Tag: UFC on ESPN 50

Video: Asu Almabaev puts flyweights on notice, taps Ode Osbourne at UFC on ESPN 50

The UFC may have a new flyweight star on its hands after the UFC on ESPN 50 opener in Nashville.

The UFC may have a new flyweight star on its hands after Saturday.

[autotag]Asu Almabaev[/autotag] (18-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) wasn’t exactly overlooked ahead of his promotional debut at UFC on ESPN 50 in Nashville, Tenn. He was a 2-1 betting favorite against Ode Osbourne (12-6 MMA, 4-4 UFC) in their curtain jerker at Bridgestone Arena.

But the 29-year-old from Kazakhstan, who has promised to be a UFC champion by 2025, looked smooth and relaxed when he took Osbourne down in the second round, took his back, and squeezed his way to a rear-naked choke tap at the 3:11 mark of the frame.

The win was Almabaev’s 14th straight and second straight by rear-naked choke after his Brave CF final fight in November 2022.

Check out Almabaev’s finish of Osbourne below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 50.

[vertical-gallery id=2666515]

[vertical-gallery id=2666492]

Asu Almabaev def. Ode Osbourne at UFC on ESPN 50: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Asu Almabaev’s second-round submission win over Ode Osbourne at UFC on ESPN 50 in Nashville.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Asu Almabaev[/autotag]’s second-round submission win over [autotag]Ode Osbourne[/autotag] at UFC on ESPN 50 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. (Photos by Christopher Hanewinckel, USA TODAY Sports)

UFC on ESPN 50: Quick picks and prognostications

Analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC on ESPN 50 main card in Nashville with Cory Sandhagen vs. Rob Font, Tatiana Suarez vs. Jessica Andrade.

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main card for UFC on ESPN 50.

UFC on ESPN 50 takes place Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

Last event’s results: 3-2
Overall picks for UFC main cards in 2023: 71-57-4

Welcome to MMAJunkie’s Quick Picks and Prognostications, where I’ll be giving brief, fight-day breakdowns for UFC main cards.

With that in mind, I hope these write-ups don’t come off as curt or dismissive. My goal here is to offer quick picks and analysis in a digestible format. All odds listed are provided by FanDuel.com. If you’d like more detailed analysis, check out my weekly show, The Protect Ya’ Neck Podcast.

So without further ado …

UFC on ESPN 50: Make your predictions for Cory Sandhagen vs. Rob Font, Jessica Andrade vs. Tatiana Suarez

We want your predictions for Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 50 event in Nashville, Tenn.

We want your predictions for UFC on ESPN 50 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 on ESPN 50 main card staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. UFC on ESPN 50 takes place Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

Make your picks for the fights below.

UFC on ESPN 50 commentary team, broadcast plans set: Two former champs on call

Two former UFC champions will join Jon Anik in the commentary booth for UFC on ESPN 50 on Saturday in Nashville.

The UFC schedule continues this week with UFC on ESPN 50 broadcast on Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.

As always, some marquee on-air talent will be there to help guide viewers through the experience.

Details of who will work as commentators and analysts for each event have been acquired by MMA Junkie through a person with knowledge of the situation, and you can see the scheduled broadcast team below.

* * * *

UFC on ESPN 50: How to watch Sandhagen-Font and Andrade-Suarez, start time, fight card, odds (Updated)

Here’s what you need to know to watch UFC on ESPN 50 in Nashville with a Cory Sandhagen vs. Rob Font bantamweight main event.

(Updated Aug. 1, 2023, for addition of new fight.)

The UFC heads to “Music City” on Saturday with UFC on ESPN 50 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., with 135-pound standouts atop the card.

Here’s how to watch UFC on ESPN 50 with bantamweights in the main event.

Jessica Andrade sees Rose Namajunas thriving at 125 pounds, expects future trilogy bout

Jessica Andrade weighs in on Rose Namajunas’ decision to move up to 125 pounds.

[autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag] is returning to MMA, but she’s doing so by leaving her longtime home at 115 pounds.

After over a year away from fighting, the former UFC women’s strawweight champion is moving up a weight class to compete against top women’s flyweight contender Manon Fiorot on Sept. 2 at UFC on ESPN 53 in Paris. Many are curious to see how Namajunas fares in a heavier division.

The person perhaps most qualified to speculate Namajunas debut at women’s flyweight is former rival [autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag]. The Brazilian knows Namajunas very well, having fought her twice – winning by KO and losing a decision. She’s also a former strawweight champion and has fought many times at 125 pounds.

“I’m very happy that Rose is returning to fighting because for a while she didn’t want to fight, and she would speak to people saying that she wasn’t sure if she wanted to continue,” Andrade told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “However, I knew that if she would come back, she wanted to fight at 125 pounds. Someone had told me that she was looking to return, but didn’t want 115 pounds.

“I thought that was good. I think this division will be good for her. She’s very tall and has a long reach. I think it’s a good division for her, and I’m excited for her fights. I want her to win. She’s very strong, very fast, very technical. She also has great movement inside the octagon, and she also has good jiu-jitsu. I think in this weight class she’ll do well.”

Andrade (24-11 MMA, 15-9 UFC) returns to the cage this Saturday in the co-main event of UFC on ESPN 50, which takes place Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. She takes on Tatiana Suarez (9-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) in a key women’s strawweight bout.

The 31-year-old, who’s been going back and forth between strawweight and flyweight, told MMA Junkie that she intends to commit to 115 pounds for now, in an effort to reclaim her title. A move back to flyweight is only closed for the immediate future.

Being tied up with Namajunas, Andrade expects for the two to cross paths a third time – maybe at flyweight.

“I think so, I think so, and I think it can be at 125 pounds,” Andrade said regarding a potential trilogy. “If she doesn’t want to return to 115, 125 is good for me too. So I think that’s a very interesting fight between us too.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030788]

[pickup_prop id=”34032″]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 50.

UFC on ESPN 50 breakdown: Can Rob Font stop Cory Sandhagen’s momentum on short notice?

MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom takes a closer look at the UFC on ESPN 50 headliner between Cory Sandhagen and Rob Font.

MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom takes a closer look at the UFC on ESPN 50 headliner between [autotag]Cory Sandhagen[/autotag] and [autotag]Rob Font[/autotag].

After an interim bantamweight title loss to Petr Yan in 2021, Sandhagen (16-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) has bounced back with a TKO of Song Yadong in 2022 and a split decision over Marlon Vera in March. The 31-year-old takes on late replacement Font (20-6 MMA, 10-5 UFC), who stepped in for Umar Nurmagomedov. Because Font took the assignment so late, the fight will be at a 140-pound contract weight. A win for Sandhagen would give him his first streak of three or more fights since 2019.

After a modest four-fight winning streak against some serious names – current Bellator flyweight champion Sergio Pettis, former LFA champ Ricky Simon, ex-WSOF titleholder Marlon Moraes and former UFC champ Cody Garbrandt – Font dropped back-to-back fights to Jose Aldo and Marlon Vera. But in April, the 36-year-old returned after nearly a year off and took out Adrian Yanez for a first-round TKO and post-fight bonus. The short-notice headliner will be Font’s fourth main event in five fights.

MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom has studied the film to offer his thoughts and prediction on the matchup, which you can watch in the video above.

UFC on ESPN 50 takes place Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 50.

UFC on ESPN 50 predictions: Is anyone picking Rob Font to upset Cory Sandhagen in Nashville?

Check out our staff members’ picks and analysis for the main card and beyond at UFC on ESPN 50 in Nashville, Tenn.

The UFC has set up shop this week in “Music City” for the first time in more than four years, and two sets of contenders are atop the lineup.

UFC on ESPN 50 takes place Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

Get playoff pick results from our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers, as well as additional analysis, below.