For months now, fight fans have been anxiously waiting for the announcement of the main event for UFC 230, which takes place November 3 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Fans have been teased about a number of stars headlining the show, with names such as Jon Jones, Georges St-Pierre and Tyron Woodley all being floated as possible headliners. Considering the UFC’s first two shows at MSG were headlined by Conor McGregor vs. Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 and GSP vs. Michael Bisping at UFC 217, you can understand why fans and media were expecting a big fight announcement for the main event of UFC 230.
When Nate Diaz vs. Dustin Poirier was announced for the card a few months back, fans figured this would be the main event. After all, Diaz is one of the biggest stars in the sport right now and Poirier is one of the hottest fighters, so it would have made a lot of sense as the main event. Both guys have been active on Twitter in recent weeks trying to get the UFC to book them for five rounds for the inaugural 165lbs super lightweight title, but for whatever reason the UFC was extremely hesitant on booking that fight despite there not being any other options for the main event. Or, so we thought. On Tuesday, news broke with the announcement of UFC 230’s main event, and fans are not happy.
ESPN first reported the main event of UFC 230 will now be a women’s flyweight bout between Valentina Shevchenko and Sijara Eubanks for the title recently vacated by ex-champ Nicco Montano. We all thought Shevchenko was going to fight Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 231 in Toronto this December, but the UFC scrapped that fight in favor of this one against Eubanks, who herself was set to fight Jessica Eye at UFC 232 later this year. With the announcement of Shevchenko vs. Eubanks, the UFC broke apart a better fight between Shevchenko and Jedrzejczyk, and a decent fight between Eubanks and Eye, all for a mediocre fight between Shevchenko and Eubanks. And its all because the UFC was desperate to have a title fight headline UFC 230
I hate to be harsh, but here’s the reality: No one cares or wants to see this fight. Since the announcement, fans have been outraged on social media and reporters have been left bewildered why the UFC would book such an uninteresting fight in the main event of one of the year’s biggest cards. We know the UFC was having problems finding a headliner for this card, but mostly everyone was okay with Diaz vs. Poirier being shifted up to the main event since that fight seems better suited for five rounds. With the UFC being extremely against adding a new weight division, instead the promotion has booked a title fight between Shevchenko, a solid fighter who is not a draw, and Eubanks, a complete unknown with a 3-2 pro record who missed weight at the TUF Finale. It’s a fight that hardly anyone cares about, and it’s a head-scratcher why the UFC felt this was the best option to headline the MSG card.
What bothers me most about this situation is the UFC did not listen to the fans on this one, and instead of just promoting Diaz vs. Poirier up the main event slot, instead has booked a fight no one cares about. I don’t get it. It’s not like Shevchenko is much of a draw, and no one knows who Eubanks is. The UFC wanted a title fight to headline the card and I understand the company’s metrics say title fights are better for business, but I honestly don’t think anyone cares about the Shevchenko vs. Eubanks matchup.
If you thought Shevchenko vs. Montano was going to be a mismatch, wait until we see this fight. It just doesn’t make sense that the UFC would book it, and fans have the right to be upset. The fans wanted to see Diaz and Poirier throw down for five rounds. Instead, the fans gets a fight they didn’t want, and the fight they did want to see in Shevchenko vs. Jedrzejczyk is no more. It’s just very disappointing. The UFC historically has been pretty good about booking fights the fans want to see, but in this situation, the UFC completely blew it, and the promotion will have no one to blame but itself when this card bombs on pay-per-view.
What are your thoughts on the new UFC 230 main event?
