Tag: UFC 278

Video: Watch Friday’s UFC 278 ceremonial weigh-ins live on MMA Junkie at 6 p.m. ET

Check out a live video stream of the UFC 278 ceremonial weigh-ins.

SALT LAKE CITY – UFC 278 ceremonial fighter weigh-ins take place Friday, and you can catch a live video stream of the proceedings here on MMA Junkie at 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT).

The weigh-ins take place at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City. The same venue hosts Saturday’s event, which has a main card on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC/ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

In addition to the video stream above, you can check out the early and official UFC 278 weigh-in results from earlier in the day.

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Miranda Maverick says Shanna Young hospitalized, UFC 278 fight canceled

Just hours before UFC 278 weigh-ins, Saturday’s card has lost a fight.

Just hours before UFC 278 weigh-ins, Saturday’s card has lost a fight.

[autotag]Miranda Maverick[/autotag] announced early Friday morning that scheduled opponent [autotag]Shanna Young[/autotag] has been hospitalized and as a result their women’s flyweight fight has been canceled.

Maverick (10-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) posted a statement on the situation with Young (8-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) to her social media (via Instagram):

Welp…fight is off guys. @shanimalshannayoung is in the hospital from illness (assuming from weight cut) and I wish her a full and fast recovery. We were ready, super prepared, and improved so much for this camp. I made weight already (within a lb to float off by morning). I’m hoping to still watch some really good fights on Saturday and get back in the cage as soon as possible. Thank you for the support and thank you to my team who has invested in me and the people who came out for this fight @pound4poundmuaythai @eastondenver @lcasportsmanagement @jhop4p @firemarshall205! More thanks to come soon!

https://www.instagram.com/p/ChbhRnPumUX/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y

According to a person with knowledge of the situation, who MMA Junkie spoke to on the condition of anonymity, UFC 278 was set to be the final fight on Maverick’s contract. She was offered and accepted a new multi-fight deal in the aftermath of Young’s withdrawal, and will be seeking a new matchup.

The UFC has yet to comment on the severity of Young’s condition.

UFC 278 takes place at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN/ABC and ESPN+.

The latest UFC 278 lineup now includes:

Main Card (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards
  • Paulo Costa vs. Luke Rockhold
  • Jose Aldo vs. Merab Dvalishvili
  • Lucie Pudilova vs. Wu Yanan
  • Harry Hunsucker vs. Tyson Pedro

Preliminary Card (ABC/ESPN/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Alexandr Romanov vs. Marcin Tybura
  • Jared Gordon vs. Leonardo Santos
  • Luis Saldana vs. Sean Woodson

Preliminary Card (ESPN+, 6 p.m. ET)

  • A.J. Fletcher vs. Ange Loosa
  • Amir Albazi vs. Francisco Figueiredo
  • Aori Qileng vs. Jay Perrin
  • Victor Altamirano vs. Daniel Da Silva

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 278.

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Photos: UFC 278 ceremonial weigh-ins and faceoffs

Check out these photos from the UFC 278 ceremonial weigh-ins on Friday in Salt Lake City.

Check out these photos from the UFC 278 ceremonial weigh-ins on Friday at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City (Photos courtesy of Mike Bohn – MMA Junkie)

Photos: UFC 278 official weigh-ins

Check out the photos from the UFC 278 official weigh-ins at the UFC host hotel in Salt Lake City.

Check out the photos from the UFC 278 official weigh-ins at the UFC host hotel in Salt Lake City (Photos by Mike Bohn–MMA Junkie)

Gilbert Burns: Jorge Masvidal has verbally agreed to fight, UFC determining date

Gilbert Burns says a fight with Jorge Masvidal has been verbally agreed upon, it’s just a matter of UFC locking in a date.

SALT LAKE CITY – [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] says a fight with [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] has been verbally agreed upon, it’s just a matter of UFC locking in an appropriate date.

Burns (20-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) has been asking for the matchup for the past several months, and Masvidal (35-16 MMA, 12-9 UFC) has expressed interest as well, if he couldn’t get his top-priority pairing with Conor McGregor next.

