UFC Fight Night preview: Will former champ Woodley bounce back?
Need-to-know info
Date: Saturday, May 30
Time: Prelims - 6:00 p.m. ET
Main Card - 9:00 p.m. ET
Venue: UFC Apex, Las Vegas
TV: Prelims - ESPN (U.S.), TSN (Canada)
Main Card - ESPN+ (U.S.), TSN (Canada)
Woodley vs. Burns - Welterweight headliner
Former welterweight champion Tyron Woodley will look to avoid the first set of back-to-back losses in his career when he faces rising contender Gilbert Burns.
Woodley (19-4-1) hasn't competed since a unanimous decision loss to Kamaru Usman at UFC 235 where he surrendered his 170-pound title. That setback snapped the 38-year-old's seven-fight unbeaten streak.
It will have been 455 days since that fight when Woodley steps into the cage Saturday, which is the second-longest layoff of his UFC career. "The Chosen One" was slated to face Leon Edwards at UFC London in March, but that event was canceled due to the coronavirus.
Burns (18-3) heads into this main event on a five-fight win streak, including a first-round TKO victory over Demian Maia at UFC Brasilia back in March. "Durinho" has been far more active than Woodley, having competed three times since his opponent's last fight.
The 33-year-old is teammates with Usman, who dominated Woodley in his last fight. The Sanford MMA product boasts eight career wins by submission, so look for Burns to try to get this fight to the ground.
Ivanov vs. Sakai - Heavyweight co-main event
A pair of juggernauts clash in the co-main event as former WSOF heavyweight champion Blagoy Ivanov squares off against Augusto Sakai.
Ivanov (18-3) is coming off a split-decision loss to Derrick Lewis at UFC 244 in November that halted his two-fight win streak. The 33-year-old has gone 2-2 during his UFC tenure but has never lost two straight fights in his career.
Sakai (14-1-1) will look to win his sixth straight fight. The 29-year-old made quick work of Marcin Tybura in his last bout at UFC Vancouver, knocking out the Polish fighter in just 59 seconds.
The Brazilian heavyweight has finished four of his last five opponents and has only gone the distance four times in his 16-fight career.
Dern vs. Cifers - Women's strawweight bout
Jiu-jitsu champion Mackenzie Dern will look to rebound from her first career loss when she battles Hannah Cifers in a 115-pound matchup.
Dern (7-1) had a seven-fight unbeaten streak snapped in her last bout, losing a decision to Amanda Ribas at UFC Tampa in November. Prior to that setback, the 27-year-old picked up back-to-back UFC wins over Ashley Yoder and Amanda Cooper.
The California native is competing for the second time since giving birth to her baby girl, Moa, in June 2019.
Cifers (10-4) is coming off a TKO loss to Angela Hill at UFC Raleigh back in January that snapped her two-fight win streak. The 27-year-old is currently 2-2 in the Octagon.
"Shockwave" is the biggest betting underdog in the event and will hope to avoid losing two consecutive fights for the first time in her career.
Main Card
- Tyron Woodley vs. Gilbert Burns - Welterweight
- Blagoy Ivanov vs. Augusto Sakai - Heavyweight
- Roosevelt Roberts vs. Brok Weaver - Lightweight
- Mackenzie Dern vs. Hannah Cifers - Strawweight
- Billy Quarantillo vs. Spike Carlyle - 150-pound catchweight
Prelims
- Katlyn Chookagian vs. Antonina Shevchenko - Flyweight
- Daniel Rodriguez vs. Gabriel Green - Welterweight
- Jamahal Hill vs. Klidson Abreu - Light heavyweight
- Tim Elliott vs. Brandon Royval - Flyweight
- Casey Kenney vs. Louis Smolka - Bantamweight
- Chris Gutierrez vs. Vince Morales - Featherweight