If UFC president Dana White gets his way, yet another lightweight barnburner is on the way.

One of MMA’s most popular competitors in Justin Gaethje, is likely to take on one of the hottest fighters in the sport, Charles Oliveira.

While the fight is far from official and does not have a date or venue, White indicated in a Tuesday chat with ESPN+ subscribers that this is a fight he’s keen on making.

“If everything works out, it will probably be Justin Gaethje,” White told host Laura Sanko in response to a viewer question asking who would be next for Oliveira (30-8 MMA, 18-8 UFC).

Oliveira is coming off the biggest victory of his career, a unanimous decision over former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson in the co-feature bout of UFC 256. That was the eighth victory in a row for “Do Bronx,” and the only one in that run which didn’t result in a finish.

Gaethje (22-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC), meanwhile, is also a former interim lightweight titleholder. The all-action standout is looking to rebound from a loss to Khabib Nurmagemov in a championship unifier at UFC 254. The second-round submission loss snapped a four-fight win streak.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/dana-white-justin-gaethje-likely-next-up-for-charles-oliveira

Dustin Poirier and Dan Hooker really did leave it all in the cage.

This past June, at UFC on ESPN 12 in Las Vegas, both lightweight standouts engaged in a back-and-forth war that immediately became a “Fight of the Year” contender. Poirier used his veteran experience to finish out the fight strong and outpoint Hooker in a unanimous decision.

The win saw “The Diamond” bounce back from his championship defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov the year prior.

Now, a little more than six months later, Poirier is gearing up for a return, as he’s set to take on former champion and UFC star Conor McGregor in a much anticipated rematch that stems from their initial meeting in 2014. The two will clash in the main event of UFC 257 on Jan. 23 in Abu Dhabi.

Ahead of that contest, check out the incredible brawl that was Poirier vs. Hooker in the video above.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/ufc-free-fight-video-dustin-poirier-beats-dan-hooker-war

It has been several years since Conor McGregor starched Dustin Poirier in their first fight. They are now preparing to rematch in the UFC 257 main event on Jan. 23 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.

McGregor has since gone on to win UFC championships in two divisions and become one of the biggest sports stars in the world. Poirier has also reshaped himself, having won the interim UFC lightweight title along the way.

Look ahead to the much-anticipated rematch between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor, which is set to headline UFC 257 on Saturday, January 23, in Abu Dhabi.

(Courtesy of UFC)

TRENDING Watch Conor McGregor starch Dustin Poirier in first fight ahead of UFC 257 rematch

Star Wars Mandalorian star and former fighter Gina Carano flashback

(Subscribe to MMAWeekly.com on YouTube)

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/take-a-deeper-look-at-ufc-257-poirier-vs-mcgregor-2

UFC president Dana White sent a warning to illegal streamers on Monday and says he has a “surprise” for those who illegally stream UFC events in 2021.

The fight promotion’s first pay-per-view event takes place on Jan. 23 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The event, UFC 257, marks the return of former two division champion Conor McGregor in a rematch against former interim lightweight titleholder Dustin Poirier.

White posted a video promo for the upcoming event on Instagram and issued his warning in the comments.

“The Notorious” is the biggest draw on the UFC roster. With McGregor headlining the fight card, White expects a high buy rate. Check out the video promo below.

TRENDING Mike Perry posts graphic disturbing video of bloody leg laceration

Article source: https://www.mmaweekly.com/dana-white-sends-warning-to-illegal-streamers-ahead-of-ufc-257

When it comes to covering fight week, few moments get the blood pumping and the anticipation soaring better than a great faceoff. The UFC squares off their fighters before every event for exactly that reason, and some of the sport’s biggest stars have developed their own styles as they use their faceoff opportunities to strike a final mental blow ahead of fight night.

Over the course of 2020, and despite the social distancing rules applied across the globe, we were still treated to a host of memorable faceoffs. To kick off the year – and before COVID-19 arrived – we saw the likes of Conor McGregor and Donald Cerrone get up close and personal at the UFC 246 ceremonial weigh-ins in January, while Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk exchanged words in a tense staredown ahead of their memorable strawweight title clash at UFC 248 in March.

The arrival of the coronavirus pandemic in March didn’t deprive us of some memorable faceoffs, however, with the fighters allowed to go nose to nose, with or without masks, after being subjected to multiple COVID-19 tests before and throughout fight week.

It meant we got to see debuting former KSW and EFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis go face-to-face with “The Joker,” aka Markus Perez, ahead of UFC Fight Night 179 in October, while middleweight champion Israel Adesanya enjoyed a pair of tense faceoffs as he locked eyes with rivals Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa ahead of his two successful title defenses in 2020.

Recap the best of the UFC’s 2020 faceoffs via the video above.

Article source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2021/01/video-conor-mcgregor-israel-adesanya-and-zhang-weili-star-in-ufcs-best-faceoffs-of-2020