With the UFC 264 Ceremonial Weigh-in officially complete, the path between fans and UFC 264 is all clear.
Earlier today, the official weigh-ins were held, and every fight will move forward as planned. You can find the full weigh-in results as well as the official UFC 264 Weigh-In Show here. Be sure to also check out our UFC 264 staff predictions to get you even more ready for tomorrow night’s blockbuster event.
Below, you can find the final face-offs of the combatants on the UFC 264 card along with a snapshot preview of each fight in the order they will occur tomorrow night.
Hu Yaozong vs. Alen Amedovski
Hu Yaozong entered the UFC as an undefeated prospect. The “problem” is that the undefeated record only consisted of three fights. Perhaps it was that lack of experience that caused the 26-year-old to lose his first two fights in the UFC.
Now, Yaozong will take on a fighter in the same position, an 0-2 record in an almost certain must-win situation to remain in the promotion. Here was the face-off of these two men as they prepare for the biggest fight of their careers on the biggest stage of the year.
Jerome Rivera vs. Zhalgas Zhumagulov
Between this fight and the opening fight, all four fighters have a combined record of 0-9 in the UFC. While that isn’t exactly the most hype-inducing stat, it can be when you consider that, not unlike the fighters opening the card, these two men are more than likely fighting for their UFC careers as well. The face-off between the two betrays the intensity and urgency of the occassion.
Omari Akhmedov vs. Brad Tavares
Now these are two men who are no strangers at all to winning in the UFC Octagon. Both men know what it’s like to be ranked in the UFC, and in fact, they are both experiencing it at present, with Akhmedov (#13) and Tavares (#15) both ranked in the middleweight division. A win here would boost the victor’s stock and their place in the rankings come next week. Check out the face-off between the two veterans below.
Jennifer Maia vs. Jessica Eye
Two top-10 flyweights going at it here for the first time, with both women knowing what it’s like to come up short to champion, Valentina Shevchenko. Neither woman has decided to settle for second place, and their road back to another title shot begins here at UFC 264.
Dricus du Plessis vs. Trevin Giles
Fresh off a UFC debut that saw Dricus du Plessis (15-2) pick up the KO victory over Markus Perez (14-2), he’ll now take on an even more advanced striker in Trevin “The Problem” Giles, who is on a three-fight win streak. Both men will bring impressive MMA records to this fight, but one of these two men will add a third loss to their numbers.
Ryan Hall vs. Ilia Topuria
Ryan Hall wants to serve as an example to his featherweight peers who he claims are avoiding tough fights. He wants to show that you can take high-risk fights and be rewarded for it instead of repeatedly turning down fights.
According to Hall, such fighters are the reason he has been so inactive throughout his UFC career, because he claims no one wants to fight him! This elite grappler is yet to lose in the UFC and is considered by many to be a legit world title threat down the line.
Meanwhile, Ilia Topuria believes Hall is overrated and will look to make the grappler regret deciding to accept this fight with him by the time their fight is over.
Niko Price vs. Michel Pereira
Michel Pereira has stated in the build-up to this fight that he is looking to steal the show and potentially take home Fight of the Night honors with Price. That’s a tall task given how deep this fight card is, but it’s not far-fetched for these two showstoppers to get it done. You can check out our fight preview for this explosive pairing right here and their intense face-off below.
Carlos Condit vs. Max Griffin
Carlos Condit has signed a new deal with the UFC just this week, so the beloved 19-year veteran of the sport still feels he has a lot to give at 37 years old, and his last two performances do not give the people any reason to doubt him. Max Griffin, however, has other plans in store for the legend, which involves Griffin playing the role of “Legend Killer” as he told MMA News recently. Will Griffin halt Condit’s rising momentum to build on his own two-fight winning streak?
Sean O’Malley vs. Kris Moutinho
The main card will kick off with “Suga” Sean O’Malley facing UFC newcomer Kris Moutinho, who is stepping in on short notice to make an appearance on “The Suga Show.” O’Malley believes that Moutinho is a worthy opponent, regardless of many critics saying otherwise. He also will look to outshine someone who he admits has served as a major inspiration to him, Conor McGregor, with both men competing on the same main card.
O’Malley thinks he’ll get it done with a second-round KO of Moutinho, but get this, Moutinho countered O’Malley with the same, yet much bolder prediction, with the newcomer also saying he will get the KO in the second round! During their face-off, Moutinho did not look rattled by O’Malley or the moment.
Irene Aldanda vs. Yana Kunitskaya
This is arguably the most slept-on fight on the entire card, as it features two fighters ranked within the top 5 of their division (women’s bantamweight). With a win, Kunitskaya hopes to face Miesha Tate next, but first, she has to get through the #4-ranked Irene Aldana.
Tai Tuivasa vs. Greg Hardy
“Bam Bam” Tuivasa reacted in complete and total dismay when he heard that Greg Hardy thinks his boxing is among the best in MMA. After taking aside some time to go on a rant against Derrick Lewis that included calling “The Black Beast” a fat, greasy, Popeyes-chicken lipped ex-con, Hardy will now turn his attention to the task at hand.
Tuivasa is now training out of AKA after being offered a “Fight Club” type brawl against former nemesis Justin Willis, so the Australian will likely be more prepared than ever to continue building momentum on his way to becoming the heavyweight prospect he was originally viewed as being.
Gilbert Burns vs. Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson
This one has been slightly under the radar, but it doesn’t get much higher level than this. Burns is ranked #2 in the welterweight division, with Wonderboy also ranked in the top 5 at #4. Wonderboy is bound and determined to earn a fight against champion Kamaru Usman, and he has stated this week that he “knows for a fact” that Burns won’t dare look to keep the fight standing with him.
Meanwhile, Burns will now have a chance to act on the fleeting impulse he had to attack Stephen Thompson two years ago, though there are no hard feelings today. Burns is also determined to scrap back to a title shot, though he concedes that if this fight is a title eliminator, then it would only be an opportunity for Thompson to earn the shot since Burns just unsuccessfully challenged for the world title in his previous fight.
Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor
There’s not much to say about this one that hasn’t already been said. Dustin Poirier has provided his prediction for how the fight will unfold, and of course, Conor McGregor has offered his as well. So much more has been said between these two: absentee charity donations, wife DMs, and the like. Tomorrow night, it’s finally time to fight. Here is the final staredown between tomorrow night’s headliners.
And we would be remiss if we did not provide you with the final words of these two combatants one night prior to their trilogy bout for legacy.
You can catch the full video of UFC 264 Ceremonial Weigh-In below!
Be sure to keep it locked right here on MMA News tomorrow for live, ongoing coverage of the UFC 264 blockbuster including highlights and results! And also be sure to follow our Twitter page for live tweets throughout all the action!
