After a successful outing in Australia, the UFC’s relentless schedule takes them on to the Philippines this coming Saturday for UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs Faber.
It is always exciting to see the UFC entering new markets, and their Philippines debut has been a long time coming. The show combines fighters from the across the region with a handful of more notable names, and a main event with world title implications. If that isn’t enough for you, here are ten reasons for you to tune in on Saturday.
Can Edgar Challenge After Aldo vs McGregor
With so much hype attached to the upcoming featherweight title fight between Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor, you could be forgiven for thinking that the 145 pound weight class starts and finishes with that fight. Whatever the outcome when those two meet on July 11, the division will need a new challenger. That man might well be Frankie Edgar who remains one of the most skilled fighters in the sport. With Chad Mendes looking so impressive last time out against Ricardo Lamas, it is now up to Edgar to make a similar statement on Saturday.
Faber Has Chance to Jump the 145 pound Queue
Long before making the move to bantamweight after having his world title hopes cut dead by Jose Aldo, Urijah Faber was considered the number one 145 pound fighter in the world. He won the WEC featherweight championship on March 17, 2006, and went on to make five successful defenses of the belt before losing it to Mike Brown on November 5, 2008. Should Faber be able to return to that form and beat Edgar in the Philippines he would instantly move himself into title contention.
Early Morning MMA is Good for the Sleep Pattern
As has been the case in recent events hosted out of Fairfax Virginia, and Krakow Poland, the event on Saturday in the Philippines will air at an unusual time. The UFC Fight Pass prelims are set to start at midday in the UK, and 7am ET in the United States. Whether the fights will be accompanying your breakfast, or your lunch, there is surely no better way to kickstart your weekend than with a twelve fight strong card.
Last Shot at Middleweight Title Contention
As Chris Weidman’s UFC 187 title defense against Vitor Belfort approaches, the title picture at 185 pounds seems to be clear. Luke Rockhold should be the next challenger, with Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Yoel Romero next in line after that. That gives the rest of the division time to play catch up and position themselves for a shot at the gold once that dust has settled. Both Gegard Mousasi and Costas Philippou find themselves in that chasing pack. Both have losses to the division’s elite, but both won their last fights. For whoever comes out of their tussle on Saturday with the win, there remains hope that they can force their way into title contention somewhere down the line.
Last Hurrah for the Filipino Wrecking Machine
Mark Munoz made his UFC debut over six years ago at UFC 96. He has gone on to compile an 8-6 UFC record that has at times seen him move within one fight of a middleweight title shot. Munoz has stated that his fight with Luke Barnatt on Saturday will be his last. While Munoz was born in Japan, his parents are from the Philippines and he is proud of his Filipino heritage. Munoz should receive a hero’s welcome on Saturday in what promises to be an emotional farewell.
Magny On Verge of Seven Fight Win Streak
Whatever the division, whatever the standard of competition, a seven fight win streak in the UFC is a great achievement. That is what welterweight Neil Magny will be hoping to achieve when he faces Hyun Gyu Lim on Saturday. Should he get past his South Korean opponent, Magny won’t be too far away from moving into genuine title contention.
New Market is Old ONE Championship Stomping Ground
As mentioned previously this is the first time the UFC have promoted an event in the Philippines. That is not to say that they have not held some presence there, with UFC events airing on cable and terrestrial television for the past seven years. It is a market that has also been cultivated by ONE Championship, visiting the very same Mall of Asia Arena less than a month ago for Valor of Champions. Saturday’s event should make for an interesting comparison.
Flyweights Take Over UFC Fight Pass Prelims
If there was ever a division in need of new stars it is flyweight. It is possible the division will never have a genuine pay-per-view draw, not because of the talent or personality of the fighters in the division, but because athletes of that size rarely do big numbers in any sport. Still, for new challengers to emerge the division needs more fights and the Fight Pass prelims on Saturday are all flyweight. Roldan Sangcha-an takes on Jon Delos Reyes, while Nolan Ticman and Yao Zhikui will also clash, in a nation that has been conditioned to appreciate the smaller weight classes.
An unlikely featherweight fight of the night contender
Philippe Nover might not have lived up to the “next Anderson Silva” tag afforded him by Dana White when he saw him in season eight of The Ultimate Fighter, but he is now on his first three fight win streak since appearing on the show. What’s more, his return fight against Yui Chul Nam might just turn out to be one of the surprise highlights of the main card. Nover’s South Korean opponent was awarded the fight of the night in his UFC debut against Kazuki Tokudome and has all the tools to turn this into an entertaining featherweight scrap.
Chance to celebrate the global growth of MMA
United States of America, China, Philippines, Guam, Singapore, Canada, South Korea, England and the Netherlands. Fighters will be representing nine different nations on Saturday displaying further proof that mixed martial arts has developed into a truly global sport. The UFC have been at the forefront of that growth and that is worth celebrating this weekend.
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