UFC is starting the year 2021 with a bang, the first month of January has big fights scheduled. If all fighters stay healthy, the UFC will have such a nice start for the year. UFC fans are in for a treat for sure.
The first big fight is the return of the former featherweight champion Max Holloway. He is fighting top featherweight contender Calvin Kattar. Holloway’s last 2 fights were against Alexander Volkanovski where he lost the belt and failed to recapture it as well. When asked, Holloway thought that he won the fight and the judge’s decisions were a mistake.
The Blessed Express returns!
🚂 @BlessedMMA meets @CalvinKattar in the main event of Jan 16! pic.twitter.com/1x2aZaQLF1
— UFC (@ufc) November 17, 2020
If Kattar somehow beats Holloway, he will surely skyrocket to a title shot. A win over Holloway will make him the #1 Contender of the division. With a report that Brian Ortega is looking to fight Alexander Volkanovski after his impressive performance against the Korean Zombie. The winner of Holloway vs Kattar is likely the next title contender.
It is a very important fight for the division, considering the other contenders are either coming off a loss or have been inactive for a while. Zabit Magomedsharipov and Yair Rodriguez were scheduled to fight a couple of times but has failed to happen. One of the big prospects of the division is Zabit but many think that he lacks the endurance to go to the championship rounds. He is yet to prove the doubters wrong.
Another fight that many fans are excited about is Khamzat Chimaev vs Leon Edwards rebooked on January 20, 2021. It was supposed to be booked as the main event for the last fight card of the year 2020 but failed to happen due to Edwards testing positive for COVID.
Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev are heading to Fight Island 🏝
The main event for Jan. 20 was revealed in a graphic on Dana White's Instagram Story. pic.twitter.com/QmRvOlBE9T
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 22, 2020
It will be the test for Khamzat Chimaev whether he belongs in the UFC. Many UFC fighters are picking Leon Edwards as he has proved time and time that he is the real deal. He was supposed to face Tyron Woodley which a win over would have gotten him the title shot since Gilbert Burns is now the current title contender.
Leon Edwards is looking to end the biggest hype train which is Khamzat Chimaev. Meanwhile, Chimaev is ready to smash everyone in the welterweight division and is also looking at the middleweight division as well. One of the biggest breakout UFC stars for the year 2020 is Khamzat Chimaev. He has gained a mass of followers even surpassing top contenders of the UFC.
Khamzat Chimaev has gained tons of following due to his wanting to fight mentality. He broke a lot of UFC records in just his first year in the UFC. After his UFC debut, he did a quick turnaround by fighting in the next fight card, which made Dana White took interest in the Chechen fighter.
The last big fight for January is probably the biggest since Mcgregor is returning in the Octagon once more. Whenever Mcgregor is in the card, it will surely generate huge PPV numbers. He is without a doubt the biggest UFC star ever and is still gaining more followers.
Conor Mcgregor is fighting Dustin Poirier for the second time but in the lightweight division. Both fighters previously had an encounter during the featherweight run where Mcgregor got the best of the fight. Mcgregor is looking to become a 2-time lightweight champion but no announcement from the UFC whether they will strip Khabib.
One month til we run it back. #UFC257 pic.twitter.com/X0tvbJpP3g
— UFC (@ufc) December 23, 2020
The fight is the first PPV card for the UFC. It is numbered as the UFC 257 and is booked for January 24, 2021. The whole fight card is not that stacked but whenever Mcgregor fights, it surely will be a successful card.
