UFC will present mid-week action on Wednesday, providing a 14-fight card from the morning into the afternoon for North American timezones. Headlining the “Fight Night” card is a welterweight bout between Michael Chiesa and Neil Magny.
Here’s a preview of the full card, which is set to happen at the Etihad Arena in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Click here to skip to a preview of the main card.
Preliminary Card (9:00AM EST / 6:00PM GST) (ESPN / UFC Fight Pass Canada)
Bout 1: Victoria Leonardo (8-2) vs. Manon Fiorot (5-1) (Flyweight)
A double debut will kick off the show, as Victoria Leonardo will fight Manon Fiorot. Leonardo earned her UFC contract in November, defeating Chelsea Hackett with ground and pound on “Dana White’s Contender Series.” Leonardo joined the UFC following a few years in regional promotion Invicta FC.
Fiorot enters the UFC following a five-fight win streak on the regional scene. Fiorot has claimed two belts in the past two years, becoming the EFC and UAE Warriors Flyweight Champion.
Bout 2: Umar Nurmagomedov (12-0) vs. Sergey Morozov (16-3) (Bantamweight)
After numerous setbacks stopped Umar Nurmagomedov from making his UFC debut in 2020, he will get that fight in early 2021 against Sergey Morozov. The fight for Nurmagomedov comes after three cancelled bouts in 2020 for various reasons.
Nurmagomedov enters the UFC after a 12-fight undefeated run. His last fight was in late 2019, where he defeated Braian Gonzalez on a GFC card.
Morozov will also make his UFC debut on the card. He joins the promotion following a hot streak of wins in M-1 from 2018 to 2019. After becoming the M-1 Bantamweight Champion in 2019, Morozov defended the belt once before signing with the UFC.
Bout 3: Mike Davis (8-2) vs. Mason Jones (10-0) (Lightweight)
Former two-division Cage Warriors champ Mason Jones will get a start to his UFC career on Wednesday when he fights Mike Davis. Jones’ undefeated run on the regional scene reached new levels in 2020, as he defeated Joe McColgan and Adam Proctor to become Cage Warriors’ 155 and 170-pound champion.
Davis returns after earning his first UFC victory in 2019. Davis’ last fight was against Thomas Gifford, where he stopped him in the final minute with punches.
Bout 4: Jerome Rivera (10-3) vs. Francisco Figueiredo (11-3-1) (Flyweight)
Francisco Figueiredo, the brother of current UFC Flyweight Champion Deiveson Figueiredo, will compete in the UFC for the first time on Wednesday. He joins the promotion after attaining a record of 11 wins, three losses and one draw (his most recent fight) on the regional scene.
He fights Rivera, who looks to bounce back after losing his UFC debut in 2020 to Tyson Nam.
Bout 5: Dalcha Lungiambula (10-2) vs. Markus Perez (12-4) (Middleweight)
Both aiming to return to the win column, Dalcha Lungiambula and Markus Perez will compete on the undercard.
Lungiambula took his first loss in the UFC in November of 2019, as Magomed Ankalaev stopped him with a front kick in the third round of a bout. Before then, Ankalaev had a stoppage win against Dequan Townsend.
Perez is currently on a two-fight losing streak. His last fight was in October of 2020, where Dricus Du Plessis stopped him in the first round with strikes.
Perez takes the place of Isi Fitikefu, who withdrew from the fight in early 2020.
Bout 6: Su Mudaerji (13-4) vs. Zarrukh Adashev (3-2) (Flyweight)
Riding a two-fight win streak, Su Muderji will fight Zarrukh Adashev on the prelims. Su earned his first stoppage UFC win in November, stopping Malcolm Gordon within a minute with strikes.
Adashev will compete following a loss in his UFC debut over the summer. Adashev took a short-notice fight in June of 2020, replacing Jeff Molina in a fight against Tyson Nam. The fight didn’t go Adashev’s way, as he was stopped in 32 seconds.
Bout 7: Ricky Simon (16-3) vs. Gaetano Pirrello (15-5-1) (Bantamweight)
With a COVID-19 test taking Brian Kelleher out of a fight against Ricky Simon, Gaetano Pirrello has filled his spot on the prelims. Pirrello enters the UFC following two stoppage victories in the past two years as a pro.
