Tag: UFC on ESPN 43

UFC on ESPN 43: Make your predictions for Vera vs. Sandhagen, Holm vs. Santos

We want your predictions for UFC on ESPN 43 in San Antonio, which features Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen and Holly Holm vs. Yana Santos.

We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 43 event in San Antonio.

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 on ESPN 43 main card staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. UFC on ESPN 43 takes place Saturday at AT&T Center in San Antonio. The main card airs on ESPN following prelims on ESPN+.

Make your picks for the fights below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 43.

UFC on ESPN 43 gets late addition: Hailey Cowan vs. Tamires Vidal for San Antonio

Hailey Cowan has a UFC debut back on the books after a health scare canceled her first booking weeks ago.

After a health scare left her unsure of her immediate future, budding women’s bantamweight [autotag]Hailey Cowan[/autotag] has a promotional debut back on the books.

At UFC on ESPN 43, Cowan (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will fight [autotag]Tamires Vidal[/autotag] (7-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) in a late addition to the card. The event takes place March 25 at AT&T Center in San Antonio.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Cowan, 31, was expected to debut at UFC Fight Night 220 on Feb. 25. However, she withdrew from the bout hours prior to weigh-ins. After her scheduled opponent Ailin Perez criticized the withdrawal, Cowan revealed she suffered from an ovarian cyst rupture that landed her in the hospital. Cowan is a “Dana White’s Contender Series” signee with pro wins in Invicta FC and LFA among other promotions.

Vidal, 24, added a big-time highlight to her reel in her promotional debut at UFC Fight Night 214 in November when she scored a flying knee knockout of opponent Ramona Pascual. The victory extended her winning streak to six.

With the addition, the UFC on ESPN 43 lineup includes:

  • Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen
  • Holly Holm vs. Yana Santos
  • Maycee Barber vs. Andrea Lee
  • Manel Kape vs. Alex Perez
  • Alex Caceres vs. Nate Landwehr
  • Albert Duraev vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Tucker Lutz vs. Daniel Pineda
  • Lucas Alexander vs. Steven Peterson
  • Trevin Giles vs. Preston Parsons
  • Liang Na vs. Brogan Walker
  • Daniel Da Silva vs. CJ Vergara
  • Victor Altamirano vs. Vinicius Salvador
  • Trey Ogden vs. Manuel Torres
  • Hailey Cowan vs. Tamires Vidal

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 43.

Marlon Vera shrugs off Cory Sandhagen’s criticism: ‘He needs to convince himself of being OK to win’

Marlon Vera plans on shutting Cory Sandhagen’s lights out at UFC San Antonio.

COSTA MESA, Calif. – [autotag]Marlon Vera[/autotag] plans on shutting [autotag]Cory Sandhagen[/autotag]’s lights out.

Vera (22-7-1 MMA, 14-6 UFC) faces Sandhagen (15-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) in the UFC on ESPN 43 headliner on March 25 at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas.

In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Sandhagen said Vera’s style of winning is not reliable, pointing to his numerous come-from-behind wins. But Vera says regardless of how the fight pans out, Sandhagen will suffer the same fate as his past opponents.

“He needs to convince himself of being OK to win,” Vera told MMA Junkie. “I don’t need to say anything about him to think I’m going to win. I’m going to win because I’m working this hard. So, if he thinks my style is not reliable or whatever he thinks, that’s on him. He’s going to wake up and be like, ‘F*ck, I got caught.’ But you didn’t get caught, you got knocked the f*ck out or you got submitted.”

He continued, “I’m a fighter. I’m gonna fight my ass off in every position. I’m not gonna wrestle you, I’m not gonna strike you, I’m not gonna jiu-jitsu you, I’m gonna fight you. Whatever he thinks about my style, you still got to face me. You still got to go through me. I got 20 minutes (25) to figure it out and put you out.”

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Vera was down on the judges’ scorecards when he rallied to knock out both Frankie Edgar and Dominick Cruz. The 30-year-old Ecuadorian fighter attributes his ability to continuously get his hand raised to his drive.

