UFC® 259 HEADLINED BY THREE THRILLING
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOUTS
FEATURED BOUTS:
(C) UFC vs. (C-MW) ISRAEL ADESANYA
(C) AMANDA NUNES vs. MEGAN ANDERSON
(C) PETR YAN vs. (#1) ALJAMAIN STERLING
UFC® 259: BŁACHOWICZ vs. ADESANYA AT UFC APEX AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY ON ESPN+ PAY-PER-VIEW
UFC® delivers its most stacked Pay-Per-View event of 2021 so far, headlined by a trio of world championship bouts. Newly crowned UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz makes his first title defense against UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, who aims to become only the fifth fighter to simultaneously hold belts in two UFC weight classes. Two-division titleholder Amanda Nunes puts her UFC featherweight championship on the line against talented striker Megan Anderson. Plus, UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan looks to take out surging No. 1 contender Aljamain Sterling.
UFC® 259: BŁACHOWICZ vs. ADESANYA will take place Saturday, March 6 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas and will stream live on Pay-Per-View, exclusively through ESPN+ in the U.S. at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT in both English and Spanish.
ESPN+ is the exclusive provider of all UFC Pay-Per-View events to fans in the U.S. as part of an agreement announced in 2019.
Fans will be able to purchase UFC® 259: BŁACHOWICZ vs. ADESANYA online at ESPNPlus.com/PPV or on the ESPN App on mobile and connected-TV devices. ESPN+ is available as an integrated part of the ESPN App on all major mobile and connected TV devices and platforms, including Amazon Fire, Apple, Android, Chromecast, PS4, Roku, Samsung Smart TVs, X Box One and more.
Preliminary fights will air nationally in English on ESPN and in Spanish on ESPN Deportes, as well as being simulcast in both languages on ESPN+ starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. Early prelims will be available on UFC Fight Pass and ESPN+ (in English and Spanish) at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
Blachowicz (27-8, fighting out of Warsaw, Poland) captured the vacant UFC light heavyweight championship with a spectacular TKO victory over Dominick Reyes in September. Known for his “Polish power,” the No. 14 ranked men’s pound-for-pound fighter has also earned impressive KO wins against Corey Anderson, Luke Rockhold and Ilir Latifi. Blachowicz now attempts to cement his reign by securing his first successful title defense and handing Adesanya his first career loss.
No. 3 ranked men’s pound-for-pound fighter Adesanya (20-0, fighting out of Auckland, New Zealand by way of Lagos, Nigeria) quickly turned heads upon joining the UFC roster in 2018. The former kickboxer has since secured his spot atop the middleweight ladder with sensational KO victories over Paulo Costa, Robert Whittaker and Derek Brunson. Adesanya now aims to etch his name in the history books by taking out Blachowicz to become a two-division UFC champion.
The greatest female fighter in combat sports history, Nunes (20-4, fighting out of Coral Springs, Fla. by way of Bahia, Brazil) looks to continue building her legacy by securing her seventh overall UFC title defense —and second in the featherweight division. Throughout her storied career, she has earned stoppage wins over former UFC champions Ronda Rousey, Holly Holm, Cris Cyborg and Miesha Tate. Nunes now hopes to deliver another vintage performance by becoming the first fighter to KO Anderson.
Former Invicta FC featherweight champion Anderson (11-4, fighting out of Kansas City, Mo. by way of Gold Coast, Australia) is poised to send shockwaves throughout the MMA world if she can finish Nunes. A powerful kickboxer, she has delivered memorable stoppage victories over Cat Zingano, Norma Dumont and Zarah Fairn during her UFC run. Anderson now has her sights set on achieving her dream of UFC gold by handing Nunes her first loss in over six years.
Yan (15-1, fighting out of Yekaterinburg, Russia) realized his goal of becoming UFC champion by delivering a thrilling fifth-round TKO victory over all-time great Jose Aldo last July. Currently riding an impressive 10-fight win streak, the No. 10 ranked men’s pound-for-pound fighter has also netted KO wins against UFC Hall of Fame inductee Urijah Faber, Douglas Silva de Andrade and Teruto Ishihara. Yan is now gunning for another highlight-reel finish to secure his first successful UFC title defense.
