The UFC closes out 2017 on Saturday with UFC 219, and in the main event, Cris Cyborg puts her women’s featherweight title on the line against former women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm.
For Holm, this matchup gives her the opportunity to become a two-division champion – and the first female to do it. The fight also provides the former champ the chance to end the 19-fight unbeaten streak of the fighter many consider the most-feared woman in MMA history.
In the co-headliner, title hopefuls Khabib Nurmagomedov and Edson Barboza meet in a pivotal lightweight contest.
The fight card also features the long-awaited return of former welterweight interim titleholder Carlos Condit, who meets Neil Magny on the pay-per-view portion of the card.
UFC 219 takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with a PPV main card following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass
Here are 10 reasons to watch the event.
1. A difficult undertaking
Holm’s team at Jackson-Wink MMA did a magnificent job assembling a plan for their fighter ahead of her win over then-champ Ronda Rousey at UFC 193. Before UFC 219 that crackerjack team of coaches had the arduous task of designing a strategy to defeat Cyborg, a fighter who hasn’t lost in more than 12 years.
Cyborg is no longer the fighter who charges forward with reckless abandon. Striking coach Jason Parillo has her fighting in a more controlled manner these days. The Brazilian cuts off the cage, walks her opponents down, and when she finds an opening, she unleashes the strikes that have ended 16 fights early.
The Cyborg (18-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) of the past left openings that a technical fighter such as Holm (11-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) could have exploited. We’ll find out if Holm’s team has found similar gaps in the approach of the new and improved Cyborg.
2. What does the future hold?
When the final fight of UFC 219 comes to an end and the winner is declared either “and still” or “new” women’s featherweight champion, one question will remain for the UFC: What now?
Two fighters (Cyborg and Megan Anderson) – three if Holm wins and plans to defend the title – does not make a division. But that’s the number of true featherweight fighters the promotion has listed on UFC.com for the weight class.
With three title fights in the division in 2017, the UFC has to decide what it is going to do with the 145-pound women’s division.
3. Looking for an answer
“I have to fight for the title. You know this. I deserve it.” Those were the words Nurmagomedov uttered during his UFC 205 fight against Michael Johnson. Nurmagomedov, who is No. 5 in USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA lightweight rankings, won that contest via third-round submission.
“I think I’m ready for the belt. I’m coming off three wins,” Edson Barboza, who is the No. 6-ranked lightweight, said through an interpreter after he knocked out Beneil Dariush at UFC Fight Night 106.
When Nurmagomedov (24-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) and Barboza (19-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) step into the octagon at UFC 219, they will answer the question of who will move one step closer to a title shot.
This is a battle of the strength, power and ground game of Nurmagomedov vs. the speed and technical proficiency of the striking of Barboza. It should be a fun fight to watch.
4. Kick it
Dan Hooker delivered the best performance of his UFC run in his most recent fight. Competing at lightweight for the first time in nearly four years, the New Zealander knocked out Ross Pearson with a perfectly timed knee. Before the stoppage, Hooker did a good job of fighting behind his jab and kicks to keep the Englishman at distance.
That style could come in handy against Marc Diakiese (12-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC). The Congolese fighter enters his bout against Hooker (14-7 MMA, 4-3 UFC) on the heels of his first career loss. The leg kicks of his opponent in that contest, Drakkar Klose, where the main reason Klose earned the decision win.
Hooker landed 33 percent of his leg strikes against Pearson – and those strikes were not love taps. If Diakiese didn’t work on his leg-kick defense ahead of this bout, he could be in trouble.
5. A quick climb
After Cynthia Calvillo began her UFC career with two submission wins, the promotion gave her a test. In her third UFC fight, and sixth overall, she faced Joanne Calderwood, who was the No. 12 ranked strawweight at the time. Calvillo defeated the striker by unanimous decision.
Now ranked No. 11 in the division, Calvillo (6-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) faces former champion and No. 7-ranked strawweight Carla Esparza (12-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC).
This matchup gives Calvillo an opportunity to showcase her full range of talents. A wrestler with an active submission game that complements her developing striking, Calvillo has shown an ability to compete no matter where the fight goes. She might be a little green, but the Team Alpha Male fighter’s well-rounded skill set has her entering this bout as a more than 2-1 favorite over the former champ.