“I’m always trying to just get better and keep that hunger in me,” Vera added. “When I go into these fights, I always see something. I just want it way more than anybody else, and that’s what’s giving me success, because I’m always looking forward to get it done.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 43.

Sean Brady says he tore groin; UFC on ESPN 43 fight with Michel Pereira off

It appears a key welterweight fight between Sean Brady and Michel Pereira isn’t happening at UFC on ESPN 43 after all.

It appears a key welterweight fight between [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] and [autotag]Michel Pereira[/autotag] isn’t happening at UFC on ESPN 43 after all.

Brady (15-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) and Pereira (27-11 MMA, 6-2 UFC) were expected to meet on the March 25 card at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. However, on Saturday, Pereira said he was “disgusted” with Brady on Twitter, claiming he pulled out of the March 25 date, as well as a rescheduled April 15, because of injuries.

In response, Brady said he tore his groin “twice in the past 60 days.” He didn’t appreciate the way Pereira framed his withdrawal. The matchup now appears to be in limbo.

“Mother f*cker you think I don’t want to fight too,” Brady tweeted. “I tore my groin, twice in the past 60 days. Looking forward to this fight don’t be disrespectful.”

Brady, No. 11 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie welterweight rankings, is coming off his first career loss. After starting with 15 consecutive victories, the American suffered a second-round TKO defeat to Belal Muhammad at UFC 280 last October.

Pereira, an honorable mention in the latest rankings, hopes to get a number next to his name at Brady’s expense. The Brazilian has won his past five fights, including notable victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Niko Price during that stretch.

Below is the updated UFC on ESPN 43 lineup:

  • Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen
  • Holly Holm vs. Yana Santos
  • Manel Kape vs. Alex Perez
  • Alex Caceres vs. Nate Landwehr
  • Albert Duraev vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Tucker Lutz vs. Daniel Pineda
  • Lucas Alexander vs. Steven Peterson
  • Trevin Giles vs. Preston Parsons
  • Liang Na vs. Brogan Walker
  • Daniel Da Silva vs. CJ Vergara
  • Maycee Barber vs. Andrea Lee

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 43.

Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen shifts to UFC on ESPN 43 in San Antonio

A big bantamweight main event has a new location – and it’ll take place in front of a full arena of fans.

[autotag]Marlon Vera[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Cory Sandhagen[/autotag] still is intact, but it has a new date and location.

Rather than headline UFC Fight Night 219 on Feb. 18 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, the targeted bantamweight contenders fight now will take place at UFC on ESPN 43. The event takes place March 25 at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, and airs on ESPN/ESPN+.

It has not been announced which bout now will headline UFC Fight Night 219.

Multiple people with knowledge of the plan to shift recently confirmed it to MMA Junkie, but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Sports Illustrated first reported the change.

Vera, 30, will attempt to build off a huge year for his career in 2022. “Chito” earned main event wins over Dominick Cruz and Rob Font, adding to a four-fight winning streak that also includes a knockout of UFC legend Frankie Edgar.

Sandhagen, 30, competed just once in 2022. After losing back-to-back fights in 2021, Sandhagen took 11 months off from the sport before returning in September with a main event doctor’s stoppage TKO win over Song Yadong at UFC Fight Night 210.

  • Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen
  • Maycee Barber vs. Andrea Lee
  • Albert Duraev vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Daniel da Silva vs. C.J. Vergara
  • Holly Holm vs. Yana Kunitskaya
  • Manel Kape vs. Alex Perez
  • Sean Brady vs. Michel Pereira
  • Tucker Lutz vs. Daniel Pineda
  • Trevin Giles vs. Preston Parsons
  • Alex Caceres vs. Nate Landwehr

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UFC adds Alex Caceres vs. Nate Landwehr to San Antonio lineup

UFC on ESPN 43 has added a fan-favorite featherweight throwdown between finishers Alex Caceres and Nate Landwehr.

Two fan-favorite featherweights will collide in Texas this March.

At UFC on ESPN 43, [autotag]Alex Caceres[/autotag] (20-13 MMA, 15-11 UFC) and [autotag]Nate Landwehr[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) will collide in a 145-pound bout. The event takes place March 25 at AT&T Center in San Antonio.