With no signs of a McGregor comeback as he films the “Roadhouse” movie remake, Burns said Masvidal has committed to a showdown.

“Nothing done yet – a lot of talks about the fight with Masvidal – he verbally agreed. I did too,” Burns told MMA Junkie on Thursday. “They’re just figuring out the date. No date yet. November was too close, … so December or January. At least I know I have an opponent. Just figuring out the date right now.”

Burns said he’s flexible when it comes to a date and location to fight Masvidal. UFC 281 takes place Nov. 12 in New York, UFC 282 is Dec. 10 – likely in Las Vegas – and UFC 283 takes place Jan. 21 in Rio de Janeiro.

As a Brazilian, Burns said he’s warm to the idea of a homecoming in January, but he’s not going to take a hard stance.

“No. 1 would be MSG in November, but then he said no for that date,” Burns said. “Now December or January, I can wait like 20 more days to go to Brazil. I’m looking forward to go to the Brazil card.”

With Masvidal, No. 12 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie welterweight rankings, on a three-fight losing skid, an argument could be made that No. 6-ranked Burns is not the ideal matchup to help him get back on track.

Burns, for his part, is coming off a defeat against Khamzat Chimaev. “Durinho” is hungry to get back in the win column, and although he’s not overlooking Masvidal, he said he’s confident in a definitive victory.

“Even though he’s coming from losses, it’s just from Kamaru (Usman) and Colby (Covington) – it’s not like, ‘Oh, he’s been destroyed,'” Burns said. “He lost to two of the best guys in the division, so I don’t look down on him. It’s going to be a good fight. Entertaining, both guys coming from a loss, and I want to take his head off.”

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Video: Kamaru Usman, Leon Edwards bicker about style, cars and ‘envy’ before UFC 278 rematch

The tension between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards turned up a notch ahead of Saturday’s UFC 278 main event rematch.

SALT LAKE CITY – The tension between [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag] and [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] turned up a notch ahead of Saturday’s UFC 278 main event rematch.

During Thursday’s pre-fight press conference, Usman (20-1 MMA, 15-0 UFC) and Edwards (18-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) traded barbs about plenty of things – much of which had nothing to do with this weekend’s fight inside the octagon for the welterweight title.

Edwards has repeatedly accused Usman of becoming too big for his britches as he’s become a more successful and a bigger star in the sport. The champion, however, promises nothing – including his upcoming movie role in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” – has not shifted his focus away from the task at hand.

“Talk is talk,” Usman told reporters, including MMA Junkie. “There’s one thing that got me here, and that’s my work ethic. Success only drives me to work even harder. If they think I’m slipping, it’s going to be a bad night for him.”

Despite Usman’s comments, Edwards stands by his beliefs going into UFC 278, which takes place at Vivint Arena and airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN/ABC and ESPN+.

“It’s not personal for me,” Edwards said. “I believe I am No. 1. I’m out to prove it. He’s just now wearing a t-shirt and closing up his t-shirt. It’s all good.”

Usman said he’s not particularly bothered by Edwards’ insinuations, and said it all stems from the challenger wanting what the champion has.

“If you looked like me, you would dress like this too,” Usman said. “It’s just envy. You look like me, you would dress like me too.”

Watch the video above to see all the UFC 278 press conference exchanges between Usman and Edwards.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 278.

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Video: Paulo Costa vows to retire ‘old’ Luke Rockhold during heated UFC 278 press conference

UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa plans end former champion Luke Rockhold’s career at UFC 278.

SALT LAKE CITY – UFC 278 co-main event competitors [autotag]Paulo Costa[/autotag] and [autotag]Luke Rockhold[/autotag] directly relayed their intentions for one another at the pre-fight press conference.

For Rockhold (16-5 MMA, 6-4 UFC), the pay-per-view event at Vivint Arena marks his first fight since UFC 239 in 2019. Just ahead of his return three years in the making, his opponent Costa (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) vowed to send him away for good to put an exclamation point on their expletive-filled exchanges at Thursday’s pre-fight news conference.

The two middleweights didn’t spend much time diving into the details about how they plan on dismantling one another, but Rockhold did offer one fight-specific warning to Costa, who was critical of the former champion’s BJJ skills just a day prior.

