Chris Weidman and Yoel Romero at the UFC 205 press conference in September. Julie Jacobson
Julie Jacobson
WITH THE BOUT between Luke Rockhold and Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza falling through, the meeting of Weidman and Romero now looks set to be a shootout for a tilt at reigning UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping.
This will be a first outing for both fighters since UFC 194 last December, when Weidman relinquished his middleweight to Rockhold, and Romero edged out Jacare via split decision. An injury forced Weidman out of his rematch with Rockhold in June, while Romero has been sidelined by a six-month suspension for an anti-doping violation.
Keen to regain the belt that he successfully defended against Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort, Weidman will hope that his background as an All-American wrestler will nullify the wrestling of Yoel Romero, who was a freestyle silver medallist at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
Kelvin Gastelum v Donald Cerrone
Kelvin Gastelum and Donald Cerrone. Julie Jacobson
Julie Jacobson
Cerrone was originally due to face Robbie Lawler on this card, which would have made for a very exciting match-up between two fan favourites. Lawler was ultimately forced to pull out, but Kelvin Gastelum isn’t a bad alternative for the viewers.
Thanks to his win against former champion Johny Hendricks at UFC 200, Gastelum has catapulted himself into the top five in the welterweight rankings. Since losing to then-lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos back in December, Cerrone has gone 3-0 in the 170lbs division, with his second-round TKO of Rick Story in August particularly impressive. That result leaves him ranked sixth.
Both men are renowned for pushing forward and looking for a finish, and with a chance to make another big step forward in the division at stake, this one is unlikely to be dull.
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Frankie Edgar v Jeremy Stephens
Frankie Edgar Tommy Lakes / The42
Tommy Lakes / The42 / The42
Frankie Edgar has more to lose than gain here, and while he’s a significant favourite to return to winning ways, his clash with Jeremy Stephens has the potential to ensure that the preliminary portion of Saturday’s card ends on a high.
After his win against Renan Barao, Stephens is hoping to take the scalp of another former champion as he aims to move up from seventh place in the featherweight rankings, and a victory over Frankie Edgar would undoubtedly be the biggest of his career.
Having lost to Jose Aldo in last July’s interim title bout, Edgar knows that this fight represents a chance to get back on track and make one more push for the belt. And with Max Holloway facing Anthony Pettis four weeks later, there’s pressure on the former lightweight title-holder to avoid any slip-ups.
Khabib Nurmagomedov v Michael Johnson
Khabib Nurmagomedov AP / Press Association Images
AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
If things had turned out slightly differently for Khabib Nurmagomedov, he’d be preparing to face Eddie Alvarez for the UFC lightweight title this weekend. Instead, the UFC opted for a fight that made more financial sense by giving the title shot to Conor McGregor, so Nurmagomedov will have to see off another contender in the meantime.
On the back of Tony Ferguson’s defeat of Rafael Dos Anjos last weekend, Nurmagomedov knows he needs to produce a performance as well as a result against Michael Johnson in order to stay at the head of the queue in the 155lbs division. The injury-prone Dagestani fighter will aim to take his record to 24-0 in what is his second fight in two-and-a-half years.
It’s a huge opportunity for Johnson to thrust himself into the title picture too. Beneil Dariush and Nate Diaz halted his good run of form in the latter stages of 2015, but with his resounding win over Dustin Poirier in September, Johnson showed that he could still be in the shake-up at lightweight.
UFC 205, on Saturday 12 November, is available exclusively on eir Sport. Trust us – you won’t want to miss a single minute of the action. Subscribe below now to see the best the UFC has to offer.
4 unmissable fights flying completely under the radar at UFC 205
Chris Weidman v Yoel Romero
WITH THE BOUT between Luke Rockhold and Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza falling through, the meeting of Weidman and Romero now looks set to be a shootout for a tilt at reigning UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping.
This will be a first outing for both fighters since UFC 194 last December, when Weidman relinquished his middleweight to Rockhold, and Romero edged out Jacare via split decision. An injury forced Weidman out of his rematch with Rockhold in June, while Romero has been sidelined by a six-month suspension for an anti-doping violation.
Keen to regain the belt that he successfully defended against Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort, Weidman will hope that his background as an All-American wrestler will nullify the wrestling of Yoel Romero, who was a freestyle silver medallist at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
Kelvin Gastelum v Donald Cerrone
Cerrone was originally due to face Robbie Lawler on this card, which would have made for a very exciting match-up between two fan favourites. Lawler was ultimately forced to pull out, but Kelvin Gastelum isn’t a bad alternative for the viewers.
Thanks to his win against former champion Johny Hendricks at UFC 200, Gastelum has catapulted himself into the top five in the welterweight rankings. Since losing to then-lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos back in December, Cerrone has gone 3-0 in the 170lbs division, with his second-round TKO of Rick Story in August particularly impressive. That result leaves him ranked sixth.
Both men are renowned for pushing forward and looking for a finish, and with a chance to make another big step forward in the division at stake, this one is unlikely to be dull.
Frankie Edgar v Jeremy Stephens
Frankie Edgar has more to lose than gain here, and while he’s a significant favourite to return to winning ways, his clash with Jeremy Stephens has the potential to ensure that the preliminary portion of Saturday’s card ends on a high.
After his win against Renan Barao, Stephens is hoping to take the scalp of another former champion as he aims to move up from seventh place in the featherweight rankings, and a victory over Frankie Edgar would undoubtedly be the biggest of his career.
Having lost to Jose Aldo in last July’s interim title bout, Edgar knows that this fight represents a chance to get back on track and make one more push for the belt. And with Max Holloway facing Anthony Pettis four weeks later, there’s pressure on the former lightweight title-holder to avoid any slip-ups.
Khabib Nurmagomedov v Michael Johnson
If things had turned out slightly differently for Khabib Nurmagomedov, he’d be preparing to face Eddie Alvarez for the UFC lightweight title this weekend. Instead, the UFC opted for a fight that made more financial sense by giving the title shot to Conor McGregor, so Nurmagomedov will have to see off another contender in the meantime.
On the back of Tony Ferguson’s defeat of Rafael Dos Anjos last weekend, Nurmagomedov knows he needs to produce a performance as well as a result against Michael Johnson in order to stay at the head of the queue in the 155lbs division. The injury-prone Dagestani fighter will aim to take his record to 24-0 in what is his second fight in two-and-a-half years.
It’s a huge opportunity for Johnson to thrust himself into the title picture too. Beneil Dariush and Nate Diaz halted his good run of form in the latter stages of 2015, but with his resounding win over Dustin Poirier in September, Johnson showed that he could still be in the shake-up at lightweight.
UFC 205, on Saturday 12 November, is available exclusively on eir Sport. Trust us – you won’t want to miss a single minute of the action. Subscribe below now to see the best the UFC has to offer.
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