Just from the title, one could think it is an exaggeration but trust me, It is not. First off, UFC 259 will be headlined by two champions clashing, Israel Adesanya will attempt two become a two division champion and will fight a dangerous and current Light-Heavyweight Champion, Jan Błachowicz.
Adesanya is one of the biggest UFC stars right now, undefeated and has finished guys like Robert Whittaker and Paulo Costa in a striking clinic. Meanwhile, Blachowicz had one of those career revivals. From losing to Thiago Santos, Patrick Cummins and Alexander Gustafsson, who would have thought he would be the next champion after Jon Jones.
Blachowicz thrives when he is the underdog, he was the underdog against Corey Anderson and Dominick Reyes and he knocked them both out. He will still likely be the underdog in his title defense fight, Adesanya should not overlook the Polish power.
This is not the only title fight in the card, there are still two more that will fight. The Women’s MMA GOAT, Amanda Nunes will defend her crown once more against Megan Anderson. Nunes will be expected as a heavy favorite but anything can happen, will we see another upset of the ages?
Every time Nunes fight, it is a treat to watch. She always shows a better version of herself even though she is just levels above her opponents. Will Megan Anderson have a Holly Holm like moment where she will give a huge upset in Women’s MMA or will Nunes continue to add names on her all-time great career?
There is one more title fight that fans have been looking forward to in a long time. It is Petr Yan’s first title defense and it is against Aljamain Sterling. The UFC bantamweight division is one of the most talent stacked division in the organization and the fight itself is a toss up. Sterling certainly has better names in his resume compared to Petr Yan even though he is the champion.
With these three fights alone could another PPV card, it could easily be two PPV cards combined into one. That is just how stacked it is and we have not yet even gone through how good the other fights are.
These three fights are a must see fight for any MMA fans. Title fights are always a must see since fighters either have a lot to lose or have a lot to gain. There can only be one king or queen in each division.
Khabib’s teammate, Islam Makhachev will also be fighting in this card against Drew Dober. Many top contenders have ducked Islam due to him being a high risk-low reward fight. Fighting him basically means either maintaining your rank or losing your rank.
Khabib has said that Islam will be the next UFC lightweight champion, and AKA has said one of the only few teammates that could match Khabib during their training which is really impressive. Although Drew Dober is a legit contender as well, and Islam should not look past him.
Islam was to fight supposedly Rafael Dos Anjos but pulled out. Instead he was rebooked to fight Drew Dober. Islam has yet to face a top 10 contender, a win against Dober could potentially propel him to fight higher ranked fighters.
In the main card opener, it will feature a great light-heavyweight bout as Thiago Santos attempt to get back in the winning column and will face top rising prospect Alexander Rakic. Santos was a former title challenger where he had a close decision fight against Jon Jones. Santos also has a win over current champion, Jan Blachowicz.
Alexander Rakic is talented prospect who had landed a brutal knockout win against Jimi Manuwa. Both fighters are talented strikers so people should expect a great back and forth, probably a highlight reel knockout.
You know the card is stacked when Dominick Cruz is on the preliminary card. He will be fighting rising contender Casey Kenney. Cruz is in the argument as one of the greatest bantamweights of all time but has been inactive this past few years due to injuries. His last two fights against Cody Garbrandt and Henry Cejudo were for title but lost.
Some fan friendly names are also in the card. Guys like Joseph Benavidez and Askarov are also in it. If the card is intact and happens as scheduled, we might potentially see one of the best UFC cards of all time.