Simon won in his last fight, defeating Ray Borg via split decision in May of 2020. He has been booked to fight Kelleher twice since then, although both bookings have fallen through.
Bout 8: Omari Akhmedov (20-5-1) vs. Tom Breese (12-2) (Middleweight)
A fight between Omari Akhmdeov and Tom Breese will conclude the eight-fight preliminary card.
Akhmedov had a three-fight win streak broken in August, as he dropped a decision to Chris Weidman.
Breese won his last fight, defeating UFC newcomer KB Bhullar in the second minute of the fight.
Main Card (12:00PM EST / 9:00PM GST) (ESPN / UFC Fight Pass Canada)
Bout 9: Lerone Murphy (9-0-1) vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade (26-3) (Featherweight)
Both returning from a win, Lerone Murphy and Douglas Silva de Andrade will compete in the first fight of the main card.
Murphy earned his first UFC win in July, defeating Ricardo Ramos within a round with strikes. His previous fight, his UFC debut, was a scorecard draw against Zubaira Tukhugov.
Silva de Andrade’s last fight was not as recent as Murphy’s. He last won in November of 2019, where he picked up a decision victory over Renan Barao.
Bout 10: Tyson Nam (20-11-1) vs. Matt Schnell (14-5) (Flyweight)
After having two bouts between Tyson Nam and Matt Schnell cancelled in 2020, a fight between the flyweights has finally landed on a card in January.
Nam enters the fight with the momentum of a strong 2020. Despite losing a fight to start the year, Nam went on to earn two stoppage victories in the year, defeating Zarrukh Adashev and Jerome Rivera.
Schnell returns after having his last slew of wins stopped in his most recent fight. A four-fight win streak for Schnell that spanned from 2017 to 2019 was concluded in December of 2019, as Alexandre Pantoja stopped him in the first round with strikes. Now he looks to return to winning ways.
Bout 11: Roxanne Modafferi (25-17) vs. Viviane Araujo (9-2) (Flyweight)
Rising flyweight Viviane Araujo will get a hard test on Wednesday, as she will fight veteran Roxanne Modafferi on the main card. Araujo has had a strong UFC run since joining the promotion in 2019. She faced her first promotional loss in 2019 to Jessica Eye, but has since bounced back with a victory over Montana De La Rosa.
Modafferi won her last fight, defeating Andrea Lee via decision in September. Her prior fight was a scorecard loss to Lauren Murphy.
Bout 12: Ike Villanueva (16-11) vs. Vinicius Moreira (9-4) (Light Heavyweight)
Both looking for their first UFC victory, Ike Villanueva and Vinicius Moreira will compete on the main card. Villanueva has lost two fights since joining the UFC in 2020, being stopped by Chase Sherman and Jordan Wright.
Moreira has lost three fights via the first-round stoppage in 2019. His last fight was in September of 2019, where Paul Craig submitted him with a rear naked choke.
Bout 13: Warlley Alves (13-4) vs. Mounir Lazzez (10-1) (Welterweight)
After winning his UFC debut in July, Mounir Lazzez has been matched against Warlley Alves in the co-main event of the card.
Lazzez won his last fight, defeating Abdul Razak Alhassan via decision. His entrance into the UFC came after wins in high-level regional promotions like Brave CF and UAE Warriors. He has a first-round stoppage win in 2019 over now-UFC fighter Sasha Palatnikov.
Alves lost his last fight, being caught in a second-round triangle choke by Randy Brown in November of 2019.
Bout 14: Michael Chiesa (16-4) vs. Neil Magny (24-7) (Welterweight)
Ranked welterweights Michael Chiesa and Neil Magny will headline the show on Saturday. The fight between Chiesa and Magny wasn’t the UFC’s first option for a main event, although it inherited that spot after COVID-19 took Khamzat Chimaev out of a fight against Leon Edwards.
Chiesa rides the momentum of a three-fight win streak from the past three years. The most recent of his trio of wins was a 2020 decision win over Rafael dos Anjos. The fight on Saturday will be Chiesa’s second which is set for five rounds. The other, a 2017 fight against Kevin Lee, only lasted a round before Chiesa was finished.
Similar to Chiesa, Magny enters the fight after three-straight wins. The difference, however, is that Magny has picked up his three wins in the past year. Since March, Magny has defeated Li Jingliang, Anthony Rocco Martin and Robbie Lawler.
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