Two people with knowledge of the booking recently confirmed the matchup to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. BRKRZ first reported the booking Wednesday.

Caceres, 34, has been a member of the UFC roster since a stint on “The Ultimate Fighter 12” in 2010. Despite his longevity with the promotion, he’s withstood the tests of time and is on one of the best stretches of his career, 6-1 in his most recent seven. In December, Caceres added another highlight to the reel when he knocked out Julian Erosa with a head kick and punches.

Landwehr, 34, enters the bout on a two-fight winning streak. In his most recent fight, Landwehr made the most of a high-profile opportunity when he won a “Fight of the Year” candidate against David Onama in the co-main event of UFC on ESPN 41 in San Diego.

With the addition, the UFC on ESPN 43 lineup includes:

  • Maycee Barber vs. Andrea Lee
  • Albert Duraev vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Daniel da Silva vs. C.J. Vergara
  • Holly Holm vs. Yana Kunitskaya
  • Manel Kape vs. Alex Perez
  • Sean Brady vs. Michel Pereira
  • Tucker Lutz vs. Daniel Pineda
  • Trevin Giles vs. Preston Parsons
  • Alex Caceres vs. Nate Landwehr

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UFC on ESPN 43 adds Tucker Lutz vs. Daniel Pineda to San Antonio lineup

UFC featherweights Tucker Lutz and Daniel Pineda look to reenter the win column when they square off in San Antonio.

A featherweight bout is the newest addition to the upcoming UFC card in San Antonio.

[autotag]Tucker Lutz[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) will square off with Texas’ own [autotag]Daniel Pineda[/autotag] (27-14 MMA, 4-5 UFC) at UFC on ESPN 43, which takes place March 25 at AT&T Center.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

Lutz, 28, split his UFC appearances to date. Following a debut win over Kevin Aguilar at UFC 262 in May 2021, Lutz lost to Pat Sabatini in November 2021. The defeat snapped a 12-fight winning streak that dated back to his second pro fight.

Pineda, 37, returns for his first MMA fight since June 2021 when he suffered a fight-ending inadvertent eye poke vs. Andre Fili. He was briefly linked to a matchup against Jamall Emmers in May, but the bout was canceled. In his second UFC stint, Pineda is 1-1 with a no contest across three bouts.

With the addition, the UFC on ESPN 43 lineup includes:

  • Maycee Barber vs. Andrea Lee
  • Albert Duraev vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Holly Holm vs. Yana Kunitskaya
  • Sean Brady vs. Michel Pereira
  • Daniel da Silva vs. CJ Vergara
  • Manel Kape vs. Alex Perez
  • Tucker Lutz vs. Daniel Pineda

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Sean Brady vs. Michel Pereira in the works for UFC on ESPN 43 in San Antonio

A key welterweight matchup between Sean Brady and Michel Pereira is the latest addition to March’s UFC on ESPN 42 lineup.

A key welterweight matchup between [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] and [autotag]Michel Pereira[/autotag] is the latest addition to March’s UFC on ESPN 43 lineup.

Brady (15-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) and Pereira (27-11 MMA, 6-2 UFC) have agreed to meet on the March 25 card, which takes place at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, and airs on ESPN.

MMA Junkie verified the booking is in the works with multiple people close to the situation, who requested anonymity because the UFC has to make an official announcement. MMAFighting.com‘s Damon Martin was first to reporter the news.

Brady, No. 11 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie welterweight rankings, will attempt to rebound from his first career loss. After starting his career with 15 consecutive victories, the American suffered a second-round TKO defeat to Belal Muhammad at UFC 280 in October.

Pereira, an honorable mention in the latest rankings, will try to get a number next to his name at Brady’s expense. The Brazilian has won his past five fights, including notable victories over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Niko Price during that stretch.

The latest UFC on ESPN 43 lineup now includes:

  • Holly Holm vs. Yana Kunitskaya
  • Sean Brady vs. Michel Pereira
  • Manel Kape vs. Alex Perez
  • Maycee Barber vs. Andrea Lee
  • Albert Duraev vs. Chidi Njokuani
  • Daniel Da Silva vs. CJ Vergara

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