Tag: UFC Fight Night 255

Sean Brady: Leon Edwards in UFC London headliner ‘makes the most sense’

Sean Brady is willing to enter enemy territory to try and secure his first UFC title shot.

[autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] is willing to go to enemy territory to try and secure his first UFC title shot.

Brady’s lone career loss came to current UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad at UFC 280. He has since rebounded with back-to-back wins over Kelvin Gastelum and, most recently, former title challenger Gilbert Burns in the UFC Fight Night 242 headliner.

With former champion [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] (22-4 MMA, 14-3 UFC) claiming that he will headline UFC Fight Night 255 March 22 from O2 Arena in London, Brady (17-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) likes the idea of that matchup.

“I just think if you look at the rankings and you look at how everything’s playing out and who’s available, me and Leon make the most sense,” Brady said on “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “Yeah, if you look at it, for me, historically, I would want to go somewhere and prove myself because my first loss did come while I was traveling to (fight) Belal, and I’m a completely different fighter now.

“So, I just want to prove it to myself that I can go somewhere, go in someone’s backyard and win a fight. My wife’s due in February, so March is kind of soon. But to fight Leon, a No. 1 contender in his home – and like you boys were saying, if I win that fight, I think I am in title contention. So it’s worth the risk to go over there and fight Leon and beat him at home.”

Edwards is coming off a title loss to Muhammad at UFC 304 in July. Prior to that, he was unbeaten for almost nine years, including two welterweight title defenses over Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 255.

Jan Blachowicz points to main focus before UFC London return vs. Carlos Ulberg

If Jan Blachowicz can manage his cardio, he’s confident he has all the tools to beat Carlos Ulberg at UFC London.

If [autotag]Jan Blachowicz[/autotag] can manage his energy, he’s confident he has all the tools to beat [autotag]Carlos Ulberg[/autotag] at UFC London.

Former champion Blachowicz (29-10-1 MMA, 12-7-1 UFC) returns against Ulberg (12-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) on March 22 at UFC Fight Night 255 from O2 Arena in London.

Blachowicz hasn’t competed since a split decision loss to current UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira in July 2023. The fight took place in Salt Lake City, and Blachowicz says his performance was impacted by the high altitude – and that’s something he’s focused on fixing for this training camp.

“Now it’s a secret, but I need to change something,” Blachowicz told “Home of Fight” of his training camp. “Because (I’m) 42 almost, so I need to train in a little bit different way, but we are going to do similar things. I know how to beat people. I know how to fight. I have to focus about the most – I don’t want to be tired in the fight.

“So I have to focus about the cardio. I have got everything. I’ve got knockout punch power, I’ve got good striking, I’ve got good wrestling, I’ve got good jiu-jitsu game. I need to focus about the cardio because last time with Pereira, my breath was very heavy, and I don’t want to do this mistake anymore.”

With a win over streaking contender Ulberg, Blachowicz plans on calling for a title shot.

“He’s a standup fighter. I am standup fighter,” Blachowicz said of Ulberg. “But you know, if I’m going to have to use my wrestling, I will go and do it. It’s MMA, but I like fighting standup, so for sure people are going to see a lot of punches.

“He’s a very good fighter, good left hand, good footwork. I’m excited. Seven wins in a row, amazing. It’s time to stop him. … I think if I win this fight in a good way, anywa I will start talking only about the title shot, nothing else.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 255.

Former UFC champ Jan Blachowicz returns vs. Carlos Ulberg in London

Jan Blachowicz has been out since 2023 due to a shoulder injury, but he returns in a big fight at UFC London.

A big fight in the UFC light heavyweight division is headed to London.

Former champion [autotag]Jan Blachowicz[/autotag] returns from a near-two-year layoff as he battles [autotag]Carlos Ulberg[/autotag] at UFC Fight Night 255. Promotion officials announced the bout Tuesday. The event takes place March 22 at O2 Arena.

Blachowicz (29-10-1 MMA, 12-7-1 UFC) has not competed since a loss to Alex Pereira at UFC 291 in July 2023. The bout was Pereira’s first at 205 in the UFC, and was a closely contested split decision win for “Poatan.” Blachowicz was supposed to compete at UFC 297 in January vs. Aleksandar Rakic, but withdrew due to a shoulder injury that required surgery.

Ulberg (12-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) competed less than three weeks ago at UFC Fight Night 248. He defeated Volkan Oezdemir by unanimous decision, which extended his winning streak to seven. Ulberg has not lost since his UFC debut, which was a TKO defeat to Kennedy Nzechukwu.

In addition to the light heavyweight contender fight, promotion officials also announced Tuesday a heavyweight bout between ranked fighters [autotag]Mick Parkin[/autotag] (10-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) and [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] (26-9 MMA, 13-8 UFC).

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night 255 lineup includes:

  • Jan Blachowicz vs. Carlos Ulberg
  • Mick Parkin vs. Marcin Tybura
  • Shauna Bannon vs. Puja Tomar
  • Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Andrey Pulayev

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 255.