Middleweights are the latest addition to the UFC’s March 13 card.

Former University of Alabama linebacker and LFA champion Eryk Anders will return to action to face the United Kingdom’s Darren Stewart at the UFC Fight Night card. The event does not currently have a publicly known location or venue.

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

Anders (13-5 MMA, 5-5 UFC) has won two of his most recent three fights. Following wins over Vinicius Moreira and Gerald Meerschaert, Anders lost a unanimous decision to Krzysztof Jotko in May.

Stewart (12-6 MMA, 5-6 UFC) has won three of five outings entering the fight – but also dropped two of his most recent three. He most recently competed in September 2020 when he lost a unanimous decision to Kevin Holland.

The updated UFC Fight Night lineup for March 13 includes:

• Leon Edwards vs. Khamzat Chimaev
• Davey Grant vs. Jonathan Martinez
• Matthew Semelsberger vs. Jason Witt
• Jinh Yu Frey vs. Gloria de Paula
• Ciryl Gane vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
• Ryan Hall vs. Dan Ige
• Matheus Nicolau vs. Tagir Ulanbekov
• Eryk Anders vs. Darren Stewart

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-eryk-anders-darren-stewart-march-13-mma-fight-booking

Dana White and Khabib Nurmagomedov finally met face to face Friday.

The highly anticipated meeting between the UFC president and the UFC lightweight champion took place at UAE Warriors 15, an event held in Abu Dhabi, not far from the UFC’s “Fight Island” event bubble.

White was in attendance for the filming of an episode of “Dana White: Lookin’ for a Fight,” while Nurmagomedov is a frequent attendant at UAE Warriors events.

The event’s broadcast showed White’s bodyguard retrieve Nurmagomedov, who was a special guest attendee, from the stands to escort him backstage.

Pretty sure Dana just sent his security guard for Khabib pic.twitter.com/ffiM3qCpny

— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) January 15, 2021

From there, a video posted by White on social media shows the two walking into a room and shutting the door. An Instagram story video posted by Nurmagomedov shows his boss sitting in a chair directly in front of him.

Oh to be a fly on the wall for this meeting between Dana White and Khabib Nurmagomedov 👀 (via @TeamKhabib) pic.twitter.com/kY4p9hPgHr

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) January 15, 2021

White and Nurmagomedov were later spotted sitting together cageside. Joining them were former UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra and UFC alumnus Din Thomas, who co-star in “Dana White: Lookin’ for a Fight.”

#EFC32 pic.twitter.com/orl8GuUQgF

— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) January 15, 2021

Since Nurmagomedov announced his retirement at UFC 254 in October, White has been adamant he thinks the undefeated Russian champion will fight again. Upon the UFC’s return to “Fight Island” for its third stint, White made it a point to seek out a quick meeting with Nurmagomedov in an effort to convince his champion to stick around for another fight.

“When I left Abu Dhabi last time, and he and I were texting, we went back and forth on why I think he should keep fighting,” White said. “He was super emotional coming out of that fight. He’s had time now to rest, think about it, (and) all the other things. This is going to be a five-minute conversation. … I think he’ll fight, but we’ll see. It’s not going to be an argument or a lengthy conversation. It’s going to be a ‘yes’ or ‘no.’”

Nurmagomedov, 32, sits one fight away from a perfect 30-0 record. White has indicated he wants Nurmagomedov vs. Conor McGregor to be the milestone 30th attempt in a rematch if McGregor beats Dustin Poirier at UFC 257 next week.

The UFC’s third stint on “Fight Island” kicks off Saturday with UFC on ABC 1, headlined by featherweights Max Holloway and Calvin Kattar. On Wednesday, UFC on ESPN 20 takes place with a welterweight main event between Michael Chiesa and Neil Magny.

The three-event stretch concludes Saturday, Jan. 23, with UFC 257 and a pay-per-view headliner rematch between McGregor and Poirier.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-news-dana-white-khabib-nurmagomedov-meeting-video-uae-warriors-abu-dhabi

Holloway
vs.
Kattar
Brown
vs.
Condit
Jingliang
vs.
Ponzinibbio
Buckley
vs.
Di Chirico
Soriano
vs.
Todorovic

MMA Junkie readers’
consensus picks
2021: 0-0

Holloway
(68%)

Condit
(63%)

Ponzinibbio
(82%)

Buckley
(85%)

Todorovic
(57%)