With a win over Esparza, the former Cheesecake Factory employee could find herself one or two fights away from a title shot.
Esparza defeated Maryna Moroz by unanimous decision in her most recent fight.
6. Return of ‘The Natural Born Killer’
Condit hasn’t fought since Demian Maia submitted him in the first round of their August 2016 bout. The loss dropped Condit’s record to 2-5 dating back to November 2012. Two of those defeats came in title fights. The other two fighters who topped Condit went on to hold the welterweight belt.
After the loss to Maia, Condit was unsure of his fighting future.
“I don’t know if I have any business fighting at this level anymore,” Condit said after UFC on FOX 21. “I’ve been at this for a really long time. The pressure of kind of being one of the top guys for almost a decade, it’s been awesome to be involved in this sport as long as I have. I got to do what I love for a living for a very long time. I don’t know, man. I don’t know if I belong here anymore. We’ll see.”
The first step toward seeing if he belongs comes at UFC 219, where the unranked Condit (30-10 MMA, 7-6 UFC) faces No. 14 Magny (19-6 MMA, 12-5 UFC), who is coming off a loss to Rafael dos Anjos.
7. No power shortage
Khalil Rountree began his UFC career with two losses in 2016. This year has been better for the 27-year-old. In 2017 Rountree has two first-round knockout victories. He looks to make it three in a row when he meets Michal Oleksiejczuk at UFC 219.
On paper this bout promises fireworks. Rountree (6-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) is one of the more powerful light heavyweights on the UFC roster. As his knockout of Paul Craig showed, Rountree packs a lot of force into his strikes. As for Oleksiejczuk (12-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC), who makes his UFC debut in Las Vegas, he has eight knockout wins on his record with five of those fights ending in the first round.
8. Working his way back
Myles Jury was 15-0 and ranked in the lightweight top 10 heading into his UFC 182 bout against Donald Cerrone. After Cerrone defeated him by decision, Jury dropped to featherweight.
His 145-pound debut turned into a catchweight contest when his opponent, Charles Oliveira, came in more than four pounds heavy. Oliveira won the bout by first-round submission. After more than 15 months away from the octagon, Jury returned at UFC 210. He earned a TKO win over Mike De La Torre in that bout.
At UFC 219, Jury (16-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) meets Rick Glenn (20-4-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), who is on a two-fight winning streak.
Jury’s win over De La Torre was a solid first step toward getting in the title mix at 145 pounds, but with the depth of the division, Jury is going to need to impress and stay active to make headway as 2018 approaches. A noteworthy win over Glenn, the former WSOF featherweight champ, will help.
9. A surge vs. a skid
Louis Smolka looked poised to become a contender in the flyweight division after he went 5-1 to open his run with the UFC. He’s lost his past three fights, though. He hasn’t won a single round on the judges’ scorecards during his losing skid.
At UFC 219, Smolka (11-4 MMA, 5-4 UFC) faces Matheus Nicolau (12-1-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC), who is on a five-fight winning streak.
For Smolka, this bout is an opportunity to show he still belongs among the elite of the 125-pound division despite no longer being ranked. As for Nicolau, this is an opportunity to live up to the claim he made after he defeated former title challenger John Moraga in his most recent outing.
“I’m for real,” Nicolau said. “I’m coming.”
10. A rough month
Tim Elliott has not had a good December. The former flyweight title challenger made weight for UFC on FOX 26 only to see his fight scratched when his opponent, Pietro Menga, failed to step on the scale. Elliott then found out he was not going to be paid his full fight purse for the event. On that same day, Elliott’s coach and mentor, Robert Follis, took his own life.
Two weeks removed from that terrible stretch, Elliott (14-8-1 MMA, 3-6 UFC) faces UFC newcomer Mark Delarosa (9-0, 0-0 UFC) in a bantamweight bout at UFC 219. This is Elliott’s first fight at 135 pounds since his knockout win over Jens Pulver at RFA 1 in December 2011.
Elliott told MMAjunkie he’s a bit concerned about this bout.
“I’m a little worried how my emotions are going to play out,” he said. “I don’t want it to wear me out. I feel if I can just get in there and do what I love to do, then everything will be fine.”
For more on UFC 219, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.