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🥊 History Awaits
🥊 History Awaits
Welcome to this week’s edition of The Fight With Teddy Atlas Newsletter, your one-stop shop for all things combat sports related, brought to you by Teddy and The Fight team.
Every Friday We Bring You:
A combat sports news digest with all the headlines you need to know from Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts.
Highlights from the podcast and across the fight world.
Fight times and information you need to know ahead of time.
How to’s and tips for Boxing from Teddy himself.
Fight News From Around The 🌍
A Landmark Event
The UFC will reach the next big checkpoint in its long and illustrious history tomorrow night, as UFC 300 comes around, headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill.
Over 12 current and former champions will be competing across the whole card, alongside a host of other talented fighters, in what will hopefully be a historic event that truly lives up to the hype.
The main event sees Pereira make his first attempt at a defense of the light heavyweight title he won against Jiri Prochazka back in November, when he joined the exclusive club of fighters to hold two belts in the organisation (albeit not simultaneously this time).
Hill, a former champ before being forced to vacate due to injury, will look to become only the third fighter (alongside Randy Couture and Jon Jones) to ever regain the Light-heavyweight crown.
Having never lost the title in the octagon, he’ll have an extra point to prove against Pereira, who himself will likely have an extra edge due to the fact that the person Hill beat to win the title last year is his long time friend and mentor, Glover Teixeira.
As far as main events go, UFC 300 has been blessed with a truly great headliner between two fighters who are the absolute definition of champions.
Chinese Pride On The Line
Strawweight champion Zhang Weili takes on her compatriot Yan Xiaonan across 5 rounds.
We only saw Zhang once last year which in what turned out to be her second successful title defense. Despite losing twice to Rose Namajunas in the space of a year, she’s since rallied and not only decisively beaten the woman who dethroned Rose (Carla Esparza), but on to further defend her crown.
Yan steps up for her first title fight fresh off two wins, including a clinical knockout over former champ Jessica Andrade.
Now, on what is arguably the biggest stage the UFC has put on, she gets her chance to take the title from not only the best strawweight in the world but one of China’s greatest-ever fighters.
It’ll be a tall task, as Zhang is supremely technical, powerful and well-rounded. Yan herself is no slouch, and we’ll see if she has what it takes to overcome adversity (both have had two relatively recent back-to-back losses) and win the title.
The Battle Of The Baddest
If you go back through UFC history, you’ll be hard-pressed to find two fighters who are more universally loved by the fans than Justin Gaethje and Max Holloway.
In a fight that would be more than worthy of a main event in itself, these two will face off for the sometimes maligned but undoubtedly entertaining BMF title, won and held by the baddest fighter in the organisation.
In avenging his defeat to Dustin Poirier in brutal fashion, Justin Gaethje proved himself more than worthy of the title.
Not that he needed that fight to prove it, as this is a man who has either won Performance of the Night or been involved in the Fight of the Night in 9 of his 12 UFC fights.
Whilst he hasn’t held a full title (yet), there is no doubt that Justin Gaethje has cemented his place in UFC history as one of its most entertaining and brave warriors.
Max Holloway would also be on that list.
Since making his debut back in 2012, “Blessed” has conquered the featherweight division, giving us fantastic fights and highlight reel performances along the way.
Never one to duck a challenge, he is making a second attempt at moving up to 155 lbs, proving once again why he is so universally loved across the fight world.
Whatever happens tomorrow night, neither one of these fighters will have to worry about their stock rising or falling, as they have both already cemented themselves as modern-day legends of the sport.
Rest Of The Card
Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan
Bo Nickal vs. Cody Brundage
Jiřà Procházka vs. Aleksandar Rakić
Calvin Kattar vs. Aljamain Sterling
Holly Holm vs. Kayla Harrison
Sodiq Yussuf vs. Diego Lopes
Jalin Turner vs. Renato Moicano
JĂ©ssica Andrade vs. Marina Rodriguez
Jim Miller vs. Bobby Green
Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Cody Garbrandt
Teddy’s Top Picks
Fight ⏰ for this weekend
Boxing: Gill vs Barrett (Saturday 13th/Sunday 14th)
🇺🇸 Full Card: 2pm Eastern/ 11am Pacific | Main Event: 5pm Eastern/ 2pm Pacific
🇬🇧 Full Card: 7pm| Main Event: 10pm
🇦🇺 Full Card: 4am Eastern/ 2am Western | Main event: 7am Eastern/ 5am Western
Boxing: Anderson vs Merhy (Saturday 13th/Sunday 14th)
🇺🇸 Full Card: 9pm Eastern/ 6pm Pacific | Main Event: 11pm Eastern/ 8pm Pacific
🇬🇧 Full Card: 2am | Main Event: 4am
🇦🇺 Full Card: 11am Eastern/ 9am Western | Main event: 1pm Eastern/ 11am Western
MMA: UFC 300 (Saturday 13th/Sunday 14th)
🇺🇸 Full Card: 8pm Eastern/5pm Pacific | Main Event: 10pm Eastern/7pm Pacific
🇬🇧 Full Card: 1am | Main Card: 3am
🇦🇺 Full Card: 10am Eastern/ 8am Western | Main event: 12pm Eastern/ 10am Western