UFC 300: What to know about showcase event in Las Vegas
UFC 300, a showcase event marking the 300th pay-per-view (PPV) telecast of the sport, takes place April 13 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Former champions and MMA legends will be stepping foot in the ring and two titles are on the line.
UFC 300 main card will be available via PPV at 7 p.m., MST, while the early preliminaries will be available on ESPN and ESPN+ at 3 p.m., and preliminaries on those platforms at 5 p.m.
Here's a rundown of the matchups for the event:
Main Card
Main Event: Alex Pereira vs. Jamaal Hill
Headlining the main card are Alex Pereira (9-2) and Jamaal Hill (12-1). Pereira looks to defend his light heavyweight belt against the former titleholder, as Pereira earned the title back in November after knocking out Jiri Prochazka. Last year, Hill was forced to vacate the title after suffering a torn Achilles playing basketball.
Hill isn't afraid to share his thoughts on the matchup, which he feels is one-sided.
“I feel like I’m just better,” Hill told SBNation. “I’ve said it in multiple interviews and people just don’t believe me. I’m truly just better than he is, period. That’s just the way it is. I’m better than him everywhere. And I don’t wanna keep saying it. I just wanna get out there and show it. Yeah. It’s not gonna go well, friend.”
Co-Main Event: Zhang Weili vs. Yan Xiaonan
As the UFC's first Chinese-born champion, Zhang Weili (24-3) has won three in a row and is looking to defend her women's strawweight title once again. She'll be facing Yan Xiaonan (17-3), who's won eight of her past 10 fights. Yan was the first Chinese women's fighter to be signed by the UFC in 2017.
Justin Gaethje vs. Max Holloway
Max Holloway (25-7) will fight Justin Gaethje (26-4) in a lightweight bout at UFC 300, and he has no regrets on the decision. At UFC 298, Ilia Topuria knocked out featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski in the second round, claiming the belt. Due to Volkanovski's past and work ethic, Holloway feared that the former champion would get another shot at the belt and his opportunity at the featherweight title would pass by. He accepted a bout with Gaethje for the BMF title.
"You wait in this sport, the sport goes by you, and it goes by you quick," Holloway said on his YouTube channel. "I am blessed with the opportunity to be in this situation with Justin Gaethje."
Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan
One of the more anticipated fights of UFC 300 is the matchup between Charles Oliveira (34-9) and Arman Tsarukyan (21-3). The winner of the lightweight bout between Oliveira and Tsarukyan will become the No. 1 contender for champion Islam Makhachev, who's expected to return in the summer after recovering from an injury.
Bo Nickal vs. Cody Brundage
Undefeated middleweight prospect Bo Nickal (5-0) is scheduled to face Cody Brundage (10-5) at UFC 300. Although Brundage is just 10-5 in his career — 4-4 in the UFC — he is likely to give Nickal his toughest matchup yet. Nickal has never seen the second round in his young career.
Prelims
Jiří Procházka (29-4-1) vs. Aleksander Rakić (14-3) - Light Heavyweight
Calvin Kattar (23-7) vs. Aljamain Sterling (23-4) - Featherweight
Holly Holm (15-6) vs. Kayla Harrison (Debut) - Women's Bantamweight
Sodiq Yusuff (13-3) vs. Diego Lopes (23-6) - Featherweight
Early Prelims
Jalin Turner (14-7) vs. Renato Moicano (18-5-1) - Lightweight
Jéssica Andrade (25-12) vs. Marina Rodriguez (17-3-2) - Women's Strawweight
Bobby Green (31-15-1) vs. Jim Miller (31-17) - Lightweight
Deiveson Figueiredo (22-3-1) vs. Cody Garbrandt (14-5) - Bantamweight
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: UFC 300's must-watch event, a preview