Sterling (19-3, fighting out of Uniondale, N.Y.) hopes to make the most of his first title shot by becoming the first fighter to finish Yan. A Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and former NCAA Division III wrestling standout, Sterling holds notable submission victories over Cory Sandhagen, Cody Stamann, Johnny Eduardo and Takeya Mizugaki. Sterling now attempts to secure his biggest win yet by dethroning Yan in emphatic fashion to capture UFC gold.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- No. 14 ranked lightweight contender Islam Makhachev (18-1, fighting out of Makhachkala, Russia) looks to defend his spot on the 155-ladder when he takes on dangerous finisher Drew Dober (23-9 1NC, fighting out of Denver, Colo.)
- Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger and No. 2 ranked contender Thiago Santos (21-8, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) locks horns with No. 4 Aleksandar Rakic (13-2, fighting out of Vienna, Austria)
- Former UFC bantamweight champion and No. 11 ranked contender Dominick Cruz (22-3, fighting out of San Diego, Calif.) looks to stop the momentum of surging Casey Kenney (16-2-1, fighting out of Tucson, Ariz.)
- No. 14 ranked bantamweight contender Song Yadong (16-4-1 1NC, fighting out of Heilongjiang, China) aims to push his unbeaten streak to 10 bouts when he faces The Ultimate Fighter season 27 veteran Kyler Phillips (8-1, fighting out of Glendale, Ariz.)
- Former UFC flyweight title challenger and No. 2 ranked contender Joseph Benavidez (28-7, fighting out of Las Cruces, N.M.) squares off with undefeated No. 3 Askar Askarov (12-0-1, fighting out of Khasavyurt, Dagestan, Russia)
- No. 15 ranked women’s strawweight contender Livinha Souza (12-4, fighting out of Araraquara, State of São Paulo, Brazil) takes on rising prospect Amanda Lemos (8-1-1, fighting out of Para, Brazil)
- No. 12 ranked flyweight contender Timothy Elliott (17-11-1, fighting out of Lee’s Summit, Mo.) goes for another show-stealing performance against Jordan Espinosa (15-8 1NC, fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.)
- Kennedy Nzechukwu (7-1, fighting out of Dallas, Texas) takes on unbeaten newcomer Carlos Ulberg (5-0, fighting out of Auckland, New Zealand) in an exciting light heavyweight bout
- Sean Brady (13-0, fighting out of Philadelphia, Penn.) faces Jake Matthews (17-4, fighting out of Epping, Victoria, Australia) in what promises to be an entertaining welterweight bout
- Rogerio Bontorin (16-2 1NC, fighting out of Colombo, Parana, Brazil) meets Kai Kara-France (21-9 1NC, fighting out of Auckland, New Zealand) in a clash of No. 8 ranked flyweight contenders
- Dana White’s Contender Series signees collide when Uros Medic (6-0, fighting out of Anchorage, Alaska by way of Novi Sad, Serbia) meets Aalon Cruz (8-3, fighting out of Tampa, Fla.) at lightweight
- Mario Bautista (8-1, fighting out of Phoenix, Ariz.) steps in to face Trevin Jones (12-6 1NC, fighting out of Maite, Guam) at bantamweight
For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 625 million fans and 142 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to approximately 900M TV households across more than 175 territories. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 70 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC was acquired in 2016 by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, along with strategic investors Silver Lake Partners and KKR. UFC is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok: @UFC.
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Fans sign up to ESPN+ for just $5.99 a month (or $59.99 per year) at ESPN.com, ESPNplus.com or on the ESPN App (mobile and connected devices). It is also available as part of The Disney Bundle offer that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu (ad-supported) — all for just $12.99/month.
About ESPN
ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment brand, features nine U.S. television networks, direct-to-consumer ESPN+, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, endeavors on every continent around the world, and more. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.