While it might not do blockbuster business, next weekend’s UFC 209 is a huge card for hardcore MMA fans. Headlined by a pair of very intriguing title fights, the card also includes lots of fan favorites, and several of the highly regarded prospects on the roster at the moment. The most important event will be the welterweight title rematch between Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson. Their battle on the huge UFC 205 card proven to be a much better competition than many anticipated, ending in a majority draw. Woodley had the far more demonstrative moments in the fight during the first and fourth rounds. However, Thompson was able to back him against the cage for long stretches of the middle rounds, and although he didn’t accomplish much once there he took these rounds. The fifth saw Thompson open on a weary Woodley and end the fight on a strong note, but it had been only enough to get him back flat on two scorecards. As Woodley and Thompson did at UFC 205, the co-main occasion could steal the show as well. The interim lightweight title bout between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson features two of those fighters in the division who’ve taken the long road to their name shots. Nurmagomedov is currently 8-0 within the Octagon and 24-0 entire in his career. He’s been exploited for big things since entering the UFC, and after overcoming a rash of serious injuries, eventually seems always fit and is favored to win the belt on March 4th. Ferguson has witnessed his own bumps in the road on the way for this particular shot. After winning the 13th year of’The Ultimate Fighter’ back in 2011, he also scored three consecutive wins. He dropped a decision to Michael Johnson in 2012 that only stopped his sanity for an instant. Ever since that time, he has reeled off nine consecutive wins against the likes of Rafael dos Anjos, Edson Barboza, and Josh Thomson, always putting on must-see fights. The combination of both Nurmagomedov’s dominance and Ferguson’s high-paced, all-action approach creates their bout of the best bookings at the UFC in some time, and almost makes you forget that there’s a guy out there holding the UFC lightweight name who seems to have no desire to defend it. The main card of UFC 209 also features a heavyweight rematch between Alistair Overeem and Mark Hunt. The two fought DREAM back in 2008 under far different conditions. Overeem was just beginning his transformation to Ubereem, while Hunt’s devotion to the game was about in line with Mario Yamasaki’s want to prevent fights on time. Both guys are much different fighters in this time, as Overeem has embraced a much more conservative style and Hunt has rounded out his game significantly. In their first fight, Overeem immediately took Hunt down and submitted him, but we have not seen too much of his offensive grappling game lately. Will this battle mark its return, or will the K-1 Grand Prix champions engage on the toes? Rounding out the most important card, former light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans makes his long-awaited middleweight debut against the constantly surprising Dan Kelly. The currently 37-year-old Evans is 2-4 in his last six, and hasn’t won a fight since 2013. Kelly, despite turning 40 after this season, has impressed in his UFC conduct — although the level of competition was a far cry from what Evans could have offered within his prime — going 5-1 despite being the betting underdog in each of his UFC outings. Finally, one of the rising stars at lightweight gets another opportunity to flaunt his striking, but from a technical perspective this may be his stiffest test yet about the feet. Lando Vannata stormed into the UFC, nearly upsetting Tony Ferguson on brief notice in his introduction, and then scoring the popular choice for 2016’s knockout of this year against John Makdessi. He’ll be confronting an underrated opponent in David Teymur, with a set of TKO wins on his UFC resume after breaking into the organization via TUF. The undercard also has some fights to keep your eyes on, as undefeated prospects Mirsad Bektic, Luke Sanders, Paul’The Bear Jew’ Craig, and Tyson Pedro create their returns. Both have been paired using a light heavyweight division which desperately requires fighters to rise up the rankings. Meanwhile, Bektic and Sanders face their stiffest professional evaluations against Darren Elkins and Iuri Alcantara, respectively.
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