Dan Tom
@DanTomMMA
2021: 0-0
2020 Champion

Holloway

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
2021: 0-0

Kattar

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
2021: 0-0

Holloway

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Todorovic

Nolan King
@mma_kings
2021: 0-0

Kattar

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

Mike Bohn
@MikeBohnMMA
2021: 0-0
2014 Champion

Holloway

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Todorovic

Simon Head
@simonhead
2021: 0-0
2019 Champion*

Holloway

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Todorovic

Brian Garcia
@thegoze
2021: 0-0
2017 Champion

Kattar

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

Simon Samano
@SJSamano
2021: 0-0

Holloway

Brown

Jingliang

Buckley

Soriano

Dave Doyle
@davedoylemma
2021: 0-0

Kattar

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Todorovic

Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
2021: 0-0
2018 Champion

Holloway

Brown

Jingliang

Buckley

Soriano

George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
2021: 0-0

Kattar

Brown

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

John Morgan
@MMAjunkieJohn
2021: 0-0

Kattar

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
2021: 0-0

Holloway

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Todorovic

Matt Erickson
@MMAjunkieMatt
2021: 0-0

Kattar

Condit

Ponzinibbio

Buckley

Soriano

The UFC is back for its first event of 2021 – and the first of three cards in eight days on “Fight Island.”

UFC on ABC 1 takes place Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on ABC and ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN+.

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

In the main event, former featherweight champion Max Holloway (21-6 MMA, 17-6 UFC) takes on Calvin Kattar (22-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC). Holloway is a slight favorite at BetMGM at -165, but for the first headliner of the year, our 14 editors, writers, videographers and radio hosts are split down the middle at 7-7.

In the co-feature, longtime UFC welterweights Matt Brown (22-17 MMA, 15-11 UFC) and former interim champion Carlos Condit (31-13 MMA, 8-9 UFC) meet. Condit is the slight favorite, but he’s got a big 11-3 lead from our pickers.

Also on the main card, Li Jingliang (17-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) is a heavy underdog at welterweight against Santiago Ponzinibbio (27-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC), and Ponzinibbio has a big 12-2 lead in the picks.

Joaquin Buckley (12-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is the only unanimous pick from our staff members in his middleweight fight against Alessio Di Chirico (12-5 MMA, 3-5 UFC). He’s nearly a 3-1 favorite at the sports books, and he’s got a 14-0 shutout from our staff members.

And to open the main card, Punahele Soriano (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) is a slight underdog at middleweight against Dusko Todorovic (10-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC). Both are undefeated, but it’s Soriano with a 9-5 picks lead.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Holloway (68 percent), Condit (63 percent), Ponzinibbio (82 percent), Buckley (85 percent) and Todorovic (57 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-on-abc-1-predictions-picks-max-holloway-vs-calvin-kattar

ABU DHABI – Punahele Soriano spoke to the media on Wednesday ahead of the UFC on ABC 1 event.

Soriano (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) discussed his middleweight bout with Dusko Todorovic (10-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), returning from a long layoff, Dana White hyping his fight and more.

UFC on ABC 1 takes place Saturday at Etihad Arena. The main card airs on ABC and ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN+.

Watch the complete video of Soriano’s media day appearance above.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-on-abc-1-punahele-soriano-hopes-to-make-up-lost-time-return-injury

ABU DHABI – MMA Junkie is on scene and reporting live from Friday’s official UFC on ABC 1 weigh-ins, which kick off at 4 a.m. ET (1 a.m. PT) at the Crowne Plaza hotel.

Etihad Arena hosts Saturday’s card, which has a main card on ABC and ESPN+, with prelims on ESPN+.

Among those weighing in are former featherweight champion Max Holloway (21-6 MMA, 17-6 UFC) and Calvin Kattar (22-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC), who meet in the main event, as well as Matt Brown (22-17 MMA, 15-11 UFC) and Carlos Condit (31-13 MMA, 8-9 UFC), who fight in the welterweight co-feature.

Complete UFC on ABC 1 weigh-in results include:

MAIN CARD (ABC/ESPN+, 3 p.m. ET)

• Max Holloway vs. Calvin Kattar
• Matt Brown vs. Carlos Condit
• Li Jingliang vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio
• Joaquin Buckley vs. Alessio Di Chirico
• Punahele Soriano vs. Dusko Todorovic

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, noon ET)

• Phil Hawes vs. Nassourdine Imavov
• Joselyne Edwards vs. Wu Yanan
• Carlos Felipe vs. Justin Tafa
• Ramazan Emeev vs. David Zawada
• Vanessa Melo vs. Sarah Moras
• Jacob Kilburn vs. Austin Lingo

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-on-abc-1-holloway-vs-kattar-weigh-ins-results