Max Holloway by unanimous decision at UFC 245 in December 2019.

Seven months later at UFC 251 in July 2020, Volkanovski and Holloway fought for a second time. Volkanovski successfully defended his title for the first time when he defeated Holloway by split decision.

In October, Ortega (15-1 w. 1 NC MMA, 7-1 UFC) returned from a 22-month absence from competition. Over the course of five rounds, Ortega dominated surging contender Chan Sung Jung for a unanimous decision and reentered the win column following a devastating title shot loss to Holloway in December 2018.

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Alexander Volkanovski vs. Brian Ortega postponed from UFC 260 due to COVID-19 protocols

UFC 260 will no longer host the Alexander Volkanovski vs. Brian Ortega featherweight title fight.

The featherweight title no longer will be on the line at UFC 260.

Just a week prior to the scheduled bout between champion [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] and challenger [autotag]Brian Ortega[/autotag], the promotion announced the matchup has been postponed due to COVID-19 protocols.

The news was announced on Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 21 broadcast. The issue, according to a report on the broadcast, stemmed from Volkanovski’s side. Earlier Saturday, Volkanovski teammate Brad Riddell had his UFC on ESPN 21 co-main event against Gregor Gillespie pulled due to COVID-19 protocols.

No new date for the fight was been announced.

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Volkanovski (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC) is riding a 19-fight winning streak into his second UFC title defense attempt. Following six straight wins to kick off his UFC tenure, Volkanovski defeated then-champion Max Holloway by unanimous decision at UFC 245 in December 2019.

Seven months later at UFC 251 in July 2020, Volkanovski and Holloway fought for a second time. Volkanovski successfully defended his title for the first time when he defeated Holloway by split decision.

In October, Ortega (15-1 w. 1 NC MMA, 7-1 UFC) returned from a 22-month absence from competition. Over the course of five rounds, Ortega dominated surging contender Chan Sung Jung for a unanimous decision and reentered the win column following a devastating title shot loss to Holloway in December 2018.

UFC 260 takes place March 27 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

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If Brian Ortega wins UFC title, he ‘wouldn’t feel 100 percent’ champ without Max Holloway rematch

Brian Ortega wouldn’t fully embrace becoming champion at UFC 260 until he got another crack at Max Holloway.

[autotag]Brian Ortega[/autotag] wouldn’t fully embrace becoming UFC featherweight champion until he got another crack at [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag].

Ortega (15-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) challenges Alexander Volkanovski for the 145-pound title March 27 at UFC 260, his second opportunity at UFC gold. The first time did not go his way.

In December 2018, a then-unbeaten Ortega had almost reached the pinnacle when he challenged Holloway in what turned out to be a big turning point in his career. Holloway battered a tough and resilient Ortega for four rounds until the doctor decided he had seen enough.

A few surgeries later, and Ortega was on the mend. He changed teams and geared up for a tough return after almost two years against Chan Sung Jung this past October, and he was able to rebound from his first-career loss in flawless fashion by dominating Jung.

While he’s happy to fight Volkanovski for the title, Ortega admits that the loss to Holloway (22-6 MMA, 18-6 UFC) still looms over him to this day.

“I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately,” Ortega told ESPN. “It’s like, OK, you win, you’re the champ, but this man beat you. I wouldn’t feel 100 percent the champ if I didn’t run it back. That man has that on his resume. He gave you your first loss, something you can never take from him. So now it’s like, well, we gotta make this right. So, yes, it would be amazing (to win the title) because there’s no credit taken from Alex Volkanovski. This man won twice over Max despite what everyone wants to talk about or say.”

He continued, “Obviously it would be amazing to be a champ and say mission accomplished. You told yourself you’re gonna get this belt, and you did it. Congratulations. Now f*ck this belt – Max. I’m a fighter, bro. I think he said it, ‘Bro, you beat me one time, I’m gonna want to fight you again. You beat me two times, I’m gonna want to fight you 80 times so I can beat you,’ and that’s the same mentality that I have. You f*ck me up 20 times, I’m gonna come back the 21st time. I still want something. I’m stubborn or a competitor, whatever you want to call it, but I have that fire in me, and that’s how I got better in the gym.”

Ortega insists that he’s not underestimating Volkanovski (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC). The champion has been able to outpoint every man he’s faced in the UFC, and Ortega knows he’s in for a tough stylistic matchup.

“I feel like he’s very technical,” Ortega said. “I feel like it’s gonna be somewhat of that type of fight. The man is a specimen when he goes in there and how he moves and how he creates his opportunities and how he goes and wins rounds and does what he does. Then when you try and push the pace and someone knows how to stop you, you also get respect. So he’s an interesting one. So now it’s time to go in there and decipher this puzzle. Who knows what it’s gonna take? I still have to get punched by him and feel what it has to take or share the octagon with him, but it’s something I look forward to.”

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