UFC 318 is in the books, meaning attention will soon turn to the mixed martial arts leader’s next pay-per-view offering, UFC 319 in Chicago, Illinois.
The promotion was in New Orleans last week, where the Smoothie King Center played host to a number of intriguing matchups for its seventh numbered event of the year. Of note were headline wins for Max Holloway and Paulo Costa, as well as a retirement celebration for Dustin Poirier and important victories for Daniel Rodriguez, Patricio Pitbull, and Michael Johnson.
While the aftermath of the July 19 card is currently the talk of the town, it won’t be long until focus sways to the next PPV, and from the BMFs to the middleweight championship conversation.
At UFC 319, which takes place at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 16, Dricus Du Plessis will put his middleweight title on the line against Khamzat Chimaev. Du Plessis originally won the belt from Sean Strickland at UFC 297 and has retained the gold against Israel Adesanya and Strickland, respectively, at UFC 305 and UFC 312. Chimaev earned this title shot off a violent finish of former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 last year.
During the main card's announcement at UFC 318, there was no listed co-main event. That is still the case as of publication time.
Neal, Cannonier, Elliott Set The Stage For Middleweight Title Headliner At UFC 319
Before Du Plessis and Chimaev make their way out for the middleweight title fight, several names will look to make their own statements on the main card for UFC 319.
This includes Geoff Neal, who will be doing battle with the rising welterweight contender Carlos Prates. Neal snapped a two-fight skid his last time out, scoring a TKO win over Rafael dos Anjos in 90 seconds due to injury. Prates, of the Fighting Nerds, will look to rebound following his April loss to Paddy Pimblett -- the first loss in Prates' UFC run.
Former middleweight title challenger Jared Cannonier will also be in action, taking on Michael "Venom" Page. Like Neal, Cannonier also snapped a two-fight skid his last time out, finishing Gregory "Robocop" Rodrigues in February. MVP returned to middleweight in his most recent fight, scoring a decision over Shara Magomedov at UFC Saudi Arabia in February.
The main card is scheduled to open with Tim Elliott taking on Kai Asakura in a battle of former flyweight title challengers. This will be Elliott's first fight in over a year-and-a-half due to injury. Elliott most recently fought in a bantamweight bout in December 2023, submitting Su Mudaerji. Asakura, the former RIZIN bantamweight champion, challenged Alexandre Pantoja for the flyweight title in his UFC debut at UFC 310, losing via submission.
Those pairings have currently gotten the nod to feature on the main card over the likes of King Green, Jessica Andrade, and Edson Barboza, all of whom are expected to be featured players on the event's preliminary card.
See below for the UFC 319 lineup, as it stands.
Main Card:
- Middleweight Championship: Dricus Du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev
- TBA Weight Class: TBA vs. TBA
- Welterweight: Geoff Neal vs. Carlos Prates
- Middleweight: Jared Cannonier vs. Michael Page
- Flyweight: Tim Elliott vs. Kai Asakura
Preliminary Card (Bout Order TBA):
- Lightweight: King Green vs. Diego Ferreira
- Middleweight: Gerald Meerschaert vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk
- Women's Strawweight: Jessica Andrade vs. Loopy Godinez
- Lightweight: Chase Hooper vs. Alexander Hernandez
- Lightweight: Edson Barboza vs. Drakkar Klose
- Middleweight: Bryan Battle vs. Nursulton Ruziboev
- Women's Flyweight: Karine Silva vs. JJ Aldrich