The UFC is making noise again.
Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the UFC has been stubborn in trying to keep its operations going. Last month, the promotion continued with UFC Brasilia even if they had to do the event without an audience before it canceled its next two events because of the inability to find a U.S. venue.
Then came UFC 249, which was supposed to headline the much-awaited bout between Khabib Numragomedov and Tony Ferguson. Khabib got stuck in Dagestan because of the lockdown but the UFC got a replacement in Justin Gaethje. White then found a venue in the Tachi Palace Resort Casino but at the last minute, he was told to stand down by his business partners.
Despite canceling UFC 249, White did not stop his idea of securing a private island to hold UFC events. Last week, a list of possible fights for a May 9, 2020 event circulated. White was appointed to an economy panel by the U.S. president and the UFC applied for trademarks that are fueling speculation.
According to Brett Okamoto of ESPN, the UFC is seriously eyeing May 9th as MMA’s return to action. The UFC was supposed to have an event on May 9th in Brazil. Instead, UFC President Dana White is using the former UFC 251 schedule as the date for his UFC Fight Island debut and he has merged some of the big bouts of both UFC 249 and 250 into a single mammoth fight card.
The report said that the aborted Tony Ferguson vs Justin Gaethje’s main event which was supposed to headline the April 18 event at the Tachi Palace Resort and Casino would be rescheduled for May 9th. The UFC 250 headliner of Amanda Nunes and Felicia Spencer would still take place and the bantamweight title fight between Henry Cejudo and Dominick Cruz will be the third title fight of the event.
The May 9 event will also reportedly feature Francis Ngnnou vs Jairzinho Rozenstruik plus Donald Cerrone vs Anthony Pettis among others. All of the fighters named have confirmed their willingness to fight on May 9th and although there is no formal announcement yet, this even is getting real as each day passes.
Last Tuesday, White was named to the panel on restarting the U.S. economy by President Donald Trump. Trump had already previously said that he wanted to see sports restart sooner in the United States amidst the Coronavirus pandemic.
Then on Friday, it was reported that the UFC’s parent company Zuffa had filed to trademark “Fight Island” and “UFC Fight Island” as a mixed martial arts competition as well as for branded goods such as jewelry and clothing. The report says that Zuffa has filed a total of 22 trademarks related to “Fight Island”.
The term Fight Island was born as the UFC was trying to look for a venue to host their UFC 249 event last April 18, 2020, which was originally booked for the Barclays Center in New York. White had secured the Tachi Palace Casino Resort in California for the event but the UFC’s partners in ESPN and Disney forced White to postpone the event due to health concerns.
With the rumors heating up, the betting gods have come up with opening odds for the bouts that are rumored to be happening on the fight card. Let’s take a look at the prominent fights that are reportedly in the works for May 9th:
This was supposed to be the main event of UFC 249. Ferguson was booked to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov but the UFC lightweight champion got stuck in Russia so the UFC managed to convince Gaethje to fight El Cucuy. The April 18, 2020 event was scrapped but the fight will reportedly take place on May 9th and it will be for the interim UFC lightweight title.
Ferguson made weight despite the fact that there was no more fight on April 18th. That could be a factor here because if the fight on May 9th, he could easily overtrain or could have peaked already. But we know that Ferguson is a beast who gets himself ready for any war. Gaethje is one of the most exciting fighters. He also has punching power but against a durable foe like Ferguson, I think that his style is tailor-made for El Cucuy. I like Ferguson’s odds here.
Prediction: Tony Ferguson
Nunes has been literally unstoppable inside the octagon. Not only does she have devastating knockout power, but her striking technique is also one of the best in the women’s game. Nunes has been the underdog in seven of 13 UFC bouts but she is 12-1 in those bouts and has won two world titles along the way. She was the underdog in her last fight and she put away Cris Cyborg in just 51 seconds.
Spencer had her unbeaten 8-0 record ended by Cris Cyborg last year. However, she bounced back to beat Zarah Fairn to earn a title shot against Nunes. Spencer would love to take Nunes to the mat and submit her. However, Nunes is so good on her feet and only been taken down twice in her last 10 bouts. I doubt if Spencer can attempt a takedown before Nunes lands a big shot on her.
Prediction: Amanda Nunes
Henry Cejudo was supposed to fight Jose Aldo at UFC 250 but Aldo decided to stay at home in Brazil for the quarantine. Cejudo called out former bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and the latter obliged. On paper, this is perhaps the best match of the entire event. However, Cruz has not fought since UFC 207 in December 2016 when he lost the belt to Cody Garbrandt.
Cejudo has proved to be a giant killer when he knocked out Dillashaw and Marlon Moraes. Triple C is an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling but it’s his improved striking that has brought him success as of late. Cruz is one of the best strikers in the bantamweight division. But I think that he has been out too long and is too old for Cejudo. If Cruz can defy the odds and fight like the Dominator of old, this will be an interesting fight. Chances are though that he’s over the hill and the younger Cejudo will pounce on him.
Prediction: Henry Cejudo
This is another fight from the aborted UFC 249 and should be an explosive bout between two heavy-handed heavyweights. He’s won his last three bouts by first-round knockout and in his last bout, the Predator floored Cain Velasquez with a shot that didn’t land 100%. That’s how powerful Ngannou is. Rozenstruik has nine knockouts in 10 wins. He has a background in boxing and kickboxing but is already 32 years old.
Sure, Rozenstruik busted Overeem’s lip like nothing we’ve seen before but prior to that, Reem was outstriking him and was on his way to dealing Rozenstruik with his first-ever loss had it not been for that late flurry which hurt Reem. I think Ngannou outboxes him and if the Predator avoids getting hit, he will knock out Rozenstruik very quickly.
Prediction: Francis Ngannou
This bout was targeted for UFC 250 and will be a rematch of their 2013 bout which saw Pettis win via knockout. Cerrone has gone on to have a successful UFC career since that fight and he earned a title challenge once. However, Cowboy has lost his last three bouts and although he still engages in exciting fights, this version of Cerrone is way past his prime already.
Anthony Pettis has also struggled since losing the belt. Showtime has won only four times in his last eight bouts and he is coming off a submission defeat at the hands of Carlos Diego Ferrera. Pettis has gone up and down the weight classes and has struggled to put up victories as of late, going 2-3 in his last five bouts. This is a pick ‘em fight and while Pettis has been stopped in his last five losses, I think Cowboy has faded more in the last couple of years.
Prediction: Pettis -120
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