“I’ll treat Paulo like a b*tch if it gets to the ground,” Rockhold told reporters. “It’ll be over.”

“Oh, man, come on,” Costa replied with a laugh. “This guy is too old to say this kind of bullish*t. Come on, man. Come on.”

Costa’s response sparked an expletive-fueled reply from Rockhold, who accused his opponent of delaying the matchup in order to get cosmetic surgery.

“This motherf*cker didn’t want to take this fight in the first place,” Rockhold said. “The UFC forced it down his throat, and he delayed it twice. Month after month after all the cosmetic bullsh*t you got done? You little b*tch, shut up.”

Both fighters enter this fight on a two-fight skid. While both plan to emerge victorious, Costa, 31, made the strongest declaration of the verbal exchanges, by vowing to end the 37-year-old Rockhold’s career.

“I’m in my prime time, I will f*ck this old man on this Saturday,” Costa said. “He is visibly uncomfortable because he knows he will face a monster. And he knows already, look at him – he’s not comfortable. … I will retire him on Saturday.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 278.

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UFC 278 video: Jose Aldo faces off with Merab Dvalishvili at press conference

Jose Aldo and Merab Dvalishvili locked eyes for a staredown for the first time at the UFC 278 press conference.

SALT LAKE CITY – [autotag]Jose Aldo[/autotag] and [autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag] appear completely focused going into UFC 278 judging by their demeanors at Thursday’s pre-fight press conference.

Ahead of Saturday’s featured bantamweight bout, Aldo (31-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC) and Dvalishvili (14-4 MMA, 7-2 UFC) engaged in a staredown for the first time, and they were nothing short of stoic as they prepare for a massive divisional matchup.

Watch the video above to see Aldo and Dvalishvili face off ahead of UFC 278.

Aldo, No. 6 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings, will look to extend his winning streak to four fights in the bout. The former UFC and WEC titleholder won’t have it easy, though, because No. 5-ranked Dvalishvili brings a seven-fight winning streak into the octagon.

UFC 278 takes place at Vivant Arena. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC/ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 278.

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UFC 278 video: Paulo Costa, Luke Rockhold scare Dana White at faceoff

After plenty of talk, Paulo Costa and Luke Rockhold finally saw each in person the UFC 278 pre-fight press conference.

SALT LAKE CITY – After plenty of bickering back-and-forth through the media, [autotag]Paulo Costa[/autotag] and [autotag]Luke Rockhold[/autotag] finally saw each in person at Thursday’s UFC 278 pre-fight press conference.

Both fighters come into the middleweight co-main event in desparate need of a victory, and the determination from Costa (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Rockhold (16-5 MMA, 6-4 UFC) came through when they engaged in a staredown for the first time after taking questions from the media.

Check out the video above to watch the Costa vs. Rockhold faceoff from the UFC 278 press conference.

Costa comes into the fight off back-to-back losses, which came on the heels of an undefeated run to start his career. He’ll attempt to right the ship against former UFC and Strikeforce champ Rockhold, who hasn’t competed since July 2019 and is chasing his first victory in nearly five years.

UFC 278 takes place at Vivant Arena. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC/ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 278.

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UFC 278 video: Kamaru Usman, Leon Edwards face off at press conference

Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards had their first formal face-to-face interaction of fight week at the UFC 278 pre-fight news conference.

SALT LAKE CITY – [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag] and [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] had their first formal face-to-face interaction of fight week on Thursday at the UFC 278 pre-fight news conference.

After taking questions from the media and exchanging words going into the welterweight title rematch, the reigning champ Usman (20-1 MMA, 15-0 UFC) and challenger Edwards (18-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) engaged in a staredown.

There was no shortage of intensity on the stage, but both men kept things professional.

Check out the video above to watch the faceoff.

Usman, No. 1 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie pound-for-pound rankings, defeated No. 3-ranked welterweight Edwards by unanimous decision at UFC on FOX 17 in December 2015. Neither man has lost since, and now they will run it back and it’ll either be repeat or revenge.

UFC 278 takes place at Vivant Arena. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC/ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 278